Stop me if you've heard this

I thought I should contribute something to the group, as I've found a great deal of advice and help from others in these pages, so thank you all!

Right, I thought - oh, actually I may have told the tale of my own diagnosis already, and I don't want to repeat myself, so by a process of overthinking, I find myself here again, feeling blank.

The battle with Writers Block is something I experience with or without MS,and like so many other things, I have to fight to recognise it for what it is, rather than just put it in the box labelled 'MS'. It's difficult because MS is a multi-faceted thing, and it's different for everyone - beyond the various forms it takes, the symptoms vary in effects and intensity.

Without recourse to the popular 'snowflake' analogy, it really is different for everyone - but not in a good way. Of course, 'every cloud has a silver lining', they say - and although it can sometimes be difficult to imagine, MS does have its 'benefits'.

For instance, it has taught me patience. It has made me grateful for the little things in life: simple joys like beautiful scenery. It has also shown me that anger and frustration are a waste of misguided energies. Perhaps most telling of all, it has forced me to reassess my own sense of values. It is true that even such an unwanted 'guest' as MS has lessons to teach.

These 'lessons' can be difficult to appreciate in the midst of a relapse or attack when your nerves are aflame, or your fatigue has laid you low, or you are trying for the millionth time to get that one sock on.

Did you recognise the thing about the sock? Frustrating, isn't it?

I find I've become my own 'time and motion' study: constantly astounded by the amount of 'wasted time' that I dedicate to activities that were once second nature - button a shirt? Tie my shoelaces? Ha!

I even ordered my first pair of slip-on shoes the other day, and I am looking forward to the end of the shoelace - tying nightmare!

Anyway, I'm rambling - another feature of my MS...

The point I was making, or trying to make, is that it's easy to become overwhelmed by it all, and it's vitally important to step back and see the bigger picture.

I find this crucially important, as my MS seems to become obsessive on minor details/problems. That in itself would seem to be logical - as MS can make a person feel powerless, so the little problem solving provides little victories, and feelings of accomplishment.

Like my slip-on shoes. Hurrah.