When you look at me, you wouldn’t think I have a life-changing disease like multiple sclerosis. When you look at me I imagine you see a smart and capable woman. You see a mother who is also a successful scientist. You see a generous friend who is also an athlete. You see someone who is …
You’ve seen it. Someone in the supermarket that has a trolley overflowing with groceries you’re certain they don’t need. Meanwhile, as you reach for that pack of pasta you feel an urge to grab more than the 2 packs you are now limited to. You rationalise that it would be fine for you to take …
My research group was proactive in their approach to the evolving Covid-19 pandemic. As of the 16th of March, we decided to stop all fieldwork and move into working from home for all staff and students, which was quickly followed by our University following suit. We have coordinated with the students to adjust their projects …
Over the past few weeks, even months, I have seen a lot of negative energy on the rise and understandably so. We are facing a life-changing pandemic. In Australia people are panicking and that is partly due to the effect of the virus, partly to the insecurity of jobs and the ability to provide for …
Shortly after the arrival of our son, my Partner, Eliza, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. For the previous few months I had noticed that she was having difficulty walking straight, would lose her balance at random in the hallway. Vertigo was our laymen diagnosis. When it didn’t go away, and instead started to get worse, …
When I started disease modifying drugs to control my multiple sclerosis it was pretty straight-forward. I was on what is considered the easiest intro drug, Tecfidera. It’s 2 tablets a day, one in the morning and one at night, simple. But my body wasn’t responding as we had hoped and my MS was still active, …
A relapse is a scary experience. For me, I lost my ability to walk properly without falling over, hearing in my right ear, and strength in my right arm. I thought it was permanent. After about a month those symptoms abated and I could hear, lift and carry my son, open things, and walk again. …
There are some hard truths in life, the biggest, and simplest, is that life is hard. This should not come as a shocking revelation. I would go so far as to say that at times you have protested as to how hard life is, either to you, or to what it is “doing” to your …
This is a post I wrote before my diagnosis in early 2019, when I was in the midst of tests and uncertainty. One of my recurring experiences was people telling me that I would be okay and not to worry. This felt incredibly dismissive and diminished my experience. After thinking on this I decided to …
Getting a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis is a hard pill to swallow. The future can feel more uncertain than it did before and you can get caught thinking about all the “what if’s“. One of the biggest fears I’ve had to deal with is that of being a burden and feeling alone in my journey. …