It’s officially been 4 months since I started my diagnostic journey and 2 months since the official diagnosis and tbh I’m still learning so much about what it means for my body and how MS actually shows up. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ This world MS awareness day, here are a few things I already wish more people knew about MS: ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ - MS is caused by lesions in the brain/spine which is essentially damage to some parts of the brain/spine. MS is specifically caused by overactive immune cells which trigger inflammation, and cause damage to the myelin. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ - MS looks different for everyone and everyone’s set of symptoms can be different just based on where the lesions are and where there is damage. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ - I have MS on the days I still “look” completely “normal” AND on the days my flareups are visible. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ - Whether my flareups are visible or not doesn’t take away from me living with MS. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ - I really wish people wouldn’t say “you look so much better!” Or “I’m glad you’re better” just because I’m not in the hospital or not having a visible flare up. Because MS is lifelong, how I’m actually doing and if I’m doing better is something only me, my doctors, and my care team will actually be able to gauge. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ - MS can be disabling but saying “Don’t worry you won’t end up in a wheelchair” is so deeply ableist. Regardless of what my body needs for support, I deserve to live in a society that treats all of it as equal, and gives me access regardless. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ - Telling stories of people who “cured” their MS as symbols of hope are also really unhelpful — and is rooted in toxic positivity and ableism. I’m on a journey to find out what my body needs most — with no expectations of how it will continue to exist. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ So yeah. MS looks like this. It looks like me on all the great days, and the hard ones. For me: It also looks like a lot of paying attention to what my body is asking for, and how I can be as kind to it as possible, no matter what it’s able or not able to do. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ #MSAwarenessDay #MSLooksLikeThis ⠀ ⠀ Learned something new, or have something to add about MS? Leave a note in the comments 👇🏾