World MS Day

Today is World MS Day: “a day that brings the global MS community together to share stories, raise awareness and campaign with and for everyone affected by multiple sclerosis.” I started this blog as a release, to help me cope with my MS.

I think the most important thing for me is to stay connected – be it with family, friends, a support group, or on social media. It’s easy to feel sorry for yourself. I threw myself some pretty grand pity parties. (I still do. MS sucks.) And while you may want to hide out for a while, do it for only a little while. Reach out. I’m a social person and when I stopped going into the office to work from home, I started to feel awfully isolated. I am happily married to an amazing man but I do like to see other faces.

One of the first things I did after my diagnosis was tell my family and friends. I wanted them to know what I was dealing with. I also searched for a support group in my area and found a wonderful one in the East Bay – MS Fight Club. There’s nothing like sharing your story with people who fundamentally understand MS. I learn from them and I hope they learn from me.

My MS affects my mobility so I have an almost constant reminder of my disability but I find it crucial to do things that are unrelated to MS. I go to Pub Trivia, I have game nights, I have potlucks. I am thankful for my friends every day who care about me enough to ask about my health but also treat me the same as I ‘used to be.’

On this World MS Day, let’s think about MS and also forget about it for a while.