hi,i was diagnosed with SCA2 in 2010,i take many medicines but i did't feel any change,tell me please what should i do for my soon recovery because i don't want to get in wheelchair...thanks
Hi, welcome to our group. If you read the posts here you will see that there is not one thing in particular
that will help to get rid of ataxia. Just keep moving as long as you can. Many have stopped eating gluten. I have tried alternative medicine. There is no cure, mentally stay positive and strong. There is a great support system here, wonderful people.
Hi there Aliona
Straight forward answer here: there is no cure, there is no recovery, there are no medicines. Ataxia is a progressive thing.
And eventually ending up in a wheelchair is not a choice. Indoors you can use walking aids. I myself have a 4-legged crutch and I also use the furniture, the walls, chairs..everything I can hold on to actually, because my 4-legged friend doesn't exactly make me 'speedy gonzales'. Outdoors I have been in a wheelchair for some years now. ONLY thing to do is accept this 'thing'. It's not like we have an alternative, do we. Try to focus on the things you still can do and not on the ones you can't anymore. That will only sadden you. Find things you like to do while sitting down. Mines are: reading, doing the crypto puzzles, I knit all kinds of things, I play bridge on the BBO internet site a lot. You have to find things which you enjoy and can keep you busy. When the mind goes wandering it will get you nowhere. Read funny books with humor which can make you laugh. Because laughter is the best medicine of all for people with ataxia..boost the serotonin in the upstairs department and stay positive. ONLY way to get through.
The first step is acceptance. It is what it is. Stay social and active within you limitations. Best wishes to you.
Hello Aliona,
I agree with Suzi,exercise as much as you can to keep your strength, Eat fresh foods and get enough sleep. The idea is to stay physically as strong as possible. Also, try to play brain games, like crosswords puzzles, they will keep your mind alert.
In your first post, you said people make fun of you, ignore them. Do not stay in your room, keep seeing your friends. Stay safe and carry a cane even if you do not really need it. It will keep people from staring at you and believing that something is wrong, rather than you have been drinking 
Stay in touch with this forum, for support and information.
Best wishes to you. Take care.
Do you have any kind of health insurance in your country? If so, can you go to a physical therapist who could teach you some exercises to keep your balance for instance?
Hi
1. Look at Frenkel exercises on Wikipedia. Do the exercises.
2. Get some Buspar from your GP. It does work. It helps you do the exercises.
3. Find a physio near you who does Bobath technique. If you can find a physio who also does Frenkel exercises, so much the better.
4. Get an exercise ball. Just sit on it and bounce up down. This works immediately.
5. Use an antidepressant like like perhaps Prozac when you feel dispirited. Depression is part of the disease. Tackle it. You are not alone.
6. Strong vitamin D tablets also help, as does high dose vitamin C. Get some. The cerebellum has the highest amount of these vitamins in the body.
Don't listen to people who say "Accept it".
Fight it.
By fighting ataxia you are beating it.
Good luck. Stay strong.
I have CSA2 also and I agree with you. I don't want a wheelchair. It was a real eye opener because I injured my knee and was in a wheelchair for about a week. I couldn't wait to get out of it.
I have recently started doing exercises that work on my balance and I have noticed a difference. I balance on one foot (just raise foot an inch or two and have something to grab onto if you need it), I also try to walk heel to toe (I use the hallway). When my knee is completely healed I'm going to try Yoga. I think anything that works on balance is beneficial, you may be horrible at it when you do it,and some days are better than others, but something is better than nothing.
You might want to check out Dr. Clouse's website:
http://walkingwithataxia.com/index.html.
He is doctor that was diagnosed with what we have.
Thank you very much for your support,hope it will help me
I try to stay away from unnecessary medications because there are so many bad side effects. For now, I am just taking vitamins:
Zinc 50mg
B6 100mg
B12 100mcg
COQ10 50mg and Zoloft for depression
Exercise is very important. You can find exercise videos on YouTube or Sparkpeople.com.
Yup. Buspar does work for ataxia. For *me* it has the side effect of sleepiness. But most people don't get this.
I'll reduce the dosage and continue it.
Aliona, the medicine Buspar is probably not called by that name in your country. If you are interested, the name you should give your doctor is the generic name " buspirone"
Also, here is an address for the European ataxia association that you could contact for a specialist near you.
Good luck.
Sorry, forgot to put in the address. Here it is :
Hi. I'm an old foggy still active at 80. The advice that has been given is all good, but you may need some modifications. Don't be scarred! We are with you. You should rightly ignore stupid people who are unkind. However, some friends, such as I have, make fun in a good way, and keep me from feeling down. Thanks to Brian for some things that I have not done. I would also note that there are some yoga classes that do "chair" yoga that may be better for a starter. Also, I like Pilates because there is not much in difficult balance. BVitamins are for energy, esp. B12, which should be taken under the tongue or nasally to be absorbed. (It can't pass through the digestive system.) As an antidepressant, I take Effexor rt @150mg. Oh, also check the thyroid readings. The scales have recently changed. If yout TS(thyroid stymilus) is high while your T's are low, your body is being told to produce more but the body won't listen. Such an imbalance affects some; no guarantee.
Hi again!
Yes, Buspar is also called buspirone.
It's actually primarily an anti-anxiety medicine that also has anti-ataxia properties.
Here's one of the many links to this effect here