The MS Olympics

ringsI’m enjoying the Olympics.

I’m also thinking, ‘you think that’s hard, try juggling The Teenager, Work, Studying and MS. Pah.’

Honestly though, I’m not really so mean-spirited, but I do sometimes think I put in an Olympic performance most days. We all do, don’t we?

If MS could be an Olympic sport, it would surely be the hurdles; you’d be standing there looking at a sea of impossible things to get over safely and with dignity intact.

Sadly, that’s not always the case; I would probably stumble flat on my face at the first hurdle, lie there for a while staring at the sky, humming gently to myself and let everyone else overtake me. A bit like life really.

Mind you, I think my performance could be vastly improved if I had access to an Olympic network of nutritionists, physios and mind-training-coaches. Plus a little bit of sponsorship wouldn’t hurt either – I would quite happily wear a discreet logo (or even a huge one) if it meant I had a few grand in the bank.

It’s interesting listening to the competitors speaking to the news broadcasters straight after their performances, especially when they lose – ‘I gave it my all, but there wasn’t anything else I could do really. I gave it 110%.’ How true. I need to bear this in mind when I come up short to my own expectations – I’ve passed many a day beating myself up for not doing this, not doing that. Or as an Olympian would say, ‘I had nothing else to give.’ Yes. So us peeps with MS are actually strangely similar to world-class athletes?

When MS strikes, things you take for granted become hurdles, things you can see you just have to get over. There’s no other way. Weird stuff like formulating a sentence when you’re shattered or trying to navigate a staircase when your balance is shot (me last night). Or attempting to pour boiling water into a cup without first-degree burns.

MS requires tremendous mental strength. We may not be physically able to do what others take for granted, but boy, do we have tenacity in bucketloads. It gets us through the day.

Therefore, I think everyone with MS and other chronic illnesses should give themselves a huge pat on the back. When the Olympic rings are packed away and the last firework goes off in the Closing Ceremony, don’t forget, we’re still here, trucking along, facing each day with fortitude.

And if we don’t come up to our benchmark ‘good day with MS’, well, ‘we gave it our all.

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14 thoughts on “The MS Olympics

  1. tony cardis says:

    I must admit my walking some days does resemble one of the horses in dressage

  2. Nicky says:

    Was saying the same thing yesterday! Sometimes it takes all I’ve got to make it across my bedroom – from wardrobe to dressing table. I give it my all – I have no more – I’ve left it all on the carpet (track). I may start to applaud myself in future ! 🙂

    • stumbling in flats says:

      You must! We all should 🙂
      And I know exactly what you mean. I was off the radar unbalanced yesterday and it was pretty awful.
      x

  3. David says:

    I’m very good at the gymnastics. Well half of it anyway. I can’t run, jump, do backflips, swing on the bars etc. But I am very good at falling on the mat ?

  4. Toni says:

    I’m grinning like a Cheshire cat reading this – as so true!.

    • stumbling in flats says:

      Thank you!
      I am currently navigating my way from the sofa to the kitchen with great results 😉
      x

      • Toni says:

        But laughing all the way also, I hope!. I just had to walk to the kitchen to get a painkiller…felt like my little feet were bouncing on bubble wrap. For a split second, I felt light and graceful like a ballerina. Looking light and graceful like a ballerina is a different story. :).x

        • stumbling in flats says:

          I know that feeling! Kind of like when you can’t feel your feet on the ground.
          I’d dread to think what I’d look like in a tutu though 🙁
          x

  5. Nicola says:

    Thank you for this. After yet another day jumping over hurdles in connection with my chronic illness ( not MS) I was feeling particularly despondent.
    But you’re right… I GAVE IT MY ALL! And now I feel much less despondent.

    Love to everyone dealing with stuff like this xx

    • stumbling in flats says:

      That’s fab!
      I’ve been saying that a lot to myself this last week and every time I hear an Olympian say it, I smile!
      X

  6. Joyce Tribble says:

    Enjoyed your blog.Recently have found myself moving minutely faster due to sudden bowel change, adding to the bladder issues.I have a horror of falling on the floor and leaking from both orifices!As my husband says, MS is the gift that keeps on giving ha ha.

    • stumbling in flats says:

      A laugh out loud comment! You poor thing 🙁 It’s certainly a ‘gift’!
      I swerved all over the place this morning and I’m sure I cheered up some people in the supermarket by knocking in to shelves full cheese and yoghurts. Gah.
      x

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