After our short detour to the Parking Office, we joined many other orange clad people at Nickerson Field for Boston's Walk MS. I signed up for this walk in early February; however, it took me over a month to tell anyone or invite anyone. This was my first experience joining any sort of MS event, and I was quite honestly very hesitant to do so.
I walked (and drove...) with double vision and choked down metallic tasting diet coke for several weeks before finally visiting the eye doctor. Yes, I realize now my first choice of doctor wasn't quite what I was looking for, but I think a part of me was nervous something was wrong, and the eye doctor seemed the least threatening. Besides, who knows! Maybe he'd give me some double-vision-reversing glasses and I could go back to work! That first appointment started a domino effect of doctors appoint that accumulated in one very odd neurologist, who only made eye contact with my left ear, that I had Multiple Sclerosis.
At first, I was really mad. I think if you look close enough at my car's steering wheel, you will see palm indentations from very angry drives home from my left ear obsessed neuro. I didn't want to talk about it with anyone, and I may or may not have scheduled my lumbar puncture at the same time as my sister's cesarean section birth so my dear mother would be busy with the arrival of sweet Dafne. You could say I was in a bit of denial.
The road from there to here has had its ups and its downs. Sometimes I forget I even have MS. Other times I can't sleep at night worrying about giving my babies MS, or not being able to see them when they're born, or hold them, or walk with them. When we were first dating, I was worried Steven didn't fully grasp what being with me could possibly entail, but, even before we were dating, he always explained that everyone at some point will have a something; no sense in fretting over the inevitable. Three years later and every day I am shocked at how he still truly does believe this. He is my rock that I didn't know I would need, and I am so amazed at the bravery and trust he doesn't even know he has.
The last couple weeks have been so humbling as the support and love flowed in from literally all across the country--Maine, Idaho, Hawaii and more! I was scared to ask for people's money, and even more nervous thinking about what people might say, but within the first couple days the responses I had received were incredible. To see the unquestioned support from so many helped me not just deal with MS, but it helped me see I have more options than I have seen in 5 years.
It was a beautiful day, and I walked every step of that 5K holding my husband's hand, and I've never felt better. It isn't just about raising money for research, but it is about the inspiration and love you feel about MS that you may never have felt before.
If you didn't get the chance to donate earlier, my amazing family decided that since they couldn't join me today in Boston, they would join Walk MS SLC on April 25th. I was truly touched by their involvement, and I can't wait for them to have such a beautiful day as I have had today. They set a $1,000 team goal, and every donation helps! Click here to donate: Team Walking Wallentines
