Two Bermudian women who suffer from a rare neurological disease are trying to find out if anyone else in Bermuda suffers from the same disorder in order to start a support group.

The two women suffer from Myasthenia Gravis, a disorder that results in muscle weakness, made worse by activity.

In Lynn Thompson?s case, the disorder affects every muscle in her body, including her lungs.

The more she speaks, the more slurred her words become and the more laboured her breathing becomes, to the point where she can?t speak at all.

Sometimes, she said, she can hardly breathe and using her hands is often impossible.

?All my bags have long straps because I?ll be walking somewhere and just drop things I?m carrying and then I can?t pick them up,? she said.

She first started showing symptoms of the disorder seven years ago and believes it was because she was under a lot of stress at the time.

?The doctors don?t always know what to do for me and while some medications work on some people, they don?t work for everyone,? she said.

That is why she and fellow sufferer Karen Cross decided to try and find others with the disease here in Bermuda ? and to start a support group.

?We want to share information and advice,? she said, adding that she felt the support gained from a group would be invaluable.

There are currently about 36,000 cases of Myasthenia Gravis in the United States and it is estimated that 14 out of every 100,000 people suffer from this disease.

Most of those affected are women and, in the majority of cases, they are over the age of 50.

Mrs. Cross said she has had as hard a time as Ms Thompson and often feels she is not getting any better.

Mrs. Cross was diagnosed in 1991, but said she had the symptoms for many years before she was diagnosed.

?Doctors didn?t know what was wrong and told me it was all in my head,? she said.

For years she couldn?t do anything for herself and her young daughter had to help her get dressed every morning.

?It?s hard for anyone to realise how destructive a disease can be unless they?ve had to live with it. It affects everyone, including your family,? she said.

She said she would have something as light as her jacket over her arm and would drop it for no reason because she had no muscle control.

?Medication simply prolongs our lives, but there is no cure and eventually even the medicines don?t work,? Mrs. Cross said.

Two people in Bermuda have already died from this disease, she claimed. The disease can be fatal because it can strike the lungs.

Mrs. Cross, who used to be a very active person before being diagnosed, said she went into remission in 2002 and ran a marathon.

But, she quickly pointed out, there was never any guarantee that she was completely cured.

?One minute you can be fine and the next, you?re paralysed,? she said.

But the women are committed to fighting the ravages of their illness.

Mrs. Cross said she would be running a marathon on May 24 to raise awareness and she?s asking other runners to wear logos with ?Myasthenia Gravis Awareness? on their T-shirts.

Medication is not always the answer, she has found, while she believes too often doctors go straight for their prescription books.

?Some of the medication has terrible side-effects like steroids, which caused a growth on my liver,? she said.

?Prescribing a new pill is not going to help, it only makes us feel worse,? she said, urging doctors to learn more about the disease and find alternative ways to help them.

A support group would help in this regard, she argued.

?We don?t want financial support, we?re just looking for physical and emotional support,? she said.