People with Multiple Sclerosis and Caregivers Find Help at CanDo.Org

I was recently fortunate enough to attend a seminar for people with MS and their caregivers sponsored by CanDo Multiple Sclerosis Lifestyle Empowerment Programs. It was a one day seminar and I came away with hope and appreciation for the people who work so hard and give their all to help people affected by this debilitating disease.

My husband was recently diagnosed with MS and will soon start the injectable drug for his illness. He will be completing his physical therapy this week and early in November we will let the doctor know which drug we chose. When we saw the neurologist last, he sent us home with three giant books from the drug manufacturers. Within the info were CD's, portable jump drives and nicely put together loose leaf books with pretty much all the information we needed to decide which drug is best for him.

We will be going on Medicare in January and was also looking for a drug that was most Medicare friendly as far as co-payments and extra charges are concerned. This whole experience has left our heads spinning, but with so much help out there; we should be all right.

It is unfortunate that we are realizing that he has had this condition for more than thirty years, a condition known as RRMS, which stands for Remitting/Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis. As our doctor explained, with each occurrence of RRMS, in his case, he had optic neuritis back in the 1980's. This condition went away in about two weeks and there was never a mention of why it happened or why it went away. In 1999, he again had optic neuritis and this time multiple sclerosis was indicated. Although the neurologist we saw back then told us that he had the tendencies for MS; at 57 years of age, the condition should not come back and he would most likely outlive any further occurrences.

Now he is 69 and his gait was in question and I asked the doctor to check him because I did not like the way he walked. He was sent for an MRI of his brain and the rest is history. Now we see both our primary doctor and a neurologist regularly. After learning as much as I can through all the tools available, I find that although the optic neuritis mostly went away, he had been affected in several other ways that we just chalked up to getting older.

If anyone reading this has or knows someone with MS, you can check out the CanDo websites that have so many opportunities and resources available. The seminar we attended was divided into the persons afflicted with MS and the caregivers. What an enlightening opportunity I had to attend this learning experience. I cannot recommend it enough.