anjane

I always feel guilty in that there are many things that MS has rendered me scared to do. My children are 13, 5 and 3, so they are pretty young. I try to do as much as I can on my own, which seems to anger my 13 year old. I have explained to him that I would like for him to let me do as much as I can on my own. As a child my self, Iknow that no child wants to see their mother as a dependant, but I feel that that is what I have become. I am now on disability, don't make as much money as used to and feel like a failure because I can not do as much for my children as I used to. I am an MSN and can't really find anything that is not too physical for me. My walking is terrible most of the times and I am now getting a wheelchair to be able to do things for myself and my children. At the same time, I am now able to spend more time being mommy, as I am home every evening and weekends now. I guess in some ways MS has been a curse and a blessing.

Your story sounds so familiar. My MS symptoms started in 2000 as I look back. I was first diagnosed with carpal tunnel, then a pinched nerve in my neck, then sciatica from my three C-sections and finally MS in July of 2007. It was a stunning blow as a mother of three and a wife. Then I had to regroup for me and my children. I started Rebif the next month and had been taking it fine until I noticed bruises on my legs (not the injection sites) and severe depression. With children we have to acknowledge this diagnosis and keep going to the best of our abilities. I now have mobility problems and hopefully will be starting PT soon. I am a case manager for home health but am currently seeking a job that requires little to no physical activity for me. The field visits and the long drives are too much for me. Keep your head up and pray.

Thanks! I am looking.

I really appreciated reading your post. Like your wife, I have the gait problem and extreme fatigue, but I was just diagnosed in June of 2007. I often wonder "what have I done to deserve this". When I look at my children (ages 2, 4, and soon to be 13) I have to regroup my thoughts. I want to keep working but now I have to find something that is not so taxing physically for me. I feel like such a burden at times on my job as I can not admit patients with stairs or steps b/c I can not safely climb them . I know that their is somehthing out there for me to do, I just have to find it. :uhoh21: