An unexpected outcome

I have survivor’s guilt. I was diagnosed with MS in 1980 just before finals at what should have been the end of my pharmacy degree. I lapsed into a coma after a tonic-clonic (grand mal) seizure, had no Babinski reflex, and was given 36 hours to live. I woke from that coma to the worried faces of my parents – and I was terrified. A future with MS was grim with no cure in sight. As an athletic gal and year round bike commuter (1960s+) I felt my world falling apart. For the next 30 years I experienced blindness, paralysis, and every twinge made me wonder if my MS had returned. I remained optimistic and continued cycling and learning, I’ve also helped those with their MS diagnosis for decades. I’m a positive person that’s a little too stubborn to give up.

40+ years have passed and the formation of sclerotic plaques in my brain and spinal cord slowed down and I received the astonishing news that I can consider myself unlikely to ever have another MS exacerbation. I beat MS.

But a cure isn’t just aging out like I did, it’s keeping those neurons firing; both physically and mentally, and being positive. I’ll bet most of you didn’t know that I lived with what should have been a terminal illness for decades.

So let us be nice to each other because I’ll bet I’m not the only one that lived with a life limiting secret.

Laura Grant

We glanced at other cyclist while cycle commuting in January 2005, spoke at the bike racks, and we’ve been together since.

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