Becoming ‘Students’ of Multiple Sclerosis

By Trevis Gleason

Published Jun 20, 2014

You know those times when you feel like the weakest link in a chain? The smallest oar in the boat? Like you read the wrong test prep? That was me yesterday. There were enough letters after people’s names in my meeting that you could write a small phone directory with them.

~Phew~ I’m glad that’s over… but I learned a lot and, while my oar may have been small, I got my sweeps in like everyone else.

And, I heard an analogy that made me think of living with MS.

Someone very important referred to the medical system as similar to the educational system — particularly in reference to all of the responsibility for teaching and learning being put on the teacher.

We can’t expect teachers to turn out ace pupils if the other parts of students’ lives are fraught with challenges. Teachers can’t change home environments or nutrition outside of their walls, or ensure that parents help with assignments. School systems can’t make up for support systems.

Sometimes I think that some of us feel that our doctors and medical teams should be able to “fix” our MS and everything around it, and all we have to do is show up for our annual appointments. Other times, it’s like we’re simply sitting in the wrong classroom.

If our docs tell us we should see a supporting medical player that either isn’t in our area or in our insurance network, isn’t that the same as sending a kid home to write a paper and not knowing if she even has access to paper at home? If our physical therapist gives us exercises to perform in between appointments and we only do them in session, isn’t that like not studying for a test and expecting to pass?

If the rest of the class is in the library studying literature and we’re flipping through comic books, are we getting the same knowledge and information?

It is time that we all learn how to be good students of our disease (I’m pointing the finger at myself, as well, here). The doctors don’t know it all, but they do have something to give. If you don’t feel that, then it’s time to find another class.

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