RSD on Dr Oz show TODAY w Paula Abdul
 

The show airs on WCIV at 5pm. The is supposedly in remission and is going to talk of her past struggles with RSD. This is amazing since she has been so shy about admitting it in the past due to the pain med issue. Hope it is good!! Enjoy!! If you miss it, it may be available on the Dr Oz show website tonight or tomorrow.

Just saw the Dr. Oz show and the Paula Abdul interview. I give Dr. Oz credit for having health shows that are more "out of the box" and cover more non-conventional medical problems than the other cookie cutter shows. He is also bringing more light to natural and complementary therapies, some of which have really helped me with my CRPS.

Dr. Oz did have a model of the body and illustrated (kind of) what happens with the nervous system when you have CRPS (they called it RSD).

They didn't spend a lot of time on it; 10-12 minutes maybe but at least it's a start at more awareness of this condition.

I honestly have found nobody other than doctors (and not even all of them) that know what this darn thing is!!

Wow you two beat me to it. I was just getting online to tell everyone that Dr. Oz has Paula Abdul on about her rsd in her neck/arm. She looks great and is doing so much better than she ever has. I was glad to see her talking about it (finally). I am glad she was able to use her star power to bring attention to what rsd is.

On a VERY positive note---I was healed of rsd Friday night at a Christian miracle service (after 7 years+ of rsd, fibro, rheum. arth., and osteoporosis). I left my cane (and my rsd) up on the altar. Joan Hunter Ministries (out of TX) is a powerful healing ministry (One that I am praying about becoming more involved in as I know she is a great instrument from God). I have had no burning pain or any pain since Friday night. I went back on Sunday night and gave my testimony to the church that there are miracles happening in 2012 and I am proof of it. I have not taken any medication since that night (my body was so full of spirit it was amazing). What an amazing experience for anyone that would like to check her service out. I feel like a baby learning to walk and do so many things WITHOUT PAIN. Just like Paula Abdul said we have to take care of our bodies. I have been getting iv's of natural vitamins and minerals for a year now and it has been over one year since I got off ALL opioids. What miracles have happened in my life. There is also a very spiritual side to healing and it takes alot of soul-searching and prayer but God will heal you as He doesn't want anyone in pain.
Healed in PA,
kathy d

Just watched this. It was okay...always good to have some awareness about RSD. Only issue I had was that the best advice Paula could give was to USE ICE...my jaw dropped and I think I just stared at the tv for a minute in shock. If she had not said that it all would have been fine. Obviously her pain affects her in some ways differently from mine since I rarely have the shooting pains like she was talking about (though the burning pain definitely rang a bell). I wish they had taken some time to talk about how this affects everyone differently and what some of the symptoms are besides the pain. Oh well...definitely some good stuff in there too.

I was happy to hear her suggest reaching out to others online (though I wish the advice she used to demonstrate its helpfulness was something other than "ice is your friend"). Dr. Oz had some great advice about ways to reduce inflammation and to avoid stress. I think that for a show like this it was a pretty good little segment and hopefully it will inspire some people to go online and look it up and to become educated about it.

BTW...I hope someday I will be able to wear heels again like the ones Paula had on. I miss wearing heels...

Yes, I was disappointed when Paula made the "ice" reference too! :eek:

No ice!!

I watched it and was very disappointed.* Once again, Paula Abdul made us RSD sufferers look bad.* She described how she got rsd after several accidents.* She was almost afraid to even say rsd, she kept saying nerve pain.* She was pretty avoidant about her past with pain and sleeping meds.* With rsd, she was still flying around the world performing and dancing.* Sounds kind of fishy, or maybe she had an extremely mild case.* Paula described what her pain felt like and honestly it sounded more like regular nerve pain, not rsd....but who knows.* A manor red flag for me was that she said ice is her friend and she used to even sleep with it on!!!!!!* We all know ice causes damage and is also completely intolerable for someone with rsd.....not soothing!!* Dr Oz had a display that lit up showing nerve responses and it was pretty misleading in that pain from your arm from example, would cause pain throughout your entire body.* He way he explained it made it sound like its more like fibromyalgia.* She said food was the key to her remission.* She took omega 3, b12, avoided alcohol and nicotine....and ate plant based foods when her nerve pain was bad.* She mentioned stress from being around Simon Cowell on American Idol and X Factor.* Paula taled about her rsd like it was in her pasf, but never said she was in remission, so i dont know her status.* She said "You can undo damage by really taking care of yourself."....speaking of vitamins and diet.* She mentioned she goes in rsd chat rooms and forums.* Paula never mentioned the struggles of other rsd patients and the horrible treatments that we undergo to tame this beast.* It sounded like its nothing you cant fix with a few vitamins and some lettuce!!!!* It just made rsd look very minor and that its not life changing.* I commend her for speaking out, as she has always been ashamed of having rsd....but i think today she did more harm than good as far as rsd awareness goes.* It portrayed it completely falsely!!! So disappointing!!!

