A Question of Age

Posted on May 16th, 2012

With two weeks to go until World MS Day (WMSD) 2012, we are revealing our second riddle. The riddle is a video message which helps viewers to unfold an answer to a mystery. Watch the video below to see if you can work out the answer for this week’s riddle.

 

 


This riddle highlights that the most common time to be diagnosed with MS is between the ages of 25 to 31.

This is also the time that many people undergo major life changing events such as meeting life partners and starting a family, moving home or starting a career. These stressful situations can disguise the diagnosis of MS due to confusion with other health issues such as depression, fatigue or stress.

Share this video on Facebook and Twitter and help others to uncover the mystery of WMSD 2012.

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Become one of the “1000 faces of MS”

Posted on May 16th, 2012

With only two weeks left until World MS Day 2012, we are excited about this year’s events, ranging from fashion shows to chess tournaments, will make the day even more of an international success.

Besides events, this year, for World MS Day we want the world to see and know the people who live with MS – in other words, many of you! So, we came up with a virtual postcard wall where you can show everyone who you are and what living with MS means to you. Make your postcard now to show the world that you are one of the “1000 faces of MS”!

Thank you to those of you who have already created a postcard to contribute to the “1000 faces of MS”. Please ask your circle of MS friends and family to create their own postcard too! Help us ensure that WMSD 2012 is the most successful yet!

One of the themes we are drawing attention to for WMSD 2012 is that people are most commonly diagnosed with MS between the ages of 25 and 31. It is at this stage in life when many people undergo major life changing events such as meeting life partners, moving home or starting a new career. Suddenly, they also have a serious health condition to understand and learn to live with. Postcards created so far reveal the issues people encounter when they experience the symptoms of MS for the first time.

Joaquim Agustí Canals, after finding himself with MS at the age of 27, says that he has spent “eight years with MS, each day trying to overcome tiredness, pains, limitations and symptoms that people do not understand.” He still finds that he is “having to explain on almost a daily basis what he is going through and what the condition is.”

Twenty year old Melissa Hoffman was even younger when she received her diagnosis. “I was diagnosed at 16 which was four years ago. I went numb on my right side and the doctor thought I had a pinched nerve and the hospital first thought I had a stroke. I was in the hospital for seven days when I was finally diagnosed.” Help us raise awareness of MS to help people like Joaquim and Melissa by spreading the World MS Day campaign.

 

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Noah “40” Shebib: Music producer living with MS

Posted on May 16th, 2012

Noah "40" Shebib

Noah "40" Shebib living with MS

Noah Shebib, known as “40”, is a Canadian hip-hop producer who lives with multiple sclerosis (MS). He was diagnosed with MS on his 22nd birthday after experiencing strange feelings in his legs: “hot was cold and cold was hot”, he said. Without having pervious knowledge of MS or its symptoms, Shebib thought that MS “sounded intimidating”.
Watch Shebib talk about ‘Living with MS’ in his CNN interview in the video below:

Shebib’s successful career began as a child actor. He appeared in the ‘Goosebumps’ series and the Canadian Gemini award winning ‘Wind at My Back’. Shebib evolved into a hit music producer through working with his close friend and Grammy nominated rapper and singer Drake. “40” as he’s known by his fans, is spreading awareness for the National Multiple Sclerosis Societyin the United States.

“MS has made me a stronger person and motivated me to find success despite it.”

This week’s World MS Day (WMSD) riddle highlights that the symptoms of MS are often first encountered between the ages of 25-31. Shebib’s diagnosis story identifies how young people are affected by MS and reflects how confusing this time can be. Often young people mistake common symptoms of MS, such as fatigue, as being the result of stress from common life changes such as moving home, increased career pressures or starting a family.

After Shebib’s diagnosis, it took three years for him to get back to some normality with the help of medical treatment. Doing simple tasks like getting dressed can be almost impossible at times, and on occasion, Shebib has to rearrange his working day because of his MS symptoms. Shebib has the support of friends and family, including his mother Tedde More, who was diagnosed with MS two years after her son.

Shebib says that the most difficult things about his diagnosis are “explaining to people how MS works, justifying the effects of MS, and the ‘but you look so good’ syndrome.”

“I wish people knew how unpredictable the disease is. One day I can walk five miles and the following day only 500 feet. It is very difficult for people to grasp that concept.”

Some young people living with MS feel that they get overlooked within society or that employers mistake MS symptoms for laziness. Shebib works in a creative industry which allows him to work flexible hours. Although he is able to rest when he needs to, he still has major projects and tours to deal with which would not be easy for most people.

Spreading awareness of the effects of MS is a vital aim of WMSD and increased understanding will help influence public policy in favour of all people living with MS. There is currently no known cause or cure for MS. Shebib believes connecting people to MS is the first major step in ending MS.

“By improving connections and knowledge about MS, we can end the disease.”

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Belgium gets together in aid of MS

Posted on May 16th, 2012

The MS Societies of the Federal and Regional entities of Belgium have each contributed major efforts for World MS Day 2012 by rolling out new websites and hosting events to also coincide with the 30th anniversary of the two regional MS societies. The total number of people with MS in Belgium is estimated to be 11,000.

World MS Day will see the regional societies launch new websites in their respective languages with young people in mind. The Flemish MS society is launching a website for young people diagnosed with MS called “MS Jongeren” (MS Youth). The site will act as a space for users to share experiences, make social connections with people in the same situation and to provide information. Most importantly, this site was designed to be as interactive as possible, where young people with MS have complete control and can post texts, pictures and clips.

The launch of the new website coincides also with the 30th anniversary of the society, which is being celebrated on May 26th.  There will also be a sports day for people with MS and their families featuring a host of activities including golf, biking and badminton.

The French-speaking MS society is also launching a new website on this occasion, but for a different target audience: children with MS and those with a parent with MS.  The site is especially designed for children aged seven and up, featuring cartoon mascots, and will be informative, entertaining and attractive to help give a better understanding of the disease and its consequences. The site is called “Sep pas sorcier” (MS isn’t witchcraft), alluding to the possibilities of demystifying the condition, and that MS is not to be feared.

On 26th May, the French-speaking MS society is also organising a family day including a fair and a presentation Belgian chocolate-making, followed by a tasting session, which is certain to be very popular.

All activities are being organised in conjunction with the country’s National Belgian MS Society. “Across Belgium, we are taking World MS Day to heart and are determined to make it bigger and better than before. Perhaps most importantly, we value the launch of the new websites aimed at young people, which we see as invaluable resources,” says Charles van der Straten Waillet, the national society’s president.

 

 

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