ࡱ;  RE,Y *\Gfpx qrԽ\1Y:YC8$ F!ѷ(d@CompObjC¾!8$^!½ٷb\ \\ȋ$7!f$^ {f\!hWordDocument8!!!* !*Q*0 Т!,EObjectPool92*%Y+W̿$'d'd ̤a! FMicrosoft Word 6.0 DocumentNB6WWord.Document.6;  Oh+'0   #/7 ?Kh pz KThe Server:Applications:Microsoft Office:Microsoft Word 6:Templates:NormalDSFLDSFL'@d6d@v@d6d@ܥhO  e4,' &&)))))V)V)V)V)V)n) x) V)+K)))))))))++++++&&,X~,+))))))+))))))))))))))0)>))))))))) CAMBRIDGE CHRONICLEPRIVATE  Jan. 9, 1997 BEE STINGS BRING RELIEF TO WOMAN SUFFERING FROM MS BY AMY MILLER Chronicle Staff The idea of voluntarily getting stung by bees is a hard one to embrace. But six years after Kelly Ames found out she has multiple sclerosis, she has learned that bee stings are her salvation. A 28-year old Arlington resident, Ames now stings herself regularly with some of the 3,000 bees she keeps in an observation hive at her home. Although no one is sure why, the venom from bee stings has been shown to help treat symptoms of MS for some, but not all, people suffering from the disease. "I lead a normal life, and if I don't sting myself for two weeks I feel myself slipping back," said Ames, who had just stung herself half a dozen times in preparation for a trip to Vermont. Although experts know it is the venom from a bee that helps treat victims of multiple sclerosis, as well as people suffering from arthritis, they don't know exactly how or why this treatment is successful. Because of the mystery of this medical treatment, the television show "Unsolved Mysteries" is planning an episode on bee venom therapy, which will feature Ames. The show, taped last July, will air Friday at 8 pm on Channel 7 in Boston, which is NBC. Ames mother, Debbie Ames who grew up in North Cambridge and graduated from Cambridge High and Latin, admits it was hard at first to watch her daughter willingly get stung. "it takes a lot of courage," said Debbie Ames, who owned the Supreme Food Shop on Walden Street, now the Thistle and Shamrock, with her husband Pat until 1987. Like Kelly, she has grown to appreciate that the venom somehow does what no other treatment can do. Kelly's farther, Pat Ames, helped make the bee treatment possible by building the observation bee hive in their home. A carpenter, he built a unit about the size of a window that keeps 3,000 bees behind thick glass. The bees have access to the outside world, where they get honey before returning to the Ames home and the Queen bee. Other residents of the area with MS come to the Ames home to get a jar of bees. Kelly saw her life begin to change after three months of letting the bees sting her. In 1994, she learned about bee venom therapy from members of an MS support group. "one women saw how downhill Kelly was going and she got on the phone and called me and told me about the bees and of course I thought she was crazy, but Kelly had tried almost everything else, including going to Lourdes in France and getting holy water. So she decided to give it a try after talking to some beekeepers who worked with other MS sufferers and to her doctor at Brigham & Women's in Boston. A beekeeper in Tyngsbororough taught Kelly how to use an observation bee hive and she was on her way. At first, as recommended, she would sting herself twice a day, increasing the number daily until she was getting about 20 stings a day. Men are encouraged to take about 40 stings a day, said Kelly, who works full-time in the admissions office of Harvard Business School. It was so crazy at first, She hid her head in a pillow and screamed. But in fact, her immune system was so low that she didn't feel much pain. After three months she began to feel the pain of the stings and she knew something was changing for the better. After six months, her system was filled with venom and her sight had returned. She no longer walks with a cane. Now, she takes about six stings a week, or whenever she feels a relapse or the need for extra energy. She carries out a stinging session by putting the bees into a jar and then removing them one at a time with long tweezers. She then puts them on particular parts of the body. The important points are the same as for acupuncture. For Kelly's particular ailments she stung herself behind her left ear and on her tail bone. Now that her sight is back, she stings herself primarily on her back. Doctors using bee venom to treat patients with arthritis will inject it through a needle. But Kelly said something in the venom that is important for treating MS gets lost when the substance is taken from the bees and injected through a needle. At this point, Kelly is something of an expert on the subject. She also runs a support group in Lexington once a month, and estimates that nearly half of those who use bee venom find it successfully treats their symptoms. She leaves her telephone line permanently open to whoever calls in and gets calls from all over the world. The first thing she tells people is to get a sting kit in case they turn out to be allergic to the honey bee, which is the only bee that works for this therapy. Although not everyone benefits from the voluntarily bee stings, it certainly has done well for Ames. Agrees her mother, "she's addicted because she knows once she stings herself she comes right back."  ....()()))()()K:phoenix⫧̥ȧȶƳƐƕƟƇƂȂČ҅ƷՔΌՔȅȂƫƢȂڶȢƷƎƁSummaryInformation(Microsoft Word 6.0.12 ࡱ; ƨƕƵƤƤǂ֏Â㫇㥊⩖⠏奧‚ⵇ‚ﲃ⧓䧕‚⣞‚㲉‚悏ŏŠŏQfŠ悏^ffXfŏŠƏ悏Ƃ17JւŏŠƏ悁$f筂 ffffXf1䂏ꁦgŏQfŠ悏悏^fՁXfՏ穂Տ祂Տ終Տ䵧ׂgfIffIff$f筂ŏŠƏ悏ꁦgꁧgŏŠfggIfIff$f筂ƂŏWJg_悏ŏ笂fgfgŏŠÊ悏gf$f筂笂ɏҁ؏碂碕-碕-碕-碕-ŏQfŠ悏^fƏ悁$f筂碂壔䠩0f̏磂ɏҁ؏碂ُ碂碂碕䠥0ffFf䠵0f̏砂悏f堵0f̏硂ɏҁ؏碂碕-ُ碂碂碕Ƃf碕悁整f̏箂؏碂碕‚ُ碂碂̏硂碕f悁8f粃Ffύ?i鍀ꪨ͛뢮ɋ쬮񸴼ӑ޺ŷړݝߍ۹^غŃ殯昙顠闖diMAINdϫԦ˂'(34!uuDuD CcGC uDC  ./crFs2O  W ulLZ%')*+,./1234$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$0,0,0,H(!K"@"Normal3 ]a c"A@"Default Paragraph Font+@ Endnote Text *@ Endnote Referenceh@ Footnote Text &@! 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