coping with multiple sclerosis

I am glad that my post was helpful. It sounds like you have a supportive husband and that is very important. It is my wife who always gives me the push I need when I get too wrapped up in thinking about the m...s... I am sorry to hear that you were let go from your previous job, especially since what you described is precisely why m...s... (or m...s... like symptoms) are so bizarre. The person with m...s... tends to be discriminated against from every angle...the employer fires you because you are concerned about taking a break... and the passersby roll their eyes at you if you need to sit down and there are older people in the vicinity (because you "don't look like anything is wrong with you"). Another thing that is so frustrating about m...s.. is that every person's case is so specific so it's hard to figure out what needs to be done. I have had m..s.. for fifteen years and I was officially diagnosed. I have been practically symptom free when the neurologist prescribed treatment (about 13 years ago). It took a couple of years of trial and error until the right medication was found. Initially symptoms of numbing and weakness persisted, until i fought them off with diet and exercise. The worst symptom had been a debilitating fatigue, which i also have gotten under control with proper diet and excessive exercise, as well as frequent naps. Ironically, I stayed home to raise our two lovely children, which is a physically daunting job (especially when the kids are infant - preschool), yet I don't think anyone would have hired me, due to my concern about getting frequent rest breaks. When you freelance or work at home, it is okay to "sit-a-spell", but out in the workforce if you are not savvy enough to hide the fact that you need to "sit" for five minutes every two hours, the other person without the disease will not only get the job, but they may end up sitting down all day ( and probably doing less than the handicapped person would do). I hope that your symptoms don't progress any further and that m...s.. stays away from you. Stay strong. Be well.

Hello! I was about to post a message for you, guys, to call your attention and discuss our condition. I joined mylot a week ago and have just browsed the discussion about ms which was posted i think six month ago? Koolabs, i'm saddened by your plight. I pray it won't happen to me. I was officially diagnosed with ms in february 1993. I was 31 then, single and working as radio announcer/dj. My first symptom was i walked like a drunk and my speech was slurred. One night while i was having one of my request & dedication slots, my head ached. That was one pain that couldn't just ignore. After taking a pill which didn't work, i turned my program over to the technician who played on auto and i went home. The pain was gone in the morning but numbness began on my right cheek. When my speech got worse my boss told me to see a doc. (Just imagine an announcer who babbles while on air!). In the hospital my mother overheard an intern say it was just "psychological". I wanted to scream at that lady intern that i am a radio announcer and i usually talk fast and clear! But my ever calm mother pacified me. The numbness spread down and half of me, the right side of my body was paralyzed. Can't walk without holding on to somebody or something. It was my mother who bathed me and had to feed me because i dropped the spoon when i tried to eat by myself. (Thanks for mothers!) It was hard brushing my teeth, etc, etc! My first neurologist said it's ms and a second confirmed it through a lumbar tap. I was told that i won't recover a 100%. After a month of hearing the neighbors talking about me saying i'm dying, i slowly got better and back to work. Mother even commented that I sounded better on the radio because i talked slower and delivered my news better! I thought i have fully recovered but in April 2002 another doc said the tingling sensation on my belly is just another one of the symptoms of ms. I met my husband when i was 36 and before we married i told her what i'm going through and that my case may worsen and i may be paralyzed again, or worse become a vegetable. He married me anyway in October 2002. I am barren, another case of policystic ovaries. I'm employed in the postal service for 16 years now, doing the stressful duties as a postmaster. Still performing normally without aids, enjoying the company of my God-given adorable, loving, caring, supportive husband who massages my limbs when the attacks come until i fall asleep (till his own hands aches). God has a purpose for everything, even this...mylotting, sharing each other's pain so we can lift up each other, and give comfort to those who needs someone who understand what he/she is going through. People who emphatize, not just symphatize...

Your response shows lots of strength. It is very encouraging. Thank you.