Here’s a question we asked last year – how do you explain multiple sclerosis to those who don’t understand? And here are a few answers: “I’m burnt alive every day.” “A single bead of sweat can bring me to my knees.” “I can be struck down in just seconds.” Over the past year, we’ve been… Continue reading Wrapping up Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms
Tag: MSA
Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – numbness
“When I woke up, my hands were gone.” That’s how Adriana Grasso described the numbness she experiences as part of her MS. It’s so severe that she doesn’t even know what it feels like to hold someone’s hand. As she says, “A simple thing that we take for granted – touch – it’s gone, and… Continue reading Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – numbness
Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – balance
Describing her loss of stability and balance is difficult for Carol Cooke. One moment, she might be walking, and the next, she’ll fall to the ground. As she says, “I just want to get up and keep going,” but that’s not possible due to the symptoms of her multiple sclerosis (MS). Listen to Carol speak… Continue reading Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – balance
Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – brain fog
Australian Jessica Anderson has been living with multiple sclerosis since she was 12 years old, and she says brain fog is the scariest symptom she experiences, especially not being able to gather and make sense of her own thoughts. During her worst moments, she can barely focus on a thought for more than 30 seconds.… Continue reading Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – brain fog
Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – fatigue
“It’s like I’m deflated. I don’t feel like doing anything.” That’s how Darcy McCann says he feels on most days. He’s a young Australian who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis [MS] at the age of 10, and his most debilitating symptom is fatigue, which comes and goes as a result of his nerves being constantly… Continue reading Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – fatigue
Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – dizziness
Lyn Petruccelli is living with multiple sclerosis, and she fights random waves of vertigo and dizziness that can strike her at any moment. Sometimes, the feelings are so strong, she can’t even get out of bed. As Lyn says, “I can’t see it coming, and that makes it hard to fight.”1 You are now… Continue reading Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – dizziness
Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – spasticity
Australian comedian and public speaker Tim Ferguson said it the best – “Seeing [MS] is all about helping everybody, in society, right across the world, get their heads around this mysterious and sometimes scary condition.” He’s living with multiple sclerosis (MS), and he spoke about his spasticity in the video below. You are now… Continue reading Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – spasticity
Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – pain
“I’m burnt alive every day.” That’s how Stephen Papadopoulos, an Australian living with multiple sclerosis (MS), describes the level of pain he experiences on a daily basis. Pain is the second of nine symptoms portrayed in the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Australia’s (MSA) Seeing [MS] awareness campaign, and Stephen details his experience in the video… Continue reading Seeing [MS]: The invisible symptoms – pain
Recognizing Multiple System Atrophy (MSA Parkinson)
In observing Rare Disease Day at the end of February, we talked how there are 7,000+ conditions that are categorized as rare diseases due to their lower prevalence (less than 200,000 people in the US). Today we’d like to spotlight one of these lesser-known conditions: multiple system atrophy (MSA), which affects 536 PatientsLikeMe members and… Continue reading Recognizing Multiple System Atrophy (MSA Parkinson)
“A Mile and a Candle” for World MSA Day
Today, October 3rd, is World MSA Day. MSA stands for multiple system atrophy, a degenerative neurological disorder that causes symptoms similar to Parkinson’s disease. As a result, it is included in a group of diseases called “Parkinson-plus syndromes,” which have the classical symptoms of Parkinson’s (such as tremor and stiffness) as well as additional physical… Continue reading “A Mile and a Candle” for World MSA Day