With the U.S. taking a beating in this year’s hurricane season, many people are wondering how to best prepare for a storm. There’s no lack of urgency, as hurricane season lasts through November, and then the winter storm season begins in the northern U.S.
What’s clear is that preparing for any kind of dangerous weather involves more than grabbing a bag of supplies and securing your home. That’s especially true when you have a chronic disease like multiple sclerosis. “People with MS are prone to vulnerability, whether it’s disability or cognitive difficulties,” explains physician assistant Teresa Frohman, an associate professor of neurology and managing director of the Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Center at the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School.
She and her husband, Dr. Elliot Frohman, professor of neurology and the director of the Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Center, have been advising MS patients who were in Hurricane Harvey’s path along the Texas coast. So far, most of the MS problems have been heat-related. “Some folks had to abandon their homes and were in ambient high temperatures. That intensified their walking problems and visual distortion” among other issues people with MS faced, Elliot explains. Symptoms that worsen from overheating is an MS risk known as Uhthoff’s phenomenon.
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How MS Makes a Person Vulnerable
Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease that damages nerves and can lead to problems with weak muscles, such as difficulty walking or using your arms and hands to bathe, dress or eat. People with advanced MS may need to use a walker or a wheelchair to get around, and they may no longer be able to drive. Chronic fatigue, slowed cognition, an overactive bladder, constipation and depression are also common MS problems.
The many challenges of MS require a comprehensive approach to treatment. It starts with powerful medications that help stave off or mitigate attacks on nerves. Some medications are taken orally, some are injected and others are infused intravenously in a doctor’s office. MS patients may need additional medications to control MS symptoms such as depression, fatigue and bladder and bowel issues. Exercise, physical therapy, psychotherapy, a healthy diet and adequate sleep are also important in managing the disease.
But there’s no time to think about treatment when perilous weather conditions develop. And the stress that MS patients may experience at these times can make last-minute decisions harder. “Stress is a well-recognized factor that can provoke old or new MS symptoms, such as reduced and slowed information processing speed as well as other cognitive functioning, such as judgment and executive function,” Elliot says.
Lack of Planning
Unfortunately, some MS patients don’t plan what they’ll do in a weather emergency. “Some people with MS are a bit in denial and think they’ll be fine in a storm. But they’re fundamentally wrong,” warns Elliot.
Ed McCrane is familiar with the problem. He’s the emergency management chief in Sarasota County, Florida, and has helped people through the devastation of numerous hurricanes and tropical storms, such as Hurricane Charley in 2004 and Tropical Storm Isaac in 2012.
McCrane says last-minute calls from special needs patients are common when a storm is coming. “They don’t have anyone to take care of them or they don’t have transportation or a place to go,” McCrane says.
It’s not just major events that trigger calls. “We have people living along rivers and canals who aren’t paying attention to the weather, and suddenly it rains a lot and the banks overflow. But they didn’t call ahead to tell us they have a physical disability and that they’d need help in an emergency,” McCrane says. “We just heard from one woman with MS who lost everything, even her handicap-equipped van, when an island canal flooded because of rain.” McCrane and his team are now getting help for her.
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Special Needs Registries
Every county in Florida has a registry for people with special needs who’ll need assistance evacuating or a safe place to weather a storm. “We can see who’s in an area that may need to be evacuated, and we’ll call them ahead of time to warn them. Then we go and pick them up and get them to shelters created for people with special needs. The shelters have special hospital cots and oxygen and generators,” McCrane explains. “We even take them home when it’s safe.”
Nearly two dozen states across the U.S. have special needs registries for weather emergencies, from California and Colorado to Georgia, Florida, North Dakota and New Jersey.
Call your city or county government to find out if there’s a registry you can join. If there’s not, McCrane recommends contacting either your local or state emergency management office and asking for guidance.
Create an Emergency Plan
No matter what kind of weather dangers your region may face — hurricanes, floods, blizzards or even tornadoes — it’s crucial to develop an emergency plan well in advance. Put the plan on paper, and give it to loved ones.
You’ll need some basics on hand, such as three to seven days’ worth of water and non-perishable food, a can opener, soap, flashlights and fresh batteries, candles, matches, a fire extinguisher, a battery-operated radio and cash in small denominations (in case stores have no power and little ability to make change).
The Frohmans have developed a detailed list of recommendations for their MS patients. Some suggestions that apply directly to health are:
— Stockpile medications. The Frohmans encourage people with MS to have a month’s worth of medicine handy.
— Develop an evacuation plan. Find out if you’re in a flood-prone area and the location of the nearest shelter.
— Talk to your health care team to get advice in advance of a storm.
— Keep a list of phone numbers of family and friends, medical providers, emergency personnel, drug companies and specialty pharmacies where you may be purchasing your medications. Give copies to your family or friends in case yours is destroyed.
— Maintain and distribute to family a list of your current medications.
— Continue taking your medications as directed. “The natural disaster produces stressful circumstances, where patients may erroneously believe that adherence with treatment is not so important” Elliot says. ” However, your treatment reduces both the risk of new MS attacks, and the severity of them if they occur. ”
— Keep a first-aid kit, hand sanitizer and antiseptic wipes on hand.
Other ideas may depend on the type of weather coming your way. You may need extra blankets and warm clothes in snow-prone areas, or plenty of plastic bags to keep documents and supplies dry if you’re dealing with floodwater.
If your emergency plan includes evacuating to a shelter, make a list of supplies you’ll need to take with you, such as medications and medical equipment, sleeping bags, pillows and a list of contacts.
The most important thing you can do is start planning now, not later. “It requires discussion and preparation, and both patients and their families should take this seriously,” Elliot says.
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“Find out what you’ll do if a hurricane or blizzard comes and you can’t drive or you don’t have a person to care for you. Make your local agencies aware of your situation and how you’ll need them to help you,” McCrane advises. “In every storm you have people who don’t prepare. But we can only do so much based on our capabilities and the information you give us. When disaster strikes, and you realize you need more assistance, you have to tell us what that is.”
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How to Prepare for Weather Emergencies When You Have MS originally appeared on usnews.com
