05 April 2002

Franklin Award Nominee Honored with Invite to Presidential Speech

On March 18th Benjamin Franklin Citizen Scientist Award nominee Douglas "D.M." Lindsay attended A Missouri Salute to President George W. Bush, a prestigious $1,000-a-plate fundraiser for Missouri candidate for U.S. Senate Jim Talent (R). Lindsay was allowed to attend this important event for merely the cost of the meal, thanks to the generosity of Jim Talent, and the folks at Talent for Senate. "This [event] was one of the only places I've been since becoming sick in 1999 that wasn't a doctor's office. I got to see the President of the United States. Frankly, I was speechless," reports Lindsay.

The Boys from U. City: Franklin Award nominee Douglas "D.M." Lindsay (center) before he became ill in 1999. Shown here with best friend Donny Carver (left), and friend Bobby Schultz, also from U. City (right).

D.M. Lindsay has been a longtime supporter of Jim Talent, and when the Talent Camp learned of the young, disabled research scientist's story, they sent him an invitaion and allowed him to bring his friend and film-maker, Matt Krentz, to assist him. "It was exciting to see former Congressman Talent and President George W. Bush speak. President Bush has truly been an inspired leader, and a good role model, the same type of role model I believe Jim Talent was in the House, and will be in the Senate," stated Lindsay.

In both of their speeches President Bush, and Congressman Talent voiced their continuing support for both the military and its current mission. This support means a great deal to the Franklin Award nominee. "My best friend, Donny Carver, is currently stationed overseas. Knowing that our leaders won't let our boys down is important because I know our boys won't let us down," he remarked.

Interestingly enough, during his recent Middle Eastern trip Vice President Cheney spoke at the military base where Lindsay's best friend is stationed. "I thought it was fantastic that Donny got to see [Vice President] Cheney speak, and the very next day I was able to see George W. Bush, our President, speak. It was a busy couple of days for our nation's leaders, and for the boys from U. City," a suburb of St. Louis.

Besides endorsing Jim Talent "as strongly as [he] possibly can" President Bush also stated, "I'm often asked 'How do I help in the War Against Terror?' And my answer is this, if you want to fight terror, love a neighbor just like you'd like to be loved yourself. .... Walk across the street and say to a shut-in, 'I love you, what can I do to help?' You see, it is the momentum, the gathering momentum of millions of acts of kindness and decency, which will allow this great nation to stand squarely in the face of evil. And there's no doubt in my mind that we can achieve that .... And so I call upon you all, here in St. Louis, in the great state of Missouri, to make an extra effort to help somebody in need."

President George Bush and Senate Candidate Jim Talent

According to Lindsay, those at Talent for Senate have certainly taken the President's words to heart. In a March 19th e-mail to Lindsay, Tom Reiss, Talent for Senate Coalition/Networker Director, wrote, "Your attendance was inspiring, knowing the effort you went through to be there. I will be in touch, but please don't hesitate to call or e-mail me with ideas, thoughts, or suggestions about what I can do to help you with your efforts ..."

But, Lindsay noted that it's not just those at Talent for Senate whose actions have been echoing what President Bush spoke of when he said, "We've got to understand it's not vast programs that save people's lives; it is saving people's lives one soul at a time that makes a difference in each of us. Each of us can make that difference." Mister Guy, a St. Louis area high-end clothier, located in Plaza Frontenac, also helped Lindsay out. When the owner of Mister Guy heard about D.M. Lindsay's research, his award nomination, his personal story, and his opportunity to hear the President of the United States speak, Mister Guy supplied Lindsay, still only in his early 20s, with appropriate attire. "I didn't own anything appropriate to wear to see the President. Mister Guy had everything prepared when Matt [Krentz] and I arrived. They really came through for me because, if I want my ideas to be taken seriously and respected, then I have to be taken seriously. Mister Guy made looking the part possible," stated Lindsay.

D.M. Lindsay reports that a relative of one of the employees at Mister Guy may suffer from a problem related to Lindsay's research. He remarked, "One might be tempted to say 'What are the odds?', but with one million people nationwide believed to suffer from autonomic disorders, I bet there are an awful lot of families that know someone who suffers from a dysautonomia, or chronic fatigue syndrome."

In a March 18 e-mail, Dr. C.J. Mathias, one of the top research physicians in the field of autonomic nervous system dysfunction from Imperial College School of Medicine, London, stated to Lindsay, "Please note that the pretzel induced [loss of consciousness] of President Bush was a form of neurally-mediated syncope [caused by a temporary alteration in autonomic tone]. He should therefore have a vested interest in supporting [medical] research, into autonomic disorders, be they fixed or intermittent."

Linda Smith, the founder of the National Dysautonomia Research Foundation (NDRF www.ndrf.org ), an organization devoted to helping those who suffer from autonomic nervous system disorders, has vowed to pass Lindsay's hypothesis paper on to the NDRF's Medical Advisory Board for review. The NDRF's Medical Advisory Board is comprised of many of the top research physicians in the field, including Blair P. Grubb of the The Medical College of Ohio, who, according to Lindsay, recognizes fatigue as an important and prevalent problem in those who suffer from dysautonomias. Lindsay states, "I look forward to discussing my contentions with Dr. Grubb, and any of the other research physicians in the field. I have worked since the summer of 1999, when illness forced me to leave my summer research position at the University of Kansas, to figure out exactly what is going on with my body that makes me so ill; I think that I have, and I think that my paper contains important new contentions on aspects of, and treatment of dysautonomias. The literature states that, despite current treatment methods, some dysautonomia patients are still significantly impaired. I believe that my contentions could lead to quality of life improvements for some of this subset of patients." He added, "I have spent a lot of time and energy since I became ill reading, working, searching for the materials and journal articles I need -- and for someone healthy who can actually get them for me -- refining my approach, and, in short, doing research to again obtain the freedom of health. But, I feel as President Bush must have when he stated, 'The price of freedom is high, but as far as I'm concerned, it is never too high.'"

"I believe that I have heard President Bush say that lengthening unemployment benefits was necessary, and the right thing to do to help people. But, I believe he's also stated that what people really need is a paycheck," said Lindsay. D.M. Lindsay feels that Bush's statement applies to his situation too, "I'm very glad that President Bush mentions helping shut-ins in his speeches; it means a lot to my mother," who is believed to suffer from the same disorder as Lindsay. "But, what we need more than help is health; I believe that further research into autonomic disorders, and into my own contentions, could give us that," he added.

Doctors Jacob and Biaggioni state, in their article Idiopathic Orthostatic Intolerance and Postural Tachycardia Syndromes, "The importance of [dysautonomia] goes beyond the number of patients it affects, because it is the cause of substantial disability in young, otherwise healthy, subjects." Lindsay hopes that, with continued research, both into his ideas and others, this statement will no longer be true.