With My MSiversary Approaching I Feel...Invincible

As I sit here, I realize I’m closing in on my MSiversary next week (a full 18 years since I was officially diagnosed with MS). That’s a pretty big deal to me, so I tend to celebrate it as much as I can. In addition to all that partying, I end up doing a lot of reflecting about my life with the disease. During a period of that introspection this morning, I started to think of everything, and determined I’m basically invincible. Life has thrown a lot at me over nearly two decades with the disease and while I may not be in the best condition, and I may not have quite had the life I expected, I’m still here. Bendable, yet unbreakable.

MS and other issues

Like a lot of folks with Multiple Sclerosis, I often end up with some other issues as well. If there is cold or some other sort of bug going around, I’m going to get it. It’s also going to last twice as long as it does for every other on person who gets it. That’s just the name of the game when you have a compromised immune system. Even as I write this, I’m battling the flu. Which almost seems like an impossible feat when I think about the amount of time I am actually out of the house. I’ve dealt with all sorts of things since being diagnosed with MS. A lot of colds, serious pneumonia on more than one occasion, I’ve had a bunch of bad falls (once through my bedroom window, leaving me thoroughly bloodied) because of my unsteady and weak legs, I’ve even somehow managed to spray my face with boiling water at one point (not sure how or if MS played a part in that, but it’s certainly plausible). Trust me, the examples keep going, but the important thing to get from this is that, in addition to my MS issues, I’ve ended up with a lot of other problems through the years.

Recognizing how tough we are

When talking to others, I find that a lot of people with MS tend to have an assortment of other problems through the years. That’s one of those things that reminds me of how tough we all are. A lot of people like to say that you don’t get this disease unless you can handle it. I don’t know if that’s really true, but it sure seems like it at times. I can certainly say that this disease does a good job preparing us for the worst, which I think in turn allows us to overcome more than the average person out there. The disease progresses differently for each of us, almost like it’s a tailored training program on how to get through some serious problems. So it’s no surprise that when comorbidities start to accumulate, we simply deal with it, we survive whatever is thrown at us.

MS has taught me a lot

So as I look back at all this, and proclaim myself indestructible (and hope that I’m not jinxing myself), I’m left to wonder if have MS because I’m this way or because I’ve learned it from my time fighting the disease. My money is on the latter, and that’s just one reason I choose to celebrate my diagnosis each year. Because, despite all of the awful things it’s done to me, my disease has taught me a lot about life, it’s taught me how to take the hits and keep going, how to get up after I fall down (both literally and figuratively with that one), and how to not let anything beat me. It’s made me invincible, and for that, I am thankful.

Thanks for reading!

Devin

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