Some Background on MS

There have been a few family members who have asked me questions about MS and the reason I am taking a medication for it.  It made me think it would be a good idea to give more information that might bring a little more understanding.

MS is a disease where the immune system attacks the protective insulation around the nerves (called myelin) in the brain or spinal cord.  It causes the nerves to lose the ability to communicate correctly with various parts of the body.  Depending on which nerves are affected, symptoms can occur just about anywhere in the body, and can be very mild (like numbness or tingling) to severe (like loss of vision or paralysis). 

No two people are alike in their experience with the disease because it is entirely dependent on where the damaged tissue is located.  The damaged tissue shows up on an MRI as a white spot and is called a lesion.  Some individuals could have 100 lesions and little to no disability, where another individual could have 1 lesion and be paralyzed.  It is that unpredictable.

Most people (85%), like myself, are diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS.  With this form of the disease, a flare up is experienced for at least 24 hours and then symptoms usually go away over time (could be within 24 hours or months later).  The disease is chronic and there is no cure.  The best they can do is offer medication to slow the progression of it.  Before there was medication, a person with MS had a 50% chance of being disabled within 10 years.  Within 20 years it was an 85% chance of disability.  The statistics are much different for those who choose to take a medication and treat early.  It significantly slows the disease progression by at least 35%.  I heard from someone that with the medication it was nearly the reverse of the statistic, meaning in 20 years 85% are disability free. 

For me, there really isn't another option.  I will take a shot everyday if it means I can see my kids graduate from college with my own eyes or dance with them at their weddings.  As emotionally difficult and frustrating as it is, I almost feel guilty ever complaining since a couple of generations back there were people who had no treatments and no hope for a cure.  Today we have hope that a cure might be in sight within our lifetime and there are medications that significantly improve quality of life.

So I suppose instead of complaining, I should just work on being grateful. :)