We decided to downsize soon after my diagnosis nine years ago. We had to leave the home we had thought was our ideal home. I loved that house. We did have a downstairs loo, but with four bedrooms and only two of us, and having to give up work it was too big and too expensive to run. You say you wish the MS was more predictable to help you decide.
i was told my MS was “mild” I really don’t know where or how three different neurologists arrived at that definition, given the well documented unpredictable nature of MS. That gave me cause for optimism, I thought that would mean there’d be little, or no change for years. The deterioration has been constant. However, I digress.
We opted for a bungalow, but of course you get a lot less property for the money compared to a house. It does have a staircase into a loft room, and I used to go upstairs at least once a day, thinking, use it, or lose it. I’ve not been able to do the stairs for about three or four years now, so my best efforts failed. We looked at flats, but most modern ones are open plan and I don’t like my kitchen in my living room, also we didn’t think we were ready to give up outside space, almost unbelievably a lot of first, second and third floor flats didn’t have lifts! and hubby wanted a garage.
We also decided we didn’t want to move twice, the next one being a wooden box with tin handles, so we thought a bungalow was future proof. Moving is too stressful and expensive to want to do it often! Again with the “mild” label we thought there’s not be much work to do, other than cosmetic. We had a new bathroom put in and replaced the bath with a shower. Thinking that would be all I’d need. If we’d known then what we know now we’d have made it a wet room. I’m now pretty close to needing a wet room, but we can’t afford it. I didn’t think the two steps up into the bungalow would ever be a problem with “mild” MS, but now we’re facing a hefty bill for alterations at the front door, for which we are having to get a loan because we can’t get any help. I can’t even get up those two steps now. I use crutches at home, wheelchair everywhere else. Unless this “mild” thing stops or slows down which doesn’t seem likely I’ll need the wheelchair indoors soon.
If I hadn’t been given the “mild” tag I think we’d have looked at properties differently, although there were so few bungalows on the market in the area we wanted to be we may well still have ended up in this one, but with hindsight we should have future proofed it when we moved in - step free access, wet room, widened doorways, instead we’ve had to do some things twice.
I wish you lots of luck with your decision and hope you find the home you want. xx