Continuing our focus on Disability Pride Month, I started thinking that we all are different, but is disability just another form of different? It’s one thing for an adult to stare at me in my power wheelchair and make unintentionally insensitive comments such as, “I wish I had one of those today!” or “Do you have a driver’s license for that?” The reality is adults should know better, but such comments open the doors for a constructive conversation and teachable moments. Yet how do we talk to children about people living with disabilities? About people who, in their minds, seem “different.” Th ..read more

Disability Pride Month is celebrated every July. Pride in disability? For real? Yes, for real. As A Couple Takes on MS, Dan and I are proud, but it is complicated. Am I proud that I no longer can walk and the whole world can see I truly am disabled because I need to use a power wheelchair for mobility? Likewise, is Dan proud that he struggles and nobody can see his invisible disabilities triggered by the limited feeling in his hands and feet?  Absolutely! But, as I said, it’s complicated. Pride is defined as a feeling of satisfaction derived from one's own achievements or the achieve ..read more

In Episode 77, Dan (and he admits it) was struggling cognitively. But was his scatteredness because he was tired? Age? Doing too much? Living with Multiple Sclerosis? In response to these questions, we can answer potentially, maybe, possibly and perhaps. It’s hard to tell what the cause was, but MS seems to lead the pack in reasons why. It turns out that cognitive problems are a common issue of MS, affecting 40 to 60% of people at some point in their disease course. These problems can vary from person to person. According to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, some common cognitive d ..read more

Not every person could seamlessly tie together the concepts of Step Therapy Reform and the Crap Gap. You just need to leave it to A Couple. Because to us it makes perfect sense to connect: • A bill in the Michigan House of Representatives that will ensure people with Multiple Sclerosis can get the medications they need without detrimental delays to • The stretch between disease-modifying therapy (DMT) infusions when MS symptoms seemingly feel worse. Seriously. We originally thought we were just run down from doing so much over the last several weeks — from traveling to Columbus, Ohio, for a Br ..read more

So often it seems the more you do, the harder it is to keep your head above water. You tell yourself you just need to get through this task. This morning. This day. Phrases like, “It can wait until tomorrow,” “I don’t need to ask for help,” and “I got this,” fire up your sense of determination. But all they’re really doing is forcing you to burn your candle at both ends, and this leads to, you guessed it, burnout. We are learning that a key to remedying this kind of overwhelmingness isn’t so much about asking others for help, it’s about connecting with them (and yourself) to hold you accountab ..read more

Since her MS diagnosis in September 2019, Brittany Quiroz—also known as a “A Hot MS”— has been a powerful voice in the Multiple Sclerosis community. Brittany is an author, speaker, MS activist and a talented singer/songwriter. Whew! Did we say she’s a powerful voice? She figuratively AND literally is! Her recently released single “Never Have My Soul” is a powerful, empowering and inspirational masterpiece that encapsulates the triumph every person living with MS strives for each day. We are thrilled to share a snippet of her single to kick off our engaging and point-blank honest conversat ..read more

You say flare. I say exacerbation. Or is it relapse? Whatever you call it, MS is progressing.   All it took was the recent Healthline article Is an MS Flare-Up the Same as a Relapse? to make us remember that contrary to wearing orange and observing March as MS Awareness Month, increasing understanding of this chronic progressive disease is a year-round venture. After all, we each have had Multiple Sclerosis for 25+ years, and we still had questions about what exactly IS the difference between an MS flare-up, attack, exacerbation and relapse. You say “tow-MAY-tow” I say “tow-MAH-tow,” righ ..read more

Always believe in the power of your voice and your story to influence change. Whether it’s at the local, state or national level, your experiences are valuable in making things better for you and many others dealing with the same circumstances and situations. We were honored that we had the opportunity to attend the National MS Society Public Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., the first week of March (officially MS Awareness Month!) and join nearly 200 other MS activists on Capitol Hill March 6 to advocate for MS-related legislative issues. We are grateful for the members of Congress and t ..read more

We’ve never met Sarah Kirwan and Carl Deriso as a married couple, let alone had a shared conversation with the two of them. But less than two minutes into our chat with the Arizona couple, it was like we were catching up and laughing with longtime friends. They had us at hello. And we, as A Couple Takes On MS, think they’ll have you there too. Consider these facts about this Sarah and Carl: • Sarah was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2011 • Carl was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1996 • They met at an MS support group in May 2016 and started dating shortly after • They got married i ..read more

This episode released on Valentine’s Day so of course it embraces a theme related to maintaining loving relationships when you or your significant other are living with Multiple Sclerosis. Just think about it: all committed relationships present their share of challenges. Throw a chronic progressive disease into the mix, and this love connection suddenly presents a different sort of sclerotic dynamic. This disease literally has a lot of nerve tangling up these loving relationships! Join us as we – A Couple Takes on MS – offer our perspectives and tips into what it takes to build and strengthen ..read more