Defy MS: How Occupational Therapy Can Empower You

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic condition that affects the central nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord. In MS, the immune system mistakenly attacks the protective sheath (myelin) around nerve fibres, causing inflammation and damage. This disrupts the normal flow of electrical signals along the nerves, leading to a variety of symptoms that can differ widely from person to person.

Here are the main types of MS:

1. Relapsing-Remitting MS (RRMS): This is the most common type, featuring episodes of new or worsening symptoms (relapses) followed by periods of recovery (remissions). During remission, symptoms may improve or disappear entirely.
2. Secondary Progressive MS (SPMS): Often a progression from RRMS, SPMS involves a gradual worsening of symptoms over time, with fewer or no clear periods of remission.
3. Primary Progressive MS (PPMS): Characterised by a steady decline in function without distinct relapses or remissisons.
4. Progressive-Relapsing MS (PRMS): This type features a continuous progression of symptoms from the beginning, with occasional relapses adding to the overall decline.

Understanding the type of Multiple Sclerosis can help tailor treatment and management strategies to improve quality of life and occupational therapy treatment, make sure your therapist know's what type you have.

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) can impact all parts of the body from physical and cognitive abiltiies, vision and hearing to emotional and psychological functioning. 

Common physical challenges in MS include:

• Fatigue: A persistent and often debilitating feeling of extreme tiredness or exhaustion. This is one of the most common symptoms in MS and can really make everyday life difficult.
• Weakness: Reduced muscle strength due to nerve fibre being damage which can impact all activites.
• Ataxia: Reduced coordination of the upper and lower limbs that can impact walking and everyday function tasks like eating and dressing.
• Spasticity: Abnormal increases in muscle tone which can cause stiffness and/or make movements difficult or painful.

Common Cognitive challenges in MS inlcude:

• Attention/Concertation: Difficulites in maintaining attention which can making performing everyday tasks difficult.
• Memory: Becoming forgetful is another common symptom in MS making it difficult to manage everday tasks like appointments.
• Brain Fog: The general cognitive foggyeness that makes thinking and planning difficult and effortful.

Common sensory challenges in MS include:

• Vision and hearing changes: Blurred , double or impaired vision are symptoms that can occur in MS as well as different levels of hearing loss which impact all daily living activites.
• Numbness or tingling: This can occur anywhere in the body but most commonly imapcts the hands and feet, impacting mobility and fine motor skills. 

Other common challenges in MS include:

• Incontinence: Loss of control over bladder or bowel functions or loss of sensation of the need to complete bladder or bowel motions can impact continence. 
• Thermoregulation challenges: Sensitivity to heat is a very common symptoms and this can result in a worsening of MS symptoms that resoles when ones internal body temperature is properly managed.
• Mood changes: low mood and mood swings can often be common in MS. 

Occupational therapy (OT) is all about helping people lead full, meaningful lives by addressing challenges in performing every day activities. Occupational Therapists implement a combination of person, environment and task based approaches aiding individuals to overcome barriers to their independence and enhance their quality of life.

The primary goal of an occupational therapist is to minimise the impact a persons MS symptoms has on their everyday life. Your OT will perform specific assessments to understand your strengths and challenges, discuss your goals and aspirations and collaborate with you to help you do the things that matter most to you.

Once your OT has this information they use their unique skillset to help you improve you skills and abilities, change the way activities are performed or modfy the envionrment or introduce specialised equipment to make sure you can have the freedom to confidently manage you everyday tasks.