Life Changes too fast

[WishfulSpirit]

Hi everyone. Ttoday I worked with one of my favorite co-workers who I also consider a very dear friend. She's been over to our house for dinner, played with our dog, you get the picture.

Her shift was over at 3 p.m and as she left we'd been laughing and joking about nail polish and our silly guests. 3 hours later, at 6pm, we get a call from her mother that she's in the hospital being pumped full of steroids to treat with the doctors think is the onset of multiple sclerosis. She had a sinus infection a few weeks ago and since then has had some mild numbness in one side of her face that I thought might be Bell's palsy. Apparently it was a lot worse.

The disease is not a death sentence, it is treatable, and many people live with it their whole lives without serious disability. However we are talking about a woman who does akito and runs full Marathons.

Though I can't imagine how radically her life has changed in the last few hours, I was reminded how little time we all have on this planet and how quickly things can change for us. Sometimes the changes are great. But sometimes they're not. Treasure your friends and health while you have them.

[Heksubah]

My stepsister struggled for infertility for years and finally had a daughter. Just a few months later her husband woke up to my sister having a grand mal seizure and bleeding from the mouth (bit herself during the seizure). Many tests and hospital visits, and a few more seizures later, it was discovered that she has MS.

It has been a rocky road, but with changes to her lifestyle and diet, medicine to help treat her symptoms, she does pretty much all the things she wants including a heavy fitness routine (used to be a physical trainer when she was younger and had stopped long before the diagnosis but still works out) and regularly runs marathons. She posts about them all the time on facebook.

I mention her just to say don't give up heart. Your friend will have struggles to be sure, but be there for her and be positive and let her know that hopefully this won't necessarily mean she has to lose out on the things she loves.

[Arcus]

My dad has MS. It can be a rocky road. Not everyone reacts the same to it. There are several incredible advances that have been made in the last few year for the treatment. Too late to help my dad, but could be good for your friend.

[Shyla]

That's really tough. MS is different for everyone it seems. Just be a good friend.

[notalwaysright]

I very vaguely know someone who is quadriplegic. Well, he can move two fingers a little on one hand, I believe. Anyway, he jumped head first into the shallow side of a pool, that's how it happened. He's in his 40s, and this happened when he was 16. Life can change in an instant and no matter how much you wish, you can't go back. Cautiousness isn't a bad thing, no matter how much people scream YOLO and try to pretend that nothing bad will ever happen to them. People seem to think that if you're not running head on into something wild, that you're "not living." But the moments I treasure are just simple one's with family and friends.