PeopleWithMS.com

Ahh where to begin:)

I guess this story begins with a bit about me. I'm a 31 year old mother of 3 fantabulous children, ages 8 *Chantelle*,9 *Blaine*and 12*Shaelyn*. And I have a wonderfuly supportive husband named Ted, who has been with me through it all. MS isn't my only *snerk* as I like to call them, lol I also suffer from a few other things also, OCD, Depression, Anxiety Disorder, Myofacial Pain Syndrome (which is in the same family as Fibromyalgia) and now they are thinking I am Bi-polar. Hey, if your gonna do it, do it right! lol

My MS story begins 8 years ago, when I was working in the group home area. I had been working in group homes with developmentally challenges, disabled and others for about 2 years when out of no where a huge depression hit me. Some said it was the work that caused it, but it wasn't (I will touch on that one lol) I ended up leaving the work I loved as the depression became too much to handle at that time. I was out of work for about 6 years when I decided it was time to try and get a new job. After waiting for my youngest Chantelle to be old enough for me to be away from her, which was about 1 1/1 years later lol I decided that health care was where I belonged, and where I wanted to be, so I applied for a Nursing Assistant course through a local hospital in my area.

I loved that course so much! I got to learn and train at the same time in that hospital, on the wards with all kinds of elderly who suffered from various ailments. (Now for a few years now, I had suffered from very painful headaches, and what the doctors thought was carpal tunnel syndrome, as my hands were always numb and cold.) Well, one day I can home from work not being able to feel my right arm very well, and weak. It was numb and tingly, so I thought maybe I pulled a nerve or something. I went back to class and let my teacher know that I was not able to lift any patients until I heard back from the doctor. (in a week period the numbness etc went down to my leg and I still thought it had to have been a pinched nerve;)) I went to the docs, not a great experience Ill tell you. He made me do that test where you stand up and close your eyes and put your arms out at the sides, well, if it hadn't been for the doc catching me, I would have fallen flat on my face. He right away sent me to a neurologist.

Jump to neurologist lol When I saw him, he got me to tell him about my symptoms and right away told me either I had had a a stroke or I had MS. Needless to say, at that moment I was more worried about the stroke issue then the MS, strange as that sounds. I got the usual battery of tests, EEG,Nerve conduction tests, they checked my carotid arteries for plaque, etc and the infamous MRI....before I got the MRI done, I moved to Saskatoon, so I found a GP here and got sent to a neurologist asap. MRI done, they found lesions on my corpus collosum and also on my spine, so there was no denying that it was MS. The diagnosis came June 92, a month and year I will never forget. I am not practicing as a NA as I am not able to lift, and my cognitive is a bit off somedays, so I am classified as Fully disabled now. I am on Copaxone right now, and yes I have had many exaserbations, the last one in March of this year due to illness, but I have way to many things I want to do, I wont be letting the MS get me;) I plan on going to nursing school to get my RN and eventually going to med school to get my MD so I can be a Pathologist. I see it as there are certain things that yes I cannot do now, or do with difficulty but my love for medicine has not wavered in the least and I wont stop till I achieve those goals. Always remember, I have MS, it DOESN'T have me.

Smoochies and loves,

Jan aka Applebastic the insane produce :D