About two years after my multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis, I began having hand-related symptoms that interfered with my daily life and caused significant stress. I’m a college student and remote employee, so I spend a lot of time typing, which is considered a fine motor skill because of the…
Daily living
When I checked into the hospital last month, I answered all the usual diagnostic questions, but then one caught me off guard. A social worker asked if I had an advance directive in place. My first thought was to wonder just how bad the lab results were since I hadn’t…
I was introduced to the spoon theory not long ago in a graduate school class. The spoon theory, created by lupus patient Christine Miserandino, utilizes a kitchen utensil to illustrate the energy budget of a person living with a disability or chronic illness, which helps quantify…
Some mornings with multiple sclerosis (MS) feel like being stuck in quicksand. Fatigue appears first, followed by aches, and then the fog that turns simple tasks into mini mountains. On those days, I ask one small question to get moving: What color is my hope today? Dressing for dopamine,…
Living with multiple sclerosis (MS) has changed almost every part of my life, which sometimes feels overwhelming. Simple tasks are more complex than before. One thing that has helped me cope is being a dog mom. I have a 12-year-old rescue dog that we adopted in 2014. He is…
“We’ve always done it this way” was the phrase I most despised in the Army whenever I questioned a tactic or technique. I’m not saying routine and doctrine aren’t important or can’t help streamline a task, but they should also be common sense before they’re applied. My problem was the…
We all have stomach or bathroom issues from time to time. Eat the wrong thing, catch a bug, drink too much coffee, and your body will let you know. That’s just life. But when you have multiple sclerosis (MS), digestive and urinary problems aren’t occasional; they become their own…
A couple months ago, my partner and I took a 5-week-old kitten into our home. The decision was somewhat impulsive because we didn’t intend to adopt a kitten. We’d wanted an adult cat, because we were concerned that my resident cat, Lucky, wouldn’t take well to a new friend.
Three self-reported prevalent symptoms among people with multiple sclerosis (MS) – fatigue, mobility issues, and cognitive impairment – are generally not associated with lower engagement in healthy lifestyle factors, a study in Australia shows. However, in the long term, mobility difficulties may significantly reduce adherence to physical activity, a…
Have you ever been on a flight of stairs and misjudged the height of the steps, causing you to lose your footing? That happens to me more than I’d like to admit. This misjudgment stems from our depth perception, which is our ability to view the world in three dimensions,…
Before 2016, I didn’t need to take any prescription medications, at least not regularly. But during my first episode of optic neuritis and a few years later, after my diagnosis of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, I was forced to create a new habit. During that first episode of optic…
I have a kilt. It’s just a simple, olive-colored utility kilt, and I don’t wear it because of family or cultural tradition. I wear it because it’s comfortable, looks right with my knee-high compression socks, is nearly perfect for wheelchair use, and quite frankly, makes me look even cooler than…
My family and I just returned from a vacation to the place I wrote about in my very first column for Multiple Sclerosis News Today, only not to the same house. I can’t make it up and down the stairs there anymore, so my wife found us a wheelchair-accessible…
For many years after being diagnosed in 1992 with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS), Carolyn Cannistraro didn’t want to think about having MS, let alone tell others about her condition. But now Cannistraro is aiming to complete three races across New York City within 60 days using a handcycle. She…
Rest isn’t optional in this house. It’s practically an Olympic event! And I live with five feline competitors. They’re furry, opinionated, and deeply committed to the art of doing nothing, whether it’s melting into a patch of sunlight, sprawling across my keyboard, or staging a nightly takeover of the recliner.
In recent months, I’ve attended a couple events in large stadiums. Last December, I went to the Music City Bowl college football game in Nashville, Tennessee, where Mizzou (the University of Missouri) beat the Iowa Hawkeyes. I also saw a Justin Timberlake concert at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City,…
April showers bring May flowers. However, I do not have a green thumb. No matter how hard I try, I continuously seem to murder my plants. My mom, on the other hand, is an avid gardener. When my plants show signs of distress, I take them to her for remedial…
Ena Salcinovic celebrates her birthday three years after her MS diagnosis. (Photos courtesy of Ena Salcinovic) Day 22 of 31 This is Ena Salcinovic’s story: Saturday. Finally. A good day. I still believe that even though I overslept and missed the Red Cross and our weekly international cooking. I…
Happy New Year! Did anyone make resolutions? I’ve always tried to make one resolution every January, though I missed a few years when I was in a rut. At the time I’d thought, what’s the point? I knew I wouldn’t stick with it. That’s because my resolutions used to feel…
The week between Christmas and New Year’s Day is disorienting. I don’t quite know what day it is or what I’m supposed to do while packing away a holiday and bracing for the next year. It was quiet after Christmas last month, almost as if time stood still and the…
Desiree Lama often experiences fluctuating energy levels due to her MS, which can make it especially challenging to balance both school responsibilities and work commitments.
For students, it’s back-to-school season with the recent start of the fall semester. I was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis at a young age, so I’ve carried this disease with me throughout my high school, undergraduate, and graduate education. I often struggled to juggle my healthcare and course…
Age is just a number, right? Most of the time, I don’t mind getting older, but it does occasionally bother me. One scenario is when I have to swipe more than three times to find my birth year on a website. Another is when a song I grew up with…
One thing I learned during my Army medic training is that I’m not particularly squeamish — with most things, that is. I have a theory that everyone has at least one thing that will turn their stomach. Every medical provider I’ve met either knows exactly what can make them gag,…
I’d tricked myself into thinking I was a night owl for decades. Studying came more easily during those dark, quiet, and still hours. So did going out to nightclubs to dance, meet strangers, and feel a little more anonymous and a lot less self-conscious. When that phase of around-the-clock studying…
By the time this column is published, I’ll be at the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers‘ annual meeting in Nashville, Tennessee. I’m honored to be attending as a representative of the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) Multiple Sclerosis Committee. Along with the other committee members, I’ll help spread…
Cionic is rolling out an update for the software that powers its Neural Sleeve, a wearable device — worn on the leg — that’s designed to aid in mobility for people with neurological conditions such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The new updates include a suite of functional exercises…
What’s a reliable way to wreck your mood? Fighting your circadian rhythms. I’m a recovering night owl. I used to get more done between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. than I did in the other 20 hours of the day. I routinely studied past 2 a.m. during college and…
For people who develop multiple sclerosis (MS), the disease can exact a toll on their ability to work and on how much they earn in the private sector, according to a study by researchers in France, who said policies need to be enacted to replace lost income. “The effects…
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve had to relearn how to walk. Learning to walk is a milestone accomplishment. But as you age, life finds ways to knock you down. Injuries, sprains, or broken bones may keep you immobile while you’re waiting for your body to recover.