|
Meeting
Dates
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2009
|
| January
10 |
No
meeting due to room scheduling conflict
|
| February
14 |
Topic
to be announced (TBA) |
| March
14 |
TBA
|
| April
11 |
TBA
|
| May
9 |
TBA
|
| June
13 |
TBA
|
| July
11 |
TBA
|
| August
8 |
TBA
|
| September
12 |
TBA
|
| October
10 |
TBA
|
| November
14 |
TBA
|
| December
12 |
TBA
|
Meeting
Times and Format
2:00-2:10
p.m. - Introduction / Announcements
2:10-3:30
p.m. - Information
Program (speaker, video, or topical discussion)
3:30-4:00
p.m. - Speaker-Audience Q&A / Introductions / Networking
4:00-4:30
p.m. - TCN Library open / Continued large and small group discussion and
networking
The meetings start promptly at 2:00 with the program portion of our
meeting (speaker, video, etc.). The program portion of the meeting will
generally last until 3:30, but may run longer depending on the needs
of the speaker and the audience. After the program portion there will
be time for questions, general discussion, and for members to use the
TCN Library.
When we have a speaker, video, or panel discussion, please be courteous
to those presenting and providing the program. Wait to ask questions
if requested, and help make sure that everyone who has questions (or
answers!) has a chance to speak.
Some
support groups can be very depressing, a situation which tends to turn
away those who are looking more for information, comfort and validation
rather than a meeting that is emotionally and physically draining to
all in attendance.
TCN,
rather than having "support group" meetings where people exclusively
talk about their illness and listen to others doing the same, TCN puts
the emphasis on information through the use of speakers, videos and
panel discussions. As the speaker-audience Q&A winds down, audience
members can begin to talk with one another, meeting new people, sharing
their stories, learning from on another.
NEW
MEETING LOCATION
Starting January 2009
Vesalius Room
(The conference room on second floor of the old building)
Sutter Medical Center/Hospital
3325 Chanate Rd
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
Map
and driving directions
Parking
is available in the parking lot that services the hospital, emergency
room, and public health offices. Parking is highly competitive, so plan
on arriving earlier than usual so you can circle the parking lot if
need be. Once you park your car, you enter the old two-story Spanish-style
building through the front doors. Once you pass through the foyer and
enter the hallway, the stairs and elevator will be to your left. Once
you are upstairs, the conference room is near the stairs and elevator.
Accessibility
Guidelines
We thank you for respecting the needs of our participants by helping make
our meetings accessible to all.
Come
fragrance free
Please respect others and refrain from wearing fragrances, fragranced
hair and other products, and clothing scented by detergents, fabric
softener, and dry cleaning chemicals. Remember that if you previously
wore a garment while wearing perfume or other fragrances, chances are
those around you who are hypersensitive to fragrances may still be affected
by the lingering chemicals even if they are not detectable by you.
Please be very careful about what you are wearing: even very small residues
of fragranced products clinging to your clothing or body can cause reactions
ranging from loss of voice, respiratory impairment, nose bleeds and
more to those who have MCS. Remember: even a small amount of fragrance
is as much of a barrier to those with MCS as a few steps are to someone
in a wheelchair. People who come to meetings with scents on them will
be asked to leave the offending garments or materials in their car or,
if that is not possible, to leave the meeting.
Newspapers should be left outside the door.
Snack considerately
If you bring snacks, please avoid strong smelling ones. Many of us suffer
from distractibility and noise intolerance. If your snacks are packaged
in cellophane, please transfer them into a low-noise container before
you come.
Dress appropriately
Due to autonomic nervous system dysregulation, we all respond to ambient
air temperature differently, with some people being cold in the same
environment that others find comfortable and still others find unbearably
warm. So, if you are usually cold or usually warm, please dress in layers
that you can put on or take off as you need to be comfortable. Feel
free to bring a blanket or a quiet personal fan if you need one.
Get comfortable
Most of us have chronic or acute pain, so feel free to bring a special
chair or pillow, or get up and walk around or stand in the back or sides
of the room. Everyone will understand.
Access our room
The meeting room is wheelchair accessible. By everyone striving to keep
it fragrance free, we can help ensure that nearly everyone will be able
to tolerate being in the room for a couple of hours.
Thank you for following these guidelines
All of the accessibility guidelines may sound ludicrous to anyone who
is used to just strolling into any gathering without regard for any of
the above. We all remember how that felt, and would love to have that
freedom again. Unfortunately, our brain, autonomic nervous, endocrine
and immune systems have sharply curtailed those carefree days.
TCN
Library
The Carousel Network compiles a variety of information resources of interest
to our members, including books, videos of meetings, collections, and
newsletters. These materials are available to TCN members only.
The
library is open for returns only prior to the meetings, and opens again
from 4:00 to 4:30 for browsing and checking out library materials. Returning
materials before the meeting ensures that all materials will be
ready and available after the meeting, when the Library is open for browsing
and check-outs from 4:00 to 4:30 PM, at the end of the formal meeting
program. The Librarian is available to check materials out, and to check
returning materials back in.
Materials
may be checked out for one month, with the member checking the library
item out with the Librarian at one meeting, and returning it to the Librarian
at the next meeting. If you can't make the meeting, or otherwise need
to contact the Librarian, please send your email to library@cndsinfo.net,
or leave a message on our voicemail, 707.324-8881.
To
become a member of The Carousel Network, you can join at the next meeting,
or print out the membership form,
and mail it, with your $20 payment, to: The Carousel Network, 122 Calistoga
Road #216, Santa Rosa CA 95409-3702.
Go to: Meeting
Dates • Meeting Time &
Format • Meeting Location
• Room
& Meeting Accessibility
Join TCN: You
can join at a meeting, or fill out a membership
form and mail it with your check for $20 to The Carousel Network,
122 Calistoga Road #216, Santa Rosa, CA 95409-3702. Members receive our
bimonthly newsletter, email meeting reminders, and borrowing privileges
from our TCN Library. TCN
is supported solely by membership dues and donations. Memberships are
due for renewal annually from the date joined. We thank you for renewing
promptly.
Legal Disclaimer:
The Carousel Network, Chronic Neuroimmune Diseases is an all-volunteer,
501(c)3 non-profit organization. We do not give medical advice, nor does
TCN endorse products or treatments. Members of our group are being treated
with mainstream and alternative therapies, often in combination. If you
have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyaliga, Multiple Chemical Sensitivities,
Lyme Disease, or any other medical condition, we encourage you to work
with an informed health care practitioner as you make the choices and
decisions about your own treatment. You are responsible for your own health
care decisions.
©2004 The Carousel
Network
Last Updated
January 2, 2009
webmaster@cndsinfo.net
http://www.cndsinfo.net/meetings.html
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