Find the Reassess Your MS interactive assessment tool at reassess.com.au

Today on MS understood we chat with Lexi Uff. We talk a lot about staying aware of our symptoms and keeping an eye on ever the ever changing nature of our disease. We talk about meditation and how that has been the best thing Lexi has added to her arsenal and how we should all find what works for us. I noticed throughout this episode and Lexi agreed that even after 12 years, journeys of acceptance and learning about our diagnosis can move and weave back and forth as we learn to work with our body as things change. And we talk about why Lexi decided to share her story publicly on Instagram.

This episode of MS Understood is sponsored by Novartis Australia and the Reassess Your MS

campaign #Ad.

Today on MS Understood we are chatting with Dr Samantha Balistreri. She's a physical therapist who works primarily with people who have multiple sclerosis and has even written a book for those wh have a new diagnosis called Breakthrough Multiple Sclerosis: For the Newly Diagnosed and Minimally Impaired. You can find the link check it out in the show notes. In this episode we talk about what prehabilitation is and why it's so important for those of us with MS, how there is primary and secondary fatigue in MS, how important it is to be the team captain of your care team. I really enjoyed this chat with Sam and I hope you get something out of it.

What To Do When Newly Diagnosed With Dr. Samantha Benson

Breakthrough Multiple Sclerosis: For the newly diagnosed and minimally impaired

Find Sam on Facebook

Find Sam on Instagram

Today on MS understood we chat with Christy Batta. She has a beautiful hand lettering business called Human Plus Kind Co where she makes hand lettering about her MS experience. My favourite quote she shares is Because MS. We talk a lot today about the fears around others expectations of us living with an invisible disease and how this has impacted Christy's experiences. Christy talks about bravery, how there are different types of bravery and how some bravery quotes are really just toxic positivity. Christy so generously shares how she thought she had accepted her diagnosis 10 years ago but is now realising that she hasn't. I think this is so valuable to share, acceptance is like grief, nonlinear.

Human Plus Kind Co Instagram

Human Plus Kind Co Etsy

Find me on Instagram - @Clare.Reilly

On this episode of MS Understood we have Katy back to talk about how her mountaineering trip went. Her story is really one that makes me want to get up and go, make some sweet goals and start moving towards them. I'm so excited to be able to share her story with you.

Find Katy on Instagram

Today on MS understood we chat with Katy Glenie. We cover a lot of things in this episode. Katy talks about how she has a meditation break in the middle of the day, as this allows a mini reset so she can feel refreshed for the afternoon. Katy mentions that she sees her neurophysio over zoom and how well that works. Just as a reminder for those of us who don't have a neuro specific physio in our area. Katy also chats about reframing adventure and her next big adventure. In this chat we talks about her plans to go mountaineering up a 3000 meter peak in New Zealand. If you enjoy this chat with Katy, make sure to check out the next episode for an update on how her trip went.

Find Katy on Instagram

Today on MS Understood we are chatting with Jo Betz, who is giving grief a voice. I first heard Jo's story about loosing her husband suddenly on another podcast and knew that I needed to talk with her for the MS Understood podcast about grief. We talk about the 5 stages of grief and how it's a great initial framework but doesn't list all of the emotions that we go through. We talk about the bullshit 'self care' and how on those days of deep grief it's really important to look after our basic needs. While Jo's experience of grief is around death and ours is around an incurable illness there are so many similarities between how we process these incredible emotions. I hope you get something out of this chat, just as I did.

Jo Betz on The Choice with Amy Bett

Jo Betz on Instagram

More about Jo and her Grief Journal

Find me on Instagram @Clare.Reilly

Today on MS understood we chat with Ashley Ratcliff. Soon after Ashley was diagnosed with MS she wrote a part memoir, part self help book, Jesus Year: The first year of the rest of my life after I was diagnosed with MS to provide others with what she needed when she got diagnosed. Ashley is passionate about people being their own advocates, finding a team to support you and about asking for help.

Jesus Year: The first Year of the Rest of My Life After I Was Diagnosed With MS

Ashley Ratcliff Instagram

Clare Reilly Instagram

Today on MS Understood we are chatting with Alanna from YO-T, where she blends the benefits of yoga and occupational therapy interventions. We talk about the difference between occupational therapy and physiotherapy. We talk about mental health support with yoga and the connection to sense of self through this modality. We talk about strengths that Alanna has seen in his clients with multiple sclerosis. She says that sometimes our strengths get ignored.

YO-T website

Dr Gretchen Hawley website

YO-T Instagram

@Clare.Reilly on Instagram

Find the Reassess Your MS interactive assessment tool at reassess.com.au

Today on MS Understood we chat with Sarah Preissner. Sarah's story takes us back to when she was

8 years old when she and her mother noticed that her hand writing was messy and she had no

control over it, she was then not diagnosed until the day after her 13th birthday. We talk about how

it grew with her and how grief for her looked so different to what it does for others given that she

was so young. She finds she now grieves for her parents having to go through that with their child.

And while she didn't grieve for herself when she was young, she's now finding it something she

really has to put focus on now that her and her husband are talk about having a family. We talk

about how an MS diagnosis can be seen as an excuse or crutch from the outside, and when Sarah

heard people saying this about her, she and her sister decided to run a half marathon.

This episode of MS Understood is sponsored by Novartis Australia and the Reassess Your MS

campaign #Ad.

Today on MS Understood we are chatting with Sarah who was my local area coordinator with the NDIS. Today we talk about all things NDIS. She shares tips on how to get initially accepted access into the NDIS, and then talk through the next steps. She answers questions from Instagram like, what's completely unreasonable to ask for, how does she recommend creating a good application, and what's the most outrageous thing she has heard anyone requesting. I know NDIS can be tricky to navigate and I really hope this can help you with your application.

Project Euphoria website

Project Euphoria Instagram