Nothing surprising here. Dr. Oz's show is often filled with inaccuracies, downright contradictive statements within the same show, and poor planning, and superficial information where the meat of the data is never shared, only teasers on the beginning segments! His show with Dr. Weil and Deepak Chopra was an insult to both of those fine men!

I don't watch him anymore. One recent show he went up to one of his fancy graphics on the screen behind the chairs and literally started to BABBLE and wave his arms. It was embarrassing and revealing of how much he DOESN'T know. Often I wonder at his lack of understanding and superficial treatment of most of the things he presents. So I rarely watch him. I see him only by accident now, if I am channel surfing with in summer is less often.

Here is good example, which really sticks in my mind of how sloppy he is:
He had a big show on Vit D... oh, goody, I thought how great!
Then for the first 20 minutes he told everyone to use D3, still good.
Then one of his audience helpers..after all the hugs and kisses, he told
HER to use mushrooms for her D. Well mushrooms have plant D2 in them. And earlier he told EVERYONE that D3 is not in foods. It is things like this that are crazy making. So I don't watch him much and I didn't see this show on RSD for that reason.

Once he had a show on B6... and the video showed him taking B12, clearly labeled in big letters, next to his bed at bedtime. He is talking over this video about how he takes B6 at bedtime. That is only one example. If one knows what to look for, which I do much of the time, one can find irritating things like this in EVERY show. Hubby gets mad at me for talking back to the TV in fact!

So ICE for RSD? Well, she must have had a neuropathy of sorts, like our PN board. Ice works very well for us, and not for you folks here at RSD. So much for Abdul, her "RSD" and Dr. Oz.

While there were inaccuracies and it certainly wasn't something that probably any one of us would have scripted, I think there is value with it for "awareness" and starting the discussion. I already got two emails from friends that saw this show and know that I have this condition.

Nobody else is touching this condition on national television and I applaud him for taking a look at things other than what we hear about constantly. I'm not crazy about the Dr. Oz hug-o-rama either, but because he is at least discussing more rare conditions, I think there is some true value with this interview. I don't see any big downside. "Beggars can't be choosers"

If we start to nibble away at this in the media, more people will understand it. Helpful to us suffering from this? You bet. And also don't forget about the thousands of people watching this show that are having symptoms that don't have a clue as to what might be happening to them. They can learn from this as this condition is widely misunderstood, even among professionals.

I'll take it. We can fine tune the discussion along the way.............................

I think the problem with any of these doctor shows is that unless it is an entire hour long episode dedicated to RSD you really aren't going to get anything beyond the very superficial. It's disappointing to us who have and really understand the condition from our own experience...but in 10 minutes you can barely touch on RSD. It is a bit misleading if someone were to see it and think it's that easy to control RSD but if anyone were to actually read almost ANYTHING about RSD they would get a whole different picture.

My expectations were probably just low to begin with that I thought it was okay aside from the ice reference. More like what you would expect if you were describing RSD to a stranger on the street who asks what is wrong with you. Paula is not the most articulate person and while I don't think she did a great job discussing her RSD experience at least she did create some awareness about it by coming on the show. Many of her fans will look up RSD now and it will be that many more people familiar with the condition.

I just read a bunch of articles about this interview. I do not believe we were adequately represented. the responses seem to say that all RSD/ crps sufferers become drug addicts, also how many of us get relief using ice?. granted RSD got aired on a popular show. its a start. I just wish it took more of a front line to beauty tips..

Dr. Oz prefers to hug, kiss, put on purple gloves and take them off, and illustrate toys that bubble and spurt red colored liquid to simulate blood. His little games with true/false quiz with audience members are pointless. They contain factoids that appear in the newspapers and on CNN.

