It is just about Springtime and that to me also means time for MS Awareness! March is MS Awareness Month, and MS Awareness Week is this week, March 7-15! In April I am hoping you will join me for the MS Awareness Walk and in May we have World MS Day.
Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Campaign
This year’s Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Campaign’s focus is on mental health issues. This is no surprise to me because the past year with the pandemic. There are so many struggling with mental health issues (not just those with MS) because the pandemic caused us to live in isolation, live in fear, and many people lost their jobs.
Did you know that those living with Multiple Sclerosis are at a higher risk of depression and anxiety. In combination with the disease itself impacting cognitive function, many of the disease modifying therapies that people with MS take can alter their moods and feelings. About 50% of those with MS will experience episodes of depressions whereas the general population is 20%. Depression for those with MS may actually be linked to the neurodegeneration or neuroinflammatory process. The MS Foundation put together a fantastic article for understanding anxiety and depression and when to get help. I urge you, whether you have MS or not, to consider whether you need to reach out and ask for help. This has been an incredibly stressful year and there is no shame in needing support.
MS Virtual Walk
Please consider joining me for the MS Virtual walk this year on Saturday, April 24th. This year’s walk is virtual again due to COVID restrictions. But, I am hopeful that next year will be in person. In 2019, the year I was diagnosed with MS, I was unable to do the walk. It was not long after my diagnosis and it was too much for me to get the diagnosis and “get in the spirit” of walking for the disease. I also didn’t want to go in person and see the potential disabilities caused by MS. It was too much for me to handle. So, unfortunately, I have only ever been able to participate in a virtual walk. Instead of starting my own team, I am joining my friend Morgan’s team. She lives in the Seattle area with her husband, Nick and her new baby girl, Peyton. She was diagnosed a year before me and she is such a fighter. She has an amazing story and so much to fight for. Watch her video on the walk sign-up page, I was in tears by the end. I have that same desire for my kids to not have to worry about being diagnosed with MS.
Click here to sign-up for the walk!