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How I do it… living with multiple sclerosis

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When people ask me how I do it, how I get through my day living with multiple sclerosis? I’m not really sure how to respond. The best answer I have been able to come up with is, “I just do it.” I know that’s not a deeply profound response and Nike already has rights to the saying, but the question is not really something that can be answered.

MS invaded my life without my permission. It simply moved in and took over. It’s not something I can simply choose to no longer have around. If only it were that simple. To just say to MS, “Get lost.” Wouldn’t that be incredible? Only I would use some rather different words that might offend some people and would be sure to have a battle axe and a few hand grenades along with me too.

Since I can’t force MS out of my life, I have to learn to live with it. There’s no other choice. I can try ignoring it, but ignoring something screaming in my ear and chiseling away at my insides isn’t possible.

From the outside my invisible struggle doesn’t seem so bad to people. It actually looks quite easy. But if you could look inside my body and truly see what I am dealing with every day…Oh, my, what a different story you would have to tell.

If there was a picture window into my life, people would see that my Central Nervous System (CNS) looks much like the chaos after a storm has blown through town tearing up everything in sight. Some areas in my CNS have been damaged, others completely destroyed. The foundation is still there, but the pipes have burst and the electricity is out.

After a storm people work tirelessly to patch things up as best they can to try and get their house back working, but it will never be the same. There will always be remnants of the storm that came through and never a guarantee that another one won’t blow through again.

Today, I live in a pieced together body with duct taped wires, glued together pipes and heavily caulked walls. Things still leak, wires still get crossed and new storms still show up, but I “just do it.”

Elizabeth Taylor, who struggled daily due to lifelong chronic back pain, said it oh so well…“You just do it. You force yourself to get up. You force yourself to put one foot before the other, and [gosh darn it], you refuse to let it get to you. You fight. You cry. You curse. Then you go about your business of living. That’s how I’ve done it. There’s no other way.”

Multiple sclerosis doesn’t make life easy to manage

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Multiple sclerosis has been a constant struggle for me from the start of my diagnosis. It’s been progressing faster than I ever thought it would, even faster than the neurologist had predicted it would. It’s the uncertainty of what may take place tomorrow as my body continues to wear out that is the hardest for me to deal with.

I know I will never get any better than I am today. As my body declines I just have to do my best to not focus on how hopeless and lonely it feels to not have any answers as to how bad it will get. I chose to stop any DMTs that I had been using in the past mainly because the symptoms of the drugs made me feel worse than MS itself. And no one truly has enough proof that it will stop the progression… only that if MAY slow it down. But even that is debatable from person to person.

I just decided that living my life as it is now is more important than sitting in the waiting room at the neurologists office and racking up bills that I really can’t afford. It definitely doesn’t make life easy to manage.

One of the hardest things I face is when those closest to me question my decisions about how I’m dealing daily with MS. Some have an attitude that I’m causing it all myself by not taking any meds and others even doubt how bad it truly is. What am I supposed to do with that? I’m in a forever progression than is rolling downhill without a stop sign or guardrails.

When my heart gets heavy I tend to turn on some soothing music, curl up in the bed and let the tears flow. I allow myself room to collapse for a period of time to calm my soul. It doesn’t necessarily make the pain or depression go away. You can’t order your mind not to think or feel a certain way. We tend to make things worse for ourselves by adding a negative self-judgment to what’s already a difficult situation. That’s our inner critic interfering with our peace of mind.

I think everyone needs to make room for the uncertainties in life. Don’t feel bad for feeling. If sadness is there, it’s there. If worry is there, it’s there. Yes, becoming aware of a painful emotion can be helpful… it can loosen its grip on you. But it doesn’t automatically make it subside.

Accept without judgment that you’re feeling sad, angry, worried, etc. but add to it self-compassion for the mental suffering that accompanies the chaos. In other words, be kind to yourself. Comfort yourself when you’re feeling bad instead of blaming yourself for feeling that way.

The more you open up to your feelings, the more you can do what matters most to you, and the more you can enjoy the full richness that life has to offer, together with “bad” and “good” emotions… come as they may.

