This is a guest blog by MS Trust supporter Chris Wilkinson (pictured)

Last year was a very eventful and emotional time in our lives.
My wife Tara gave birth to my newest daughter (Poppy) in April however throughout the pregnancy, Tara really suffered with constant migraines most days.
Two months after giving birth, Tara was still experiencing severe migraines and on one Friday morning whilst getting dressed, she collapsed at the top of the stairs. Upon coming around, Tara’s speech had completely gone and she felt extremely dizzy. Luckily I hadn’t gone to work yet and my initial thought (apart from panic) was that Tara has suffered a stroke. Tara (being Tara) didn’t want to make a fuss so rather than calling 999, I called the emergency NHS helpline and received a call back from an expert quite quickly. By following a number of checks over the phone, it was established Tara had not suffered a stroke, however they recommended that either an ambulance was requested or I take her straight to A&E.
After numerous tests which included an MRI and Cat scan, Tara was diagnosed with MS. Not only MS, but also a second neurological disorder of severe migraines.
Unfortunately I was not with Tara when she was given her diagnosis and will never forgot her calling me to say “Can you come and pick me up and by the way I have MS, see you in a bit!”
As you can imagine, once it sunk in, it has been a rollercoaster ride of emotions through denial, despair to “let’s just take one day at a time”. To be honest, with how unpredictable MS is, we will always be living our lives with that lingering thought “what does the future hold for us?”.
On a positive, MS has made us appreciate what we do have and we have made a commitment to make sure we make the most of each and every day, starting with renewing our wedding vows in Las Vegas in October this year.
Since diagnosis, it has hit home to me that I need to start taking care of myself so if anything does happen, I am able to look after my family. In January I made a conscious decision to lose weight and get fit as we don’t know what the future may hold. So far I have lost nearly 3 stone and am feeling healthier by the day.
Tara made me aware that the 29th April to 5th May is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week and could we think of anything we could do to show our support? To be honest, I didn’t know MS had an awareness week, but was more than happy to see what we could do.
So as part of my keep fit regime, I decided I would attempt to bike the equivalent from Attleborough (my home town) to Paris during March, totaling 600km. Due to work commitments and demanding children (and that Tara didn’t trust me on real roads) I wasn’t able to do this in reality, so I dusted down my exercise bike and started to peddle. Within the first week of March, I had already cleared 200km and got a little over confident and declared I would also bike the equivalent distance back again totaling 1200km.
I have raised over £1,000 including Gift Aid. Aviva who I work for have also promised to contribute to this total so I am hoping to raise well over the £1,000 in total.
By doing this, it has been astonishing to find out how little people know about MS and how it impacts people’s lives. Friends, family and work colleagues have all got completely behind what I have tried to achieve and now they all understand a little more than they did about MS.
I just hope we can continue to spread awareness and one day live in a world where there is a cure. We are now thinking about my next challenge to raise funds and awareness of MS. Watch this space.
Visit Chris’s fundraising page on Virgin Money Giving
This is a guest blog by MS Trust supporter Chris Wilkinson (pictured) Last year was a very eventful and emotional time in our lives. My wife Tara gave birth to...
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