He eats up all the time of a full hour daily with this trivia. He could well present better coverage of various things, but I believe he does not want to inflame doctors or his advertisers who pay the bills. Imagine people seeing something useful on OZ and going to their doctors who have no clue? Doctors HATE informed patients for the most part. His show is basically useless IMO. The show is like "Let's Make a Deal" come on down... and I for one am tired of watching women slobbering all over him. (the show is basically narcissistic and he just gloats with all that attention). You know he was much better when he was a guest on Oprah. I saw an old rerun a couple of months ago, and it was pretty good.
But his own show? Blech!

The show has certainly brought the kind of awareness that I could live without. Abdul still performs and adheres to a rather grueling schedule. She still choreographs and dances extensively. I have been following her activities for several years since I am a former dancer. Her age alone is a prohibiting factor in her ability to dance.

One of my neighbors suggested that I could return to dance if I took the drugs and vitamins that "cured" Paula.

I have received similar phone calls from three different friends. One friend said, "you are tough, with hard work like Paula you could return to dance."

Another suggested that I get a personal trainer. "If it worked for Paula it could work for you." I asked her if two years of PT counted?

The other friend suggest I visit Paula's doctor. Hum, seeing the top docs in CRPS in two states, having an excellent team in my own state, and being on the wait list for the top CRPS doc in the world for two years is just not good enough-I need to see the doc no one has ever heard of have a look see at me.

I notice there was no mention of Paula being seen by any of the well known Top Docs in CRPS.

Knowing first hand the kind of daily intense conditioning it takes to be able to keep dancing, particularly at her age, and that Paula has not missed to many beats in that respect I wonder???????

Of course I have not met all people with CRPS but no one I have either met in person or become acquainted with on forums could be in the kind of physical condition and perform in the way Paula does.

"Work Harder" Really????????

Paula is reported to have a "mild case" of CRPS.

Any body out there have that kind of case of CRPS?

http://robertgschwartz.homestead.com/page7.html

A friend of mine sent me this link- it is a syndrome called "ABC "that has similar symptoms as RSD BUT responds to ice and dislikes warmth. Perhaps this is what Paula has because IF she has RSD I want the kind that she has!!!!!!

Tha Oz show was again very disapointing to me for all of the reasons posted above. He has been asked by many RSD Groups to do a show and has REFUSED all . Paula has -in my opinion- once again done more harm than good for the RSD Community. I pray that no "newby" was watching and went for ice packs!!!!!!!!

Good luck Paula in promoting your beauty products!!!!! Wasnt this the true reason that you did the Oz show??????? Do you REALLY care about us RSDers? How much money have you donated to research etc. !!!!!

My blood pressure is up now so I will end this. Thanks all of you for being here -This forum is the best-Fondly-Carol

Here is ABC syndrome, again: It is more like arthritic inflammation and PN than RSD.
http://robertgschwartz.homestead.com/page7.html

I recall Abdul was on Enbrel? That is used for inflammatory arthritis and other inflammatory conditions (like psoriasis).

http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/...la-abdul_x.htm

http://www.rsds.org/5/news/2005/rsdsa_response.htm

Has anyone here been offered Enbrel. I don't recall seeing that.

You are so right about Embrel-I have a friend with rhumitroid arthritis that takes these shots. Never heard of it for RSD treatment,

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RSD & Magnesium ?
 

~ ~ ~
Carol,

I'm new here and had to ask and say...

Have your minerals levels been checked? Especially magnesium?

I ask because a friend of mine who has researched medical info for years came across a magnesium deficiency being a cause of RSD...
- He met a woman dx'd with RSD by a specialist... He told her to dissolve a box of Epsom Salts in a warm bath and sit in it... As soon as she stepped in her body pain started to go away... She went back to the specialist who was amazed she did not have RSD a month later...

Iodine & Magnesium deficiencies create many medical conditions...

OR does RSD include many diverse complexities?

Christie
I do find it odd the medical world is not finding cures and relief for conditions today....

ice?
 

I too was ice?
I am very temperture sensitive. Even have to be careful this time of the year getting into swimming pools! No shocks. Just ease in

heels and flip flops
 

You just can't wear them for long. I finally was able to wear flip flops and was so excited! But after about 1 1/2 years I had to give them up again. But maybe I will be able to again some day.

