I didn’t know that I was thinking about this monumental moment for a really long time until my nephew got home for Christmas break. He went away to MSU for his first year of college. When he came home, that was the moment I realized that I was that young when I was diagnosed with MS.
I had not realized before the moment that I was such a child! I didn’t know anything but less than a year later, I was going to be a parent myself. I guess I had been thinking about this day since I was diagnosed. I was 18 when I was told that I, “Had MS, was going to go blind, and was going to die.” It was such a startling statement for a college freshman and her Mom.
Today marks the day that I have been diagnosed with MS for longer then I did not have MS. I have had MS for more than half of my life. With each passing year, my able-bodied self slips further and further away and memories of me being able bodied fade more and more.
Today marks the death of my seemingly able-bodied self and it makes me sad that I can never again say that I have been able-bodied longer than I have had MS. Annually, for the past 19 years, today is a somber day and sadly, today is no different. Today, actually hurts a little bit more than the previous 18!