Hey, MSers. How many of you are women? OK, how many of you
ladies were diagnosed as expectant, new, or young mothers?
The
Mayo Clinic says women are twice
as likely as men to have multiple sclerosis. The National MS
Society suggests it may be two to three times more prevalent among women
than men. Other medical sources place the female-to-male ratio closer to 4:1.
Statistically, most MSers tend to be diagnosed between the
ages of 20 and 50. In fact, many childbearing women discover they have multiple
sclerosis during or after pregnancy.
Doesn’t sound like a
picnic, huh?
It’s not like medical experts are saying pregnancy causes
MS. But what timing.
An adoptive mother, I was diagnosed with MS a bit later in
life, but the MRIs showed older lesions. That explains a lot about some
difficult physical symptoms and seemingly inexplicable health seasons I endured
during my kids’ early years.
At the time, doctors pointed to unknown injuries, food
poisoning, miscellaneous infections, eyestrain, fatigue, stress, and other
random possibilities.
Those theories never panned out, but the issues resolved, so life went on.
Certainly, I’ve known ladies who developed clearly diagnosed
MS in their 20s and 30s, while they were having and raising their babies.
It’s like the stork drops off an infant … along with a whopping
episode of optic neuritis, a tingling limb or two, and a touch of vertigo.
Betcha didn’t register for MS at Babies ‘R Us, Macy’s, or Target. Nope. None of us did.
Image/s:
Girl in Sunglasses –
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