"FloridaMS.org"

CHOICES, by Myrt Meetze We all have choices to make, but sometimes we are given something that we didn’t quite bargain for. This is my story………………….. My sister, Brenda, was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1974 at the age of 27. She didn’t choose this. Brenda had a debilitating form of the disease. Six years after being diagnosed she was in a wheelchair. The right side of her body gave her problems. She found it hard to grasp things and difficult to write. Brenda died in November 1986, due to kidney failure.

My first cousins, who are also sisters, both have Multiple Sclerosis. Ginny was diagnosed in 1976 at the age of 44 and Nancy in 1981 at the age of 32. We grew up a couple miles from each other in a small South Carolina town. There was a cotton mill, oil mill and a gold mine that were still operational when we were kids. MS is not thought to be heredity. However, there has been documentation of toxicity from chemicals, such as Mercury, (used in mining) which could be attributed to the diagnosis of autoimmune diseases. I feel this should be investigated further. Ginny and Nancy are doing well and have great spirits even though they are both in wheelchairs.

I was 22 when Brenda became sick. After Nancy was diagnosed I questioned every little ailment thinking, “Geeze, could this be Multiple Sclerosis”? I was young, active, married and the mother of a beautiful little girl. When I turned 40 I quit worrying. I was in good shape, running or walking and dancing every day!

Then in the summer of 1995, I experienced a tremendous pain that shot across my head every time I turned it. I finally went to my Ophthalmologist who decided to keep my contacts for a good cleaning thinking that might be the problem. I went to pick my contacts up the next day. As I was backing out from the parking lot I looked to my right to pull out and couldn’t see! I covered my right eye then my left. I had no vision in my right eye! I explained to the receptionist what had happened and the doctor wanted to see me. After examining me, he said I had optic neuritis of the right eye, and referred me to a Neurologist. The Neurologist suggested I have an MRI. The following Tuesday he told me, “I’m sorry Myrt, but you have Multiple Sclerosis”. Well, this was definitely not my choice. He suggested I go in the hospital for a few days for IV steroid therapy. I didn’t want to do that and asked if there were any other choices. I don’t remember him offering me anything else.

I was 43 years old, which seemed too old for MS. People got MS at a younger age. It has to be a mistake! I decided to find another choice myself to fight this unwanted visitor. My sister had MS and she did everything her doctor said and she died. So I was going to do something else! For the next three years I tried alternative care. I had all the amalgam fillings and root canals replaced with porcelain by an alternative dentist. I received IV nutritional therapy weekly, which I think helped to get my eyesight partially back. I got rid of all the aluminum cookware and replaced them with either glass or stainless steel. I also switched to eating only organic food and worked on getting all the toxins out of my body.

Now this is where we get into good choice verses bad choice. By November 1998, I began to have some problems. One night as I was driving, I noticed I wasn’t seeing as well with my left eye. I saw my Ophthalmologist and sure enough, optic neuritis in that eye. I decided to see a Neurologist again. Taking the MRI films done in July 1995 with me, the doctor sent me to have another MRI and kept my old films to compare. The doctor went over the comparisons of the two films at my follow-up visit and since there were quite a few new lesions, he wanted to start me on Avonex, a weekly injectible medication. Another choice I had not bargained for. Who wants to get or give shots, especially one that has a long needle and has to be given IM (intramuscularly)?

That was four years ago. I wish now, and tell others who are diagnosed with MS, to do their homework, research, and talk to others who have this unwanted disease - get choices! Consider going on a treatment plan your Neurologist sets for you right away. I, like other MS’ers, have some bad days, but doing great. I know my alternative medical approach didn’t hurt me. It did cost a lot of money though since health insurance companies will not pay for it! Look for and ask about choices if you or someone you love is diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Getting started on the right path and having a positive and good attitude will help you deal with anything that comes your way.