My life with MS Student speaks of illness struggle
ASTUDENT from Bristol has described living with a condition that cause fatigue and vision loss, and has led to uncertainty over her future.
Sasha Braun lives with multiple sclerosis, which causes problems with her vision, arm and leg movement and fatigue which doesn’t go away when she rests.
She says people find it hard to understand that someone her age might be affected and it has left her wondering what her future could have looked like without her diagnosis.
Despite this, she says there is treatment and help and says she has goals for her future.
Two years on from her diagnosis, she has told the Post about the impact MS has had on her ability to study and carry out day-to-day activities.
“At college, when my fatigue is bad, it’s extremely hard,” the 25-year-old said.
She is currently in her final year of studying theology, mission and ministry accredited through Durham University but at Trinity College in Clifton.
“The simple task of preparing a meal or having a shower can feel impossible, so studying on top of that is even harder.
“MS has effects on my mental health too. It’s increased my anxious tendencies.
“You’re living with that constant fear of when the next relapse is going to be, which is exhausting. That, and knowing your independence could be taken away at any minute, are the hardest things to deal with.
“Fatigue is my biggest symptom. It doesn’t go away with rest. Even the simplest task requires extreme amounts of energy.
“I’m required to have a full amount of energy along with completing assignments and doing day to day tasks. Sometimes it just feels too much and at times I have to request deadline extensions.”
The first sign of MS symptoms appeared during summer 2017 where for six weeks she began losing her vision gradually in her left eye.
According to the MS society, approximately 85 per cent of people with MS are diagnosed with the relapsing form, where symptoms come in sudden attacks then fade.
“At first I thought I had been on the computer for too long, but then the nerve pain started increasing.
“Following this, I had many tests and eventually my eyesight began to slowly come back. I still have a bit of permanent damage to my vision but it’s not as bad as it was,”she recalled.
In February 2018, she saw a special MS neurologist which is when she was officially diagnosed.
Tens of thousands of people with progressive forms of MS still have no treatment to help them as their condition advances.
By 2025, the MS Society hopes to be in the final stages of testing a range of treatments for everyone with MS.
Sasha said: “Before MS I used to think I had all the time in the world to get to where I want to be, but because the future is so unknown now. In three to four years hopefully I will have finished all my training and be a vicar and in the future, I’d love to be a hospital chaplain.
“My faith is what keeps me going when things are hard.”
Sasha is one of 30 under 30s appearing in a new story and photo series from the MS Society and award winning photographer Spencer Murphy, as part of the charity’s Stop MS Appeal.
Subjects range from age 16-30, and include a nurse, an expectant mum, and a drummer in a metal band amongst others.
Once Sasha completes her university course next year, she hopes to work in a church and fully qualify to become a vicar.