Why I started this blog...

The purpose of this blog is to keep my family and friends updated on my health and also to increase the awareness of MS. Until this whole ordeal started, I knew very little about MS. Now that I've done all of my research I realize how big of an effect this disease has on so many people, not only the people with MS, but their families and friends as well. Since I was diagnosed, I feel like I have some sort of calling to increase the awareness of Multiple Sclerosis. I'm not sure yet exactly what I'm supposed to do, but I think this blog is a great start. I also plan to participate in a couple of walks in the fall....I'll keep you posted on those dates and locations, so you can walk too!

I'm hoping that maybe someone with MS or someone newly diagnosed with MS may come across my blog too. I had the pleasure of meeting a fellow patient at one of my doctor's offices who is my same age, 25, and was diagnosed with MS in September of 2006. We talked a little in the waiting room about our new experiences, symptoms, emotions, etc. She gave me her phone number and I called her a few days later. Just talking to someone else with the same disease as me helped SO MUCH! Not to mention, her symptoms were a lot worse than mine, so I quickly realized I could be a lot worse off and should be thankful for making just about a complete recovery from my first attack. (I do still deal with the off & on tingling in my legs when walking or when exposed to heat or when bending my neck down towards my chest, but it seems to be less and less every week.) Anyway, back to my mentors.....I also got in touch with another woman who is 30 and has had MS for 10 years. Again, talking to her made me feel more optimistic and even relieved to know this isn't the end of my life. Both of these girls I talked to were so bubbly and sweet. I really do thank them for taking the time to talk to me. I hope one day I can return the same favor for someone else.

Even though my family is so supportive and understanding, they still don't truly know what I am going through. But, these two girls do and so do the other 400,000 Americans with MS. So, my point is that hopefully this blog will reach out to other MS patients or even friends and family of MS patients and help them in some way.

Please feel free to comment on my blog, if you have any questions or thoughts. I'll be keeping you updated on how I am, as well as any new developments. For now, I'm just getting used to having good days and bad days, lately I have more good than bad:) Some days I have energy, some days I deal with fatigue. My main goal now is to keep on going, but to also listen to my body. I'll be blogging soon about starting the injections....stay tuned!