May 2015 I went to a neurologist office with no referral, no conversation with anyone about it, not even my husband.I told the doctor, “I think I have MS. I need you to order the MRIs”.Results of MRIs & lumbar puncture confirmed my suspicion. I have MS. Let me tell you, no matter how prepared you think you are to hear that news, it knocks you on your ass.MS is a chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system. MS attacks the brain, spinal cord, and nerves. It can cause blurred vision, numbness, fatigue, cognitive deficits, paralysis, pain, poor coordination, loss of balance, and SO MUCH MORE. There is no cure for MS.There is no way to predict its progression.There is no way to know if I will go 3 years without another relapse, or will wake up tomorrow and not be able to use my legs.
My activity is severely limited as a result. It is awful not knowing when will be a good day, or how to plan when you can do things.When I realized this was my life, that I could no longer take on everything and hop back up fighting, I went through a period of mourning.Mourning for myself, for the mom I had thought I’d be, and the life I thought I’d have.
MS has hijacked my brain and my body, and I want it back!!
Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT) has shown amazing results freezing MS in its tracks. It involves storing my stem cells and reintroducing them after my immune system is destroyed with chemotherapy. When learning about HSCT for the first time I had hope. HSCT is in a phase 3 clinical trial in the United States and is performed a handful of places around the globe.It’s not new. Not going through with HSCT is not an option. For those of us fighting this disease it’s the miracle we’ve been hoping for. I am going to Puebla, Mexico in January 2017 for the treatment.
I am going to be away from my home for a month.Away from my children, my husband, my dogs.I am going to lose my hair.Nothing about this will be easy, but to be given back my life it is most certainly worth it. Hopefully post HSCT I will no longer do fun things like drop my entire dinner plate in my lap.I want to be the active mom and wife my family deserves.When the time comes, I want to chase my grandbabies.
HSCT is not covered by my insurance so I will need to raise approximately $70,000 to cover cost of treatment, airline tickets for myself and required caregivers, a 28 day stay in Mexico and all related expenses. While $70,000 is intimidating, it is much cheaper than a life time of the medications that are currently offered. I’m not even going to get into the side effects!The last one I tried was $15k for a 3 month supply.
$70,000 is a small price to pay to give my children back the mother they knew.That being said, I don’t have $70,000.You can follow my journey to and through HSCT as well as my many fundraising events at
https://m.facebook.com/megshsct/
Please consider donating if you’re able. Share with everyone you know.Help me beat MS!
Find out what's happening in Woodbridgefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Just a few of the fundraisers included are a shoe drive, an online auction & so much more! Please take the time to support a local mom and take a look at the fundraising oportunities.
