MY story

When I was 19 my life changed forever.

I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, a chronic disease that I knew nothing about.

Immediately my head was spinning…

What does this mean? How would this affect my life? Why was everyone around me so upset? How do I get over this overwhelming feeling of loneliness? How am I supposed to move on with my life? And the list goes on and on. 

I tried to adjust to living with a chronic illness by blindly following what other people (who didn’t have chronic illnesses) told me to do. 

I was told to be strong and fight instead of accepting my reality. I was advised to hide it, which only added to the shame I felt. Vulnerability was a no-no, so I buried everything and didn’t authentically share my experience with MS for nearly a decade. 

Over that timespan I obtained my Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences from The Ohio State University and Masters of Science in Nutrition from Meredith College.

Then, I hit my 10 year anniversary of being diagnosed with MS - I wasn’t happy or confident. Instead, I felt misunderstood, broken and lost. 

My mental and physical health had plummeted - I was depressed, felt the worse I ever have and was a prisoner in my own body. I knew I needed to prioritize my health and transform MS from a burden to an asset.

I began making small changes that allowed me to live healthier, physically and mentally. Through the process of trial and error I fell in love (again) with fitness and nutrition. With every change I made, I listened to my body and became aware of what worked for me and what didn’t.

The more I learned what worked for me, the more confidence I had in myself and the more freedom I felt. Through determination and consistency the small changes added up and my mental and physical health greatly improved.

Although I was happier and stronger, it still felt like a piece of me was missing. It was then I realized I sidestepped the most important part - determining how I felt about being diagnosed with MS.

I got to work. Over time, I processed the sadness, fear, anger, grief, shame and the 2,748,593,368 emotions that came up. I practiced radical acceptance and embraced my current reality. 

My newfound confidence from prioritizing my health coupled with a shift in mindset around MS was so empowering and changed me profoundly.

I finally felt whole and was thriving with MS. And, I know who I am with MS and how to show up and support her every day.

After 17 years, MS has morphed from a burden and source of pain to a strength and source of perspective. 

Now, I’m the Chronic Illness Guide and Patient Leader that I never had. I use my unique combination of education and experience to demystify the overwhelming amount of health information and science lingo and provide an uncensored glimpse into life with chronic illness - the good, the not-so good, and the downright ugly. All with the intention to help you feel less alone and more empowered in the journey to live with illness and fucking thrive!