Multiple Sclerosis | MS Awareness Week 2024

The week commencing 22nd April is officially Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Awareness Week.

In this article, we will explore MS, the signs and symptoms, types, causes and more about MS Awareness Week.

MS Awareness Week

Created by the MS Society, MS Awareness Week 2024 will run from the 22nd of April, until the 28th of April.

It was created as a chance for people to raise awareness and speak up about the realities of living with MS.

The MS Society has teamed up with MS Together, the MS Trust, MS-UK, the Neuro Therapy Network (formally MS Therapy Centres), Shift.ms and Overcoming MS. They have worked to create MS Unfiltered – this is a sensitive and intimate campaign that will shine a light on the MS topics that can feel taboo or difficult to talk about. They have created a safe space for people to talk honestly and openly about everything from bladder control and sexual dysfunction to navigating menopause and cultural stigma.

Throughout the week they will also be sharing people’s unfiltered stories, and support and resources for anyone affected by these topics. Join the conversation during MS Awareness Week on social media by using #MSUnfiltered.

What is MS?

MS is an illness that affects the brain and spinal cord – it can cause a range of symptoms, including issues with your vision, arm and leg movements, sensations, and balance.

MS affects the person for their entire life and can even cause disability – although it is often mild. In a lot of cases, the symptoms can be treated with the average person mildly affected.

The majority of people are diagnosed in their twenties, thirties, and forties but anyone of any age can be affected, and it is more common in females than males. MS is also one of the most common causes of disability in young adults.

Signs and symptoms

Symptoms of MS can vary from person to person and can affect any part of the body.

The key symptoms:

• Tiredness and fatigue
• A sudden difficulty walking
• Vision issues, such as blurred vision
• Difficulty controlling your bladder
• Parts of your body may feel numb
• Stiffness and spasms of the muscles
• Issues with coordination and balance
• Issues with thinking, learning, and planning
• Emotional changes such as anxiety, depression and difficulty sleeping

It is worth noting that depending on the type of MS, your symptoms may come and go or progress over time.

Types of MS

MS tends to begin in one of two ways: individual relapses or gradual progression.

Relapsing Remitting MS

This affects between eight and nine in every ten people living with MS.

A person with relapsing remitting MS will have episodes of new or exacerbating symptoms, known as relapses. The relapses tend to worsen over a few days and can last for days to weeks to months, but they will slowly improve over the same amount of time. The relapses usually happen without a warning but can be associated with stress or illness.

The symptoms of a relapse can disappear completely, with or without treatment, although some symptoms may be present, with repeated attacks happening over extended periods. The space between attacks is known as a period of remission which can last for years.

After years, sometimes decades, a lot of people with relapsing remitting MS may go on to develop secondary progressive MS. With this variation of MS, symptoms generally worsen over time without evident attacks. Some people may also have periodic relapses during this stage.

Primary progressive MS

Between one and two in every ten people with MS start with a gradual worsening of symptoms.

In primary progressive MS, symptoms tend to slowly worsen and accumulate over years, and there are no periods of remission, though people often have periods where their condition appears to stabilise.

What causes MS?

MS is an autoimmune condition. An autoimmune condition is when something goes wrong with the immune system, and it attacks a healthy part of the body by accident.

With MS, it is the brain or spinal cord of the nervous system – the immune system attacks the layer that surrounds and protects the nerves called the myelin sheath. This causes damage and scars the myelin sheath, and sometimes the underlying nerves, which means that messages travelling along the nerves slow down.

We do not know why the immune system acts in this way but experts believe that it is a combination of environmental and genetic factors.

Living with MS

MS is a lifelong condition that requires daily adaptations, care, and support. A person with the right care can live a healthy, active, and long life.

Treatment for MS depends on the symptoms and difficulties associated with the specific type.

This may include:

• Treating relapses with short courses of steroid medicine to speed up recovery
• Specific treatments for individual MS symptoms
• Treatment to reduce the number of relapses using medicines called disease-modifying therapies

As with any lifelong condition, there are also certain ways to stay positive:

• Look after your mental health – it is important to remember that your mental health is just as important as your physical health. Practising self-care and wellbeing is good for the soul.
• Get plenty of good quality rest – sleep and rest is important as it provides the body with a chance to recover. Make sure you are not over-exerting yourself.
• Eat healthily – your body is a temple, so make sure you are feeding it with healthy and nutritious food.
• Exercise as much as you can – move your body as much as you can, and as much as you are able to. This is good for your mental and physical health!

Thank you for reading!

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References:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/multiple-sclerosis/
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/multiple-sclerosis/living-with/
https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/multiple-sclerosis-ms
https://www.mssociety.org.uk/get-involved/ms-awareness-week