Getting away with it

I firmly believe that when you get your MS diagnosis, you should also be presented with a hamper of indulgent goodies and a nice card.

To be precise, this card:

Not because I am some sort of boot-shaped recidivist, but because if you’re given one crappy incurable disease, surely you should automatically have a free pass from any other sort of health calamity.

Seems only fair.

So imagine my horror when an envelope from my GP landed on my doorstep inviting me to attend an appointment because ‘you are at risk of a long-term health condition.’

My first reaction was, yes, I know, it’s MS. Bit of a late warning.

But, on ringing the surgery, it turned out that actually it wasn’t the usual suspect, it was, in fact, the entirely new prospect of diabetes.

As part of its new prevention programme, anyone who has ever been at risk of developing diabetes is now being invited to a yearly screening appointment to assess that risk and talk through what can be done to help.

I’d been called because - despite having absolutely none of the risk factors - I’d somehow managed to develop gestational diabetes during pregnancy. It went after my daughter was born, but I knew that it would always put me at an increased risk.

Almost 10 years later, it had become a very vague thing at the back of my mind to consider occasionally. But then this letter arrived and brought with it the very present threat of having to deal with another chronic illness.

You would think that being dealt one bad hand should be enough for anyone. But sadly, in life’s faulty deck of chance cards, this is not necessarily the case. Something outlined in this particularly scary article linking diagnosis of MS with a higher risk of developing other nasties.

So what can we do?

We can adapt our diet, take our rest, watch our stress levels, adjust our dreams, change our outlook, grip tight to our humour.

We can try and construct some semblance of a healthy life with the cards we've been given.
But sometimes it feels like a pretty flimsy paper structure.

In the end, I had my screening and I was okay - no diabetes at present. Although I remain at risk and will be reviewed on a yearly basis.

So, for the moment at least, I breathe a sigh of relief.
But I am all-too aware that the sigh shouldn't be strong enough to blow my house of cards down.

:: Getting away with it by Electronic

Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts

When you become a metaphorical card-carrying member of the multiple sclerosis community, you can celebrate this news by carrying an actual, literal card.

This handy little orange plastic jobbie explains that a person has MS, reassures panicked bystanders that it’s not infectious, and details why the holder might need help fast:

It is intended to be produced if you need the loo urgently, are at risk of falling or cannot see or speak clearly and is - assuming the person being presented with the card is helpful - a useful thing to have.

But from this card-carrying member’s point of view, the orange card I would far rather have had on diagnosis is this one:

Not because I am some sort of top-hat shaped recidivist, but because if you’re given one crappy incurable disease, surely you should automatically have a free pass from any other sort of health calamity.

Seems only fair.

But sadly, in our own faulty deck of chance cards, this is not necessarily the case. Something neatly outlined in *panic warning* this particularly scary article linking an MS diagnosis with higher risks of other nasties.

It’s not just the big illness risks either, there’s a whole list of other complaints that exist as part of some sort of bad MS knock-on joke and for which I firmly believe we should get a whole pack of get out of jail free cards.

Things like muscle atrophy due to long periods of relapse inactivity, dental problems due to stiffness, weakness or muscle spasms affecting the ability to brush or floss properly, weight gain because of difficulty moving around or poor nutrition due to limited energy or a reduced income.

Not all of these things - larger or lesser - happen to everyone with MS. And of course, some can be balanced with help, information and support. 

But such piece-meal construction of a healthy life makes for a pretty precarious paper structure.

And, like any house of cards, it only takes one light breeze for them all to come tumbling down.

:: Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts by Bob Dylan

- The MS Assistance card is available here.