Kim Dolce

I don’t care what people think. I’ve heard it plenty of times from plenty of people throughout my life. As a kid I said it myself when somebody was really...

At first, I blamed my Sasquatch feet on prednisone. But two months after being totally off steroids, I still had bloated ankles and feet. I saw my PCP, and she...

I suffer from leg spasticity. The quads (front of my thighs) can get rock hard and hurt like the dickens, and the hamstrings (back of my thighs) are usually drawn...

Each year, MS patients can apply for copay assistance from a number of resources. Although these programs are needs-based, the income cutoff is very generous. Patients whose income is as...

Those of us with chronic illness often lament the divide that separates us all. If only people would understand that suffering is going on right under their noses. It can...

I need at least nine hours of sleep to process what happened when I was awake. So when I get less than that, the effects are immediate and debilitating in...

It’s hard not to be totally preoccupied with my chronic medical problems. They can affect almost every aspect of my awake time and jolt me into consciousness in the middle...

MS is: Probably the most important thing MS has been is the thing I’ve pushed against for many years, so I could keep growing and making goals. It’s the critical...

“Would you like to use a hat?” the lab tech asked. She had just drawn two vials of blood, and the last test was a urinalysis for which I had...

What’s so hard about peace, love and understanding? First, my apologies to Nick Lowe, who composed the 1974 Elvis Costello hit “What’s So Funny ‘Bout Peace, Love and Understanding?” For...

Several neighbors in my retirement community have small dogs and a few cats. The dog owners have to walk them several times a day, some ambling across the lawn near...

Of course, there is no upside to being kicked to the curb in the beginning. It smarts like the dickens. It’s outrageous, too, let’s face it. It’s so easy to...

How can we be among two million people on this planet who have multiple sclerosis and still feel utterly alone? We know of these multitudes intellectually, of course. But knowing...

“So,” my brother began, “how long do you think you’ll be able to go grocery shopping by yourself?” We were standing in my tiny kitchen gabbing like we usually do...

When I was a kid, every once in a while the realization that I’ll die one day would suddenly hit me, freezing me in my tracks. My heart pounded in...

It’s a familiar scenario. You park in a blue space, struggle out of your car and begin walking. A stranger spits a cynical remark at you. People like you make...

I have a shady past. If I ever thought about running for office, I’d have to drop out as soon as certain facts saw the sunlight. I refer not to...

In the old days of multiple sclerosis care — say, circa 1990 — the medical research community and a passive MS patient population were united in their hopes that they...

When someone asks how you are, what do you say? Fine, thanks.Still sucking air.I’m swingin’! Does that question drive you batty? Do you see it as a welcome opening to...

Multiple sclerosis is hard to live with, on that we can agree. But I’ve heard some pretty strange things from people over the years about stuff that vexes them more...