Paula androz. when paula abdul was first injured it was in a high school accident .(she was told she was never going to dance again) she is a fighter then the FACT that she has RSD its questioned by her history alone as this was first diagnosed in her in late 1980,s early 90,s. Remember her car accident around 1991.. this all came out then. but her past is anything but a secret. I am for one extremely displeased with alot regarding the interview but I do know an awful lot about this lady. in fact i also defended her when she was attacked in one of the articles calling her a druggy. paula also has multiple back injuries. as well as lupus and ra. addisons Im not so sure about. I will attack the ice theory for RSD (complete misrepresentation of the RSD community) researching others would tell you that. and some one else mentioned that it is possible that the ice theory for paula could also be (ABC) what ever that may be. but i believe out largest complaint goes to the oz show itself.(please read carefully) we got named as a group.(RSD) and then were not given the face it should have. As a group we all know what it is like to be told this isn't really that bad. so I can't believe as a group we would cast the same stone. But if her intention is to only serve herself then she should keep quiet. We need cold hard truths to be told not a fluff hero story. I AM a big fan of paula and have followed her from her time with michael jackson, though her music, and through a lot of down falls. even with her time with janet jackson brief it might have been. this lady has suffered a lot and has tried to rise above it many times . .. Please i ask that you do follow this forum a little more stay with it and understand this community. also under stand that we are starving for a real break in informing the mass about this infliction. we have to learn about this beast from each other and then train our doctors in this and we do not have the money to get vip treatment and the appropriate studies we need.We as a community are desperate for this.I suggest you speak to dr oz about the injustice he did paula and the rest of us in this community of never ending pain.that would help us all a lot

P.S. scroll to the bottom of the screen to see other forums here on paula abdul

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hello my levels are all good(right now) it is possible that RSD just really complex.. CRPS. complex regional pain syndrome) they still do not understand why this happens , they just know the most common starts to this. they have also noted that some get it from getting sick or just wake up one day in a lot of pain. those are least common but still it exists.

hey I was on the RSDsA web site and noted an article about the embrel she uses is for RA. check it out if you get a chnce

yes yes I know I'm nuts..... after more research paula has undergone a treatment called pamidronate;bisphosphnate by dr michael goldberg. in camden
and still seeing him. in 2005 i believe paula abdul actually sign a HIPPA release form so the DR could freely discuss the matter to clarify the whole subject. also in this search I also found another drug mentioned (not for paula)its name is SAVELLA. its an opiad ..anyone here of that one???

I took Savella...it didn't do much for me but it was supposed to help with the burning pain. I was suffering from seratonin syndrome (undiagnosed at the time) when I was started on it though and then had a horrible reaction when Cymbalta was added to the mix. The bad reaction may or may not have been related to an interaction with the savella or tramadol but doctor thinks most likely it's because I was already suffering from seratonin syndrome and adding the Cymbalta put me over the edge. It was a very scary time with me to be dealing with all that at the same time as my RSD was spreading unchecked.

Savella is an antidepressant with mixed actions:
Some norepi reuptake, and some serotonin. It has more norepi actions than other mixed drugs like Cymbalta.

It has not been received well by patients. It was approved in other countries before coming to the US. Its main target is for fibromyalgia patients.

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Hi- My name is Carol and I have had RSD for 5 years now. I was very upset and angry after watching Paula on Dr. Oz, but after reading your post I am sorry to say that I now am livid.
Allow me to explain: The national average shows that it is taking a patient 6-8 Doctors to get a diagnosis. It took me 15 and almost 1 year!!!!!

Perhaps if your "IDOL" Paula had been in your words "honest about it" and not so "tight lipped" this statistic could be lowered.

Oh and in your words she has CHOSEN to be this way because "people wouldn't hire her" And you want our sympathy-I think not! Have you ever considered the thousands of RSDers (myself included ) that have lost their careers to this monster and not only can no longer work but are denied Social Security benefits, lose Workers Comp cases etc. because no one knows what RSD is!!!!!! Thanks Paula for being tight lipped!

Oh and that is just the beginning of our losses-Try spouses, homes, health insurance, family members, friends, life savings not to mention our self worth!!!! Thanks Paula for being tight lipped!

Again I quote you "Paula tries her best" Really!!!!! Where is her voice when what we need the most is AWARENESS. Has she advocated Legaslators to pass bills requireing Doctors/Nurses just 2 measley hours of training to be able to spot RSD symptoms???? I HAVE!!
Has she started a Support Group and mentored others -Fielding hysteracal phone calls at any hour to help another who suffers????? I Have!!!!

