Living with 2 chronic illnesses. This isn’t so unusual I think. But the combination between MS and Diabetes 1 in 1 body seems to be unusual. Yeah for me! I am often frustrated how such highly skilled specialists will only discuss problems that fall within their ‘speciality’, and fail to see the bigger picture. For example, if my sugar is high, I am overwhelmingly tired. Similarly, if I have done too much, my MS leaves me feeling exhausted. So, the questions I have to ask myself are: How am I feeling and why is that? Also, any flair up in the MS also affects my sugar anyway. And any rollercoaster in the sugar irritates the MS symptoms. Yet it is all going on in 1 body. All the time.
Why am I writing this? Not because I’m looking for sympathy. I don’t need it and I am 98% of the time doing absolutely fine. But there are times when the diseases keep me on my toes and the detective games begin. For example: Feeling a bit spaced out? = Low sugar OR MS tiredness. Shaking hand? = Extreme low sugar OR MS relapse. Fatigued? = High sugar OR MS reminder. You get the picture…whilst this may sound extreme to the normal ‘healthy’ person, the reality is that living with a (or more) disease is constant 24/7. It isn’t extreme to me. I have adjusted and adapted and see it as perfectly normal in my day. Unless I am actually ill. Even when sick I can’t just concentrate on getting well. I have to remember to make sure I stay alive. Then is when I feel like it is unfair. And I let myself feel miserable whilst holding tightly onto a hot water bottle. Luckily, this doesn’t happen often. And if it does, I retreat and indulge in a rubbish movie so that it won’t matter if I sleep through most of it. What I am trying to say exactly? I’m not entirely sure, only that everyone brings their own baggage and we shouldn’t try to be so specific in our approach to helping, but also look at the bigger picture.
Also, if I’m having a crap day maybe it is because I ran out of chocolate and it has absolute noting to do with my body at all!
Picture: My generous friend @fleur1612 fixing my hair issues. I’m lucky to have people like this in my life 
🙂
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