Subject: Re: New here.

[Guest guest]

,

My mother also has MSA, dx just three years ago in autumn of '99 at the age

of 65. The first way to try to cope with the devastating news was to search

for ANSWERS. Some we could get, thanks mostly to this group and the

resources available here (links to internet, previous postings, etc.). Most

of the " answers " were not good news and it took our family several months to

come to grips with what we learned and what we were facing.

Our biggest question, " How Much More Time? " couldn't be answered. The best

you can do is estimate based on how rapidly the symptoms progress. At mom's

first visit with an MSA specialist at Baylor College of Med. in Houston, Dr.

Ashizawa (a " top gun " in the field) told her to expect to be in a wheelchair

full time in less than five years. She was there in only six months. This

disorder has been especially vicious to her and she is already in hospice

care. She really only experienced noticable symptoms for about six months

before being diagnosed.

Others have had much different experiences. I think that one member of the

group is at 22 years and still counting since diagnosis. It sort of seems

that the older the person is at diagnosis, the faster it progresses.

(Anyone else have observations on this?) Some folks lasted through an

extended period of severe disability, others left us unexpectedly as Speedy

did when we still thought there was a lot of life left to live.

There is no easy way to do this, but there is strength for the journey.

Isaiah 40:29-30 reminds us that God's strength, which never fails, is

available to us also. This is definitely a time of life when we surely

can't " fly " , and rarely can " run " , but as we walk the path we are sustained

and do not " faint " . God bless you and your wife. Laugh together every

chance you get.

Pamela Womack

[Guest guest]

,

My mother also has MSA, dx just three years ago in autumn of '99 at the age

of 65. The first way to try to cope with the devastating news was to search

for ANSWERS. Some we could get, thanks mostly to this group and the

resources available here (links to internet, previous postings, etc.). Most

of the " answers " were not good news and it took our family several months to

come to grips with what we learned and what we were facing.

Our biggest question, " How Much More Time? " couldn't be answered. The best

you can do is estimate based on how rapidly the symptoms progress. At mom's

first visit with an MSA specialist at Baylor College of Med. in Houston, Dr.

Ashizawa (a " top gun " in the field) told her to expect to be in a wheelchair

full time in less than five years. She was there in only six months. This

disorder has been especially vicious to her and she is already in hospice

care. She really only experienced noticable symptoms for about six months

before being diagnosed.

Others have had much different experiences. I think that one member of the

group is at 22 years and still counting since diagnosis. It sort of seems

that the older the person is at diagnosis, the faster it progresses.

(Anyone else have observations on this?) Some folks lasted through an

extended period of severe disability, others left us unexpectedly as Speedy

did when we still thought there was a lot of life left to live.

There is no easy way to do this, but there is strength for the journey.

Isaiah 40:29-30 reminds us that God's strength, which never fails, is

available to us also. This is definitely a time of life when we surely

can't " fly " , and rarely can " run " , but as we walk the path we are sustained

and do not " faint " . God bless you and your wife. Laugh together every

chance you get.

Pamela Womack