Living with MS in Your 30s:Staying True to You

Rosalind C. Kalb, PhDClinical PsychologistNational Multiple Sclerosis Society

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What We’ll Be Talking About Today

• Making a place in your life for MS without giving it more space than it needs

• Maintaining your self-confidence while living with MS

• Building a future in the face of uncertainty

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Integrating MS Into Your Life

• Remember that there’s no need to make a career out of your MS

• Develop your support network1

– Partner with your health care team

– Nurture old relationships; build new ones

– Tap available resources

• Let your body be your guide

• Be flexible, creative and ready to find humor in just about anything

1Kalb N, Holland N, Giesser B. (2007). Multiple Sclerosis for Dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

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• Get informed; stay informed– About the disease

– About management strategies

– About assistive technology

• Focus on the things you can do—even if you have to do them differently

• Help others in whatever ways feel good to you

• Be your own best advocate– Know your needs, rights, and priorities--at home, at work,

with your health care team

Maintaining Your Confidence

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• Let yourself grieve over changes/losses and move on2

• Keep an eye on your goals and priorities

– Create an energy “savings account”

– Focus on the things that matter most to you

• Don’t get stuck on the “what-ifs?”

– Plan for uncertainty; create safety nets

• Optimize your wellness—it’s not all about MS

– Find your “MS-Free Zone”3

2Kalb R. (2008). Coping and adaptation: Making a place for MS in your life. In R Kalb (Ed.)

Multiple Sclerosis: The Questions You Have; The Answers You Need (4th ed.). New York: Demos Medical Publishing. 3Kalb N, Holland N, Giesser B. (2007). Multiple Sclerosis for Dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

Facing Forward—The Future is Yours

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Top Take-Aways

• Try not to give MS more space in your life than it actually needs

• Confidence comes from meeting challenges with creativity, flexibility and a sense of humor

• Planning for the “what-ifs” can make unpredictability easier to handle

• Remember to take care of the whole you

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Helpful Resources

– National MS Society®

(nationalmssociety.org)

– MS LifeLines®, a free educational resource sponsored by EMD Serono and Pfizer, Inc. (mslifelines.com)

– Real Talk. Real Answers program Web site (realtalkrealanswers.com)

– Can Do MS, lifestyle empowerment programs for people with MS(mscando.org)

– Relationship Matters, a program for couples living with MS(nationalmssociety.org/relationshipmatters)

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