Life with MS: don’t let people steal your identity
The feeling of stigmatization is a real one, especially when you have invisible disabilities when you don’t sit in a wheelchair (yet). It is also why society at large feels it has the right to question your medical status, whether asked for or not. Therefore, the feeling of guilt is an experience that many people with MS struggle with in different ways, even when we cannot begin to grasp why we are being questioned in the first place.
Ignorance
Oh, people will stalk you on Facebook on their smartphone, but do not ask them to find unprejudiced, trustworthy websites to learn something about your condition on that very smartphone. Quite often, they "will do so when they have time," despite having their phone in their hands 50 times a day.
But you don’t look sick!
We have all been there, at the receiving end of ignorance and unwillingness to understand what life with an invisible illness is like. 2018 Winner Best Blog Post with ‘3443 Needles’, Blog Awards Ireland, Ashville Media Group, Dublin, Ireland ◾ MyTherapyApp: Multiple Sclerosis Blogs: 10 of the Best in 2019 ◾ Ireland Blog Awards: Finalist 2014, 2015, 2017 ◾ MyTherapyApp: Best MS Blog for Simplicity 2018 ◾ Everyday Health: Top 10 MS Blog of 2018 ◾ Feedspot: Top 50 MS Blog 2017, 2018, 2019 © Willeke Van Eeckhoutte and Ireland, Multiple Sclerosis & Me, 2011-2019. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Willeke Van Eeckhoutte and irelandms.com with…
What you might not be aware of
"Walking on a staircase can be a bit of an E=mc2 moment in my life, meaning I can’t remember what those things at the end of my legs are for. They look cute in my tall Dr Martens boots, but every so often, I do wonder about them. Do I lift, drop or kick them sideways or not, or are they for decorative reasons only?"
What we refuse to discuss
"Another such thing is talking about your sex life if you have MS. In fact, I should rephrase this to ‘not talking about it.’ People are conservative about this subject in Ireland, and it’s a given that not everyone wants to talk about their intimate love life."
30 Things about My Invisible Illness You May Not Know
I was sent this list after National Invisible Illness Week ended and asked if I wanted to write about it either way, so here are my answers: 1. The illness I live with is: Multiple sclerosis, the house guest that ends up on your doorstep, invites himself in and never leaves again. 2. I was diagnosed with it in the year: I was diagnosed in 2005, three months before my 32nd birthday
