Finding your silver lining

How has MS had a surprising impact on your life?

Julie W.: So when I talk to people about living with MS, I think there’s a lot of good takeaways that they can take. And part of that is finding balance in your life—whether it’s professionally, whether it’s personally, whether it’s in the activities that you do. So I think I’m a much more peaceful person now, and I appreciate moments of stillness, and before I wouldn’t have been able to do that.

Kai S.: Perseverance is probably the word I think that encapsulates it, because even at that point when you don't think you can do something, you have to find another way to do it. As a teenager with MS, my biggest concern was I couldn't put my makeup on, and the nurse said, “Honey, I’ll do your makeup. That's fine, no problem.” And so letting someone else do that when I was having a flare. Just knowing that it’s a bad day, not a bad life.

Jessica T.: When I was first diagnosed, your mind goes into a whirlwind and it becomes a state of anxiety, and you start to think, “Well, what will it look like in 5 years or in 10 years?” It absolutely changes your outlook. Much later, it’s a better outlook because I’m a lot more mindful and I’m a lot more grateful of moments and appreciative of things.