http://www.wisinfo.com/northwestern/local/072001-2.html
Fri 20-Jul-2001
JoAnn Drake would be sitting quietly
one moment, then her face would suddenly flare up into great pain.
All of a sudden it would get so bad
I would want to cry, the Oshkosh woman said.
Doctors referred her to other doctors.
Medicine was followed by tests. When the diagnosis finally came multiple
sclerosis she found some relief. When she was in her early 30s, she finally
found out what had caused the pain for a decade.
It helps to have a name to it so
you dont lose your mind, said Drake, 59, sitting on a couch in her airy
south-side home.
Multiple sclerosis is a disease that
occurs after nerves in the brain and spinal cord lose their ability to
communicate signals. The disease often masquerades as vision loss, paralysis
and walking difficulties, according to the National Multiple Sclerosis
Society Web page. It is sometimes difficult to diagnose. About 350,000
Americans are affected by multiple sclerosis.
Drake suffered pain for years and
likely had symptoms before she married when she was in her early 20s. Unlike
people who wait years for a diagnosis, she was fortunate to have a diagnosis
within several weeks when she finally sought medical advice.
New criteria announced July 10 allow
new guidelines for helping doctors confirm the disease more quickly, possibly
reducing the waiting time some have before they can be diagnosed.
The criteria were recommended by
a panel organized by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, the Associated
Press reported.
Traditional multiple sclerosis testing
requires two attacks of the disease for a diagnosis, but decades may pass
before the second verifiable attack occurs. The new guidelines are expected
to help doctors diagnose multiple sclerosis in people who have had only
one attack or havent had any attacks, but have noticed a progression of
disability.
Drakes diagnosis was made 28 years
ago.
She works in an office at Mercy Medical
Center, and is an avid biker and walker. She needs no assistance walking,
and springs up from her couch as quickly as a teen-ager to answer a ringing
telephone.
She and her husband, Dale, have plans
for a 50-mile bike trip this weekend.
I think its important for people
to know that when they have a diagnosis its not the end of the world, Drake
said.
She has learned to adapt to situations
in her life because of the disease. Those who have multiple sclerosis are
sensitive to extremes in temperature. Her meals must be pea warm, as she
calls it, meaning not too hot or cold as well as soft.
In the years when the Drakes were
raising their son and two daughters, the family made allowances knowing
their mother couldnt do some tasks. The children chipped in. My kids grew
up knowing there wasnt something right with me, she said.
Her faith in God is another resource
that she relies upon for strength. She said people with multiple sclerosis
have to be bullheaded about facing their disease. Im a quiet fighter. You
have to have a sense of humor to laugh at yourself, she said.
The National Multiple Sclerosis Society
Wisconsin Chapter often refers people to Drake who have just discovered
they have the disease, to allay popular fears of the disease.
Her husband used to be active in
getting a spouses group together. The reasons for a support group had more
to do with the stress that the disease may inflict on a marriage for those
unable to cope with it. Ninety percent of MS victims spouses divorce them,
Dale Drake said.
The Drakes, by contrast, have been
married 38 years.
Their secret for happiness together?
Its not a secret, they said, just love and faith.
Nobody could have either one of us,
so were better off with each other, Dale Drake said, wryly.
© Copyright 2001, The Northwestern.
By John J. Archibald
of the Northwestern