Feeling run down

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I had a difficult time this past week with my health. I had grown so weak and lethargic that I wasn’t good for anything. I didn’t have any strength to even eat. I couldn’t keep any foods down either and ended up dry heaving any time I attempted to swallow. I think I spent 3 days straight just emptying my stomach.

My family was wonderful and they filled my cupboards with some much needed nutrients since I wasn’t doing so good at keeping any of my basic foods down. My mom pumped me full off vitamins and had me drinking meal replacement shakes because they are so full of everything my body needed.

After about 3 days of working hard, I was able to actually sit up by myself. That was a miracle in and of itself. Today has been the first day that I have been able to actually take care of myself, by myself. I lost about 15 pounds during that time. I wear size 7 rings and they all fall off now… ugh.

The heat and humidity I’m sure isn’t helping me out even with the air conditioner running. It feels like I’m trying to move through thick mud, and think through thick fog. All I want to do is lie down and sleep – and then sleep some more, after that. I still can’t function normally because everything leaves me wiped out.

I get short of breath even when I’m doing nothing at all. My recliner has become my new BFF. I’m hoping to be able to actually sleep today. I know my body needs lots of it. I didn’t think this summer was going to affect me like it has. But I’m thankful for an amazing family that lives nearby because they have kept me going.

My mom did a load of laundry for me and my brother went to the store. All things I couldn’t do on my own. I kept thanking them for their help… even over thanking them. Never overlook the people in you life that are willing to help. They aren’t that easy to find but are keepers when they show up.

Today I’m just going to sit quietly in my recliner, kick my feet up and veg. Even though my head is spinning and my appetite isn’t quite right, I’m going to eat what I can because my desire is to be healthy and enjoy my life. My first step to healthy living is gratitude. Thanks to all my friends who care for me, pray for me and laugh with me. You are my rock. I need you more than you will ever know.

Memory, forgetfulness and multiple sclerosis

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I woke up this morning to my pillow on the floor in the middle of the room. I’m not sure how that happened. I would have loved to have seen that pillow fight. It must have been a doozy…”take that – WHACK – and that – POW.”

I think I am closer to discovering why I’m always tired. It must be all the parties I’m having in the middle of the night with all the toys, dolls and stuffed animals in the house. We must have pillow fights too. I think they are the ones zapping my memory. This way I won’t be able to remember anything when I wake up.

Last night, though, they must have forgotten to clean up some of the evidence by leaving a pillow on the floor. I wonder if they are the ones that drink my coffee too. I will make a nice, hot, perfect cup of coffee and the next thing I know…the cup is empty and I’m sure I didn’t drink it. I’m absolutely positive of it.

I’ve had a few other things disappear too: my favorite sweater, my car keys, my cell phone, towels, and the TV remote. The other day I even lost the eggs a friend brought me. He had a dozen eggs for me since his hens are laying now. When he left, I couldn’t find them. What? How did I do that? I had a few minutes of egg hunting but I found them on my entryway table. I don’t remember putting them there.

Just the other day I was taking a shower, washed my hair but when I got out of the shower I had a head full of bubbles. How did I wash my hair and forget to rinse myself off? That happens a lot for me. Either I wet my hair and forget to wash it or have the suds still in and forget to rinse before I shut the water off. I do all my memory tricks to try and remember but I seem to fail at it most of the time. Sometime I even forget to brush my teeth while I’m in the shower even though the toothbrush is right in font of me. Ugh!

I was writing down a list of things I needed at the store yesterday. I had the list half written, got distracted and went into the bedroom to get my shoes but when I returned my pen was gone. Poof. It just disappeared. I had to get another pen just to finish my list. I still have no idea where that pen went but if I ever go shopping without a list in hand, things don’t go very well for me. I NEVER remember what I’m there to get and always return home having forgotten why I actually went there in the first place.

I think a lot of my memory problems are due to my lack of sleep. I wake up exhausted and go to bed exhausted. I know I’m getting closer to solving my memory problems and forgetfulness. I will let you know when I find out what is going on. I would love to have a few hours of real rest to get my brain a bit more organized.

Now, where did my coffee go? It was right here beside me. Seriously, it was. I’m not making this up. It must have gotten sucked into a black hole. I think I may be stuck in some weird space-time continuum. Maybe I’ll be the one to disappear next? Ahhhhhhhhhhh