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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)