A Day in the Life of an MS Advocate

Lab 4 — Health Story

Faith Agauas is a mother, a Multiple Sclerosis advocate, and a Multiple Sclerosis ambassador. Faith was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, or MS for short, in 1999 but had it 10 years prior to her diagnosis. Faith struggled with doctors over the years. Back then they had told her that it was all in her head, it was stress, it was feminine issues, or even post traumatic stress from having a baby.

Faith and her daughter, Rebecca, spend a lot of quality time together. Rebecca also doubles as her caregiver. They enjoy traveling, spending time outdoors, going to coffee shops, watching movies and getting breakfast together.

When asking Faith what MS means to her and how should would define it she stated,

“Think of a cord to a toaster — the cord is all the nerves to your brain. The coating of the wire is called myelin. Now imagine a rat had chewed that cord. If the cord is damaged, the toaster won’t turn on. So if you have all these nerves connected to your brain that have been chewed up, it effects things such as speech, bladder and cognitive issues because the nerve signals are being slowed down and stopped all together.”

I asked Faith what some of her major symptoms of MS are and how it effects her daily life. She replied,

“My most common symptoms of MS are pain, fatigue, chronic UTIs, optic neuritis and cognitive dysfunction. I also have to use a walker on a daily basis.”

Some things that Faith does every day or uses on a daily basis may look a bit different that what most of us are used to. She has support beams in her shower and on the walls on the side for assistance. Faith uses her walker to get around and has a cane, as well.

“Have a positive attitude, don’t settle, speak up and speak up, learn as much as you can, and become your own advocate,” Faith said. “All I ask is that others can be patient with me and understanding, be caring, ask questions, and be supportive.”