How much money has she contributed to the RSDSA Assoc. for research????
I HAVE !!!!! and proud of it

Has she sponsored any "WaLKS" BALLOON RELEASES for awareness????? I HAVE!!!

Believe me I am not here to toot my own horn-only to open YOUR eyes as to your misguided hero worship by being a "MASSIVE PAULA FAN"
Perhaps you should get your priorities in order and spend your time helping some TRUE HEROES because my heroes are ALL of my fellow RSDers!!!!

You came to OUR forum to seek sympathy for Paula-why not come back to seek awareness and fight for ALL of us!!!!!

Oh and please pass this on to Paula- It is better to stay tight lipped than to mis represent RSD as she did on DR.Oz.

Gently Hugs-Fondly -Carol

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I invite all to seek out an article from Dr Michael Goldberg for further paula abdul info re RSD and other things in 2005 she released er hippaa rights for a previous misunderstanding. ... .also possible other aids in our battle. This is the name of her Treating physician.. ((good stuff))

Hello everyone, just stepping in here to hopefully calm things down before more comments are made or flames begin to fly.

It's really not worth getting angry at each other. :grouphug:

Dr Oz had a celebrity on his show, probably for ratings reasons.
We don't know the facts or how or why or any of that behind the scenes stuff..
Nobody can guilt or force a celebrity to be a spokesperson if they don't want to, and that is a personal choice for them to make..


If the discussions here become heated towards each other we will be forced to close it.

Thank you for understanding.

sorry i don't know what norepi or reuptake is but I thank you.. I believe that just hit my big no no list thanx..catra and mrs d appreciate it
thanx.....

That was me- just woke up and when I stepped down on my right foot WOW PAIN!!!! To this day I cannot recall any specific injury-Go Figure!!

just goes to show how little is really known still!! at least I know what happened though.

I believe I empathize with Carol on this. While I do not discredit Paula for whatever pain disorder she experienced or how she dealt with it, her written word, and others, would seem to indicate that she was dealing with a disorder that at least mimicked RSD, but perhaps not the monster itself. I am happy for her that she beat whatever it is that she suffered from. Does anyone REALLY know since there is no certain diagnostic criteria for RSD/CRPS?

I did not see the show but somewhere I think that I read that she beat "RSD" and as we all know, no one is that lucky! That alone is suspect and suggests something else. Remission is the best we can hope for and that is rare. But then again what do I know, I am just some poor dumb schmuck that has constant permanent pain, lost his career and more...never to return

Caught it online and it was informitive. About time!

my special injury was .........Stumping my toe on the stair case in my home. For real! changed my life.

Wow I am so sorry!!!!-Carol

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The moral of the story.. you never know what the day may bring ..enjoy your life to its fullest no matter what.. my love and wishes to all here.. this is a beast

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Paula Fan- I have recieved many PM's text, phone calls , e-mails since your initial post. I feel obligated to speak out one final time!
Neurotalk forum (This One For RSD) is a venue that those of us who suffer this monster come to share our experience , strenght, love , support and most of all hope

and some times just to vent. We are a "family" here and it baffles me as to why you chose to come here. Not only that, but how did you find this site? You came here for the sole purpose of defending the action of ONE person who happens to be a celebrity-We didnt ask for any explainations!!!!! This isn't how this works!!!!! We come here for the good of ALL!!!!

You would do more good by following my suggestions in my first reply to you. You obviously have MUCH time on your hands -Why not put it to good use for ALL of us and not just for YOUR idol!!!!!
ie: Contact your Congressmen, State Legislators etc. and implore them to bring to the floor any Bills that relate to awareness and education of RSD/CRPS to doctors and nurses in your state.

Contact Social Security and ask them to PLEASE consider RSD an "automatic " NOT a case by case approval,causing many who are suffering at their worst much agony! Your celebrity doesnt need to worry about these things -does she!!!!!!

Contact Workers Comp in your State and ask them if THEIR doctors are aware of the signs and symptoms of RSD.

Contact the Veterns Hospital in your area and ask the same thing as many of our Vets come back home only to suffer RSD and have to FIGHT for their benefits, are mis diaganosed etc. ANOTHER issue your idol doesnt have to face.

I could go on and on with suggestions for you to help the "Greater Good " and not to come here for "ONE" .Perhaps this will open your heart to spend your idle time much more wisely, *edit*
Gentle Hugs to all-Carol