My intro to MS

It was 1995, and I had been dating my future wife for a while. Our relationship to this point had been active and fun, and I would have never suspected that she had a life altering disease. Everything seemed normal. We would walk together, roller blade together and spend countless hours together without there ever being a sign of the monster known as MS, or so I thought. Yeah, she couldn't keep her balance very well, and she rested a lot. She also had a weird diet, but I never thought too much about it. She was vibrant and full of life, and I knew that I was falling in love with her. It was quite a few weeks into our relationship when she decided it was time to tell me. We had been out on a date and I was dropping her off at her apartment when she became very serious. She began to explain to me that what she was going to tell me was going to very hard for her and that many of her past relationships broke up over it. Of course I had no idea what she was about to tell me. She went on to explain that she had a disease called Multiple Sclerosis and that it affected her in a lot of different ways. She told me that she had been blind a couple of times and that parts of her body had been numb before, along with many other symptoms. She also had been home bound for about 9 months when the disease really kicked in. Apparently I had met her right after she had gotten back on her feet from this last big attack. I honestly had no idea what MS was or what it could do, and I knew that I loved her so I said what any love struck guy would say, "No problem". I'm a research fanatic, so I asked her if she had any books or websites or anything on the disease, and she seemed a little surprised. You see, she had never had a guy want to know more about the disease and have a desire to try to help. That night has changed my life and I continue to learn to this day what this horrible disease can do. We don't have all of the answers, but I think we have started to put the pieces of the puzzle together. I will be sharing what we have learned from doctors, experiences and our own research through this blog. So, eleven plus years into our marriage, we are happily married, have one daughter and two rambunctious dachsunds. Every day is still a struggle and battle, but I would have it no other way. I have read and heard about spouses that bailed out of their marriages due to MS, and I could never imagine doing that. I married my wife, not in spite of the disease, but because I loved the woman she was and is. So, this blog is a raw look at our daily lives as we struggle to be spouses, parents and productive individuals in our careers. I hope this blog will give you some hope, whether you have just been diagnosed with MS or have had the disease for many years. Enjoy!