Hey everyone, welcome to MS Michigan Man 64. I'm Brian Wallace, and this is where we get real about living with multiple sclerosis - no medical jargon you can't understand, just honest conversations between people who get it.
Today I'm talking with Carmen from Arizona, officially diagnosed in 1999 - but her journey started a decade earlier. At just 7 years old in 1989, she began experiencing unexplained falls. Back then, MS wasn't recognized in adolescents, so doctors missed it for years.
She dealt with falling, vertigo, and gait changes before optic neuritis finally caught attention. They misdiagnosed it as a stroke, and it took another year and a half before they admitted failing to check her spinal tap results and finally diagnosed MS.
Carmen talks about childhood resilience and carrying that strength forward. We discussed her homeopathic approach for 7 years - diet changes and medicinal marijuana - before transitioning to traditional MS medications. We both share how exercise helped retain mobility.
We dive into relationships and MS - from diagnosis around age 18, through culinary arts school where she built confidence. She opens up about pregnancy with MS and post-pregnancy symptoms that progressed her from cane to rollator.
Carmen met her significant other through a dating app. He didn't see her illness first; he looked beyond the diagnosis to who she truly is - finding a partner who is understanding, compassionate, and involved.
You can find me on Instagram @msmichigan64, Facebook @Brian Wallace Brunswick, Ohio and I'm also on TikTok @msmichiganman64. You can find Carmen at https://carmenlucia.shop/.
Let's dive in.