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MSWA Bulletin Magazine Winter 2017

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IT’S WORTH THE EFFORT

IT’S WORTH THE EFFORT JENNIFER FOWLER For 23 years I was a primary school teacher, dedicated and devoted to my career. I loved my children and a significant number of them remain in contact with me to this day which indicates that many of them also loved me. I contracted polio early in my childhood years and have lived with disability in various forms for most of my life but largely thanks to the support of my mother, I was able to do almost everything I set out to do including teacher training. Being different can sometimes be a challenge in itself, but we are all different in some way - that’s what makes us individual, interesting and loveable. During 1989 and 1990 I began to experience fatigue in a new kind of way. Believing it to be part of post-polio syndrome, I fought against it with all the reserve I had. My emotional well-being was a little shaky and I put that down to the fact that my precious mother had died of cancer in 1988 at age 65. Coping with that was not my strong point. Then, at the end of March in 1991, I had a cold. Simple enough really but because I thought it might get worse and cause me to have to take days off from school, I took myself off to my GP for a quick fix. While I was with the GP I said to her that the vision in my left eye was a bit fuzzy and asked her to check it out. She peered into it, as they do, frowned, as they do, and said she wanted me to see a specialist - that day. She made the appointment. My sister took me to see Dr Tim Day. I was admitted to hospital that day and went through numerous tests. At the end of the week I had an MRI scan. Dr Day (how I miss him) came to my room (on April Fool’s day!) at St John’s, sat on my bed and told me the results of all the tests pointed in one direction and that was that I had multiple sclerosis. I didn’t know much about MS and treated his diagnosis with some flippancy wanting to know when I would get better and when could I go back to school. I had some serious learning to do. By this time I had no vision at all in my left eye and fatigue was a major problem. I had begun to spasm at the most inconvenient times and I lost control of my waterworks. Emotionally, I was a wreck. At home I lived alone in the house of my dreams in the hills on the east side of Perth. I had all that I needed and was very happy. But my house was up on stumps and not at all wheelchair friendly. Guess what I had to do first. Yes, I sold my house in favour of a flat one down in the flats. I persevered in my teaching but in a tandem arrangement in which I worked four days and my partner worked one day. Then, my full time teaching days were over. Depression set in big time. I was finished. I was scrap heap material. I was of no further use. I stayed that way, allowing everyone to do everything for me until September of that year. Then one day a colleague of mine visited me to deliver an Education Department publication which he thought may be of interest to me. It proved to be the catalyst of a huge turn around in my attitude. There was a small advertisement in the publication giving notice of a Master of Education Degree course offered at summer school in the University of Tasmania. I had a Diploma of Teaching and a Bachelor of Education so was qualified to apply for this course which I did. I was accepted and for the next three summers I went to Tassie and studied like crazy. The fourth year I went over to graduate as a Master of Education. Oh, what a feeling. My sister and her husband came over to share the occasion with me and there was much celebration. I thought this would lead me into further gainful employment. It didn’t. My MS was still pretty angry and before long, I slipped back into my own little pity party. By now I had lost the ability to swallow properly and I had several bouts of being unable to speak. I was no longer allowed to drive and did not have permission to do relief teaching. In 1998 I decided that I could, despite everything being against me, drive again and teach again. The red tape abounded and most of my friends thought I was setting myself up for failure. It’s a long story, but by the end of the year I was driving again and had written permission to do relief teaching in State Government schools. Life began again. But it was slow. I was not getting enough work and there is a wide gulf financially between teaching and living on a pension. 14 | MSWA BULLETIN WINTER 2017

So, in 1999 with a courage that was not really my own, I enrolled in the Bachelor of Social Science Course at Edith Cowan University believing that if I couldn’t get a job in education, I could get one in some aspect of human service. On 21 April, 2002, I graduated and was awarded the degree of Bachelor in Social Science. It had been a long haul. I had a heart attack in August of 2001 followed by triple bypass surgery in October. Having been discharged from that operation I had three weeks to do three major assignments and complete two major exams. That’s where the support network really came into play. I was one very sick chick and one friend in particular plastered the walls of my house with notes and I just sat and studied those notes for many hours each day. Thanks Liz. The exams came and went and I was not at all confident. I was back in hospital when friend Liz rang and told me the results were online and I had passed! The joy was immeasurable. For 11 years I had a job and I felt like a real person again. I worked for a specialised tutoring company on a part time basis and it gave me more pleasure than I can describe. One day I will get a job in some human service capacity and I know I will have deserved it and I know I will do it well. I have proved to myself that if something is worth fighting for it is worth fighting hard for. I wanted this degree and I was going to get it in my own time frame no matter what. It has been truly worth the effort. It has been truly worth the stress. I have forged some lifelong friendships with people who value me for who I am and not because I have MS. My final word is to people who have MS who may feel that life is passing them by. Don’t let it. There is so much one can do and every achievement, no matter how big or small, gives so much pleasure. Don’t allow yourself to have everything done for you. If you can do some things for yourself then do them - don’t just sit there and let the world pass you by. The world is full of opportunities for everyone. Go for it. NEWLY DIAGNOSED MEET AND GREET SARAH LORRIMAR, MSWA PEER SUPPORT AND HEALTH EDUCATION COORDINATOR Recently, the Newly Diagnosed Meet and Greet made a welcome return. Our newly diagnosed Members were invited to bring their friends and family for an informal opportunity to meet with others in a similar situation. The group had a wonderful turn out, with 18 people in attendance as well as four MSWA staff including, Social Welfare Manager Lisa Papas, Counsellor Cherry Chapman, Community Access Nurse Rosie Hunt and myself. The focus of the meet and greet was to create a safe place for Members and their support persons, to listen to and share experiences of their new lives with MS. The group also provided a place to seek support from those with a lived understanding and MSWA staff. Feedback from attendees reported that the group was a way for them to gain new information about MS, listen to other’s experiences and to participate in the support system. Our peer volunteer, Tom Lerner was in attendance to share his personal story of being diagnosed with MS and his journey so far. Tom spoke about how he has maintained his wellbeing and a positive outlook on life with MS over the years. With very positive feedback from the group, we hope to hold another meet and greet soon. Some feedback included: “The evening exceeded my expectations, I learned more about my partner and MS.” “This was beyond my expectations! Definitely worthwhile.” “A nice and relaxed environment. The meeting exceeded my expectations.” If you are interested in attending or would like to provide any feedback, please phone Sarah Lorrimar on 9365 4858 or email Sarah.Lorrimar@mswa.org.au MSWA BULLETIN WINTER 2017 | 15

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