What to say to wind up a person with MS (alison100)

I had one this week at work, a customer asked “how’s your foot now?” so I politely explained that I have MS and it probably won’t get any better, to which he replied “Ive a friend with that, and he still rides his bike every day, you should try cycling!” . My reply to him was "how lucky his friend is as I have difficulty standing upright most days!!!"

I work at a school and my boss always says, “We’re all tired, we just need half term then we’ll be okay”. I have now taken to answering with “I’m so glad everyone else is so tired they go home and sleep for 2 hours before cooking dinner and their houses are tips because they are too tired to clean it and they will sleep for the first 2 days of half term before they blitz the house and return to work just as tired as they were before!!” Oddly enough she doesn’t have an answer for that!

Recently, someone at my local MSS branch thought I didn’t have MS, as she was handing out useful leaflets. When I corrected her, she said “But you always look so well”. That really threw me, coming from a member of the MSS whose spouse has had the condition for a very long time, I though they would have understood that in the early days it’s very often invisible but still has an impact.

this is the one I get. Or I have a friend, who has MS - it does not affect her life at all

this is the one I get. Or I have a friend, who has MS - it does not affect her life at all

My son did the same to one of the mums at the school gate after she said she had a cold.

Get well soon MS oh they can do so much for that nowadays MS, they can stop it in it’s tracks But you look well and everyone knows someone who has a friend/relative with MS and he/she is absolutely fine/ really bad How long have you got However I do try to take it as a compliment that I look well and not assume the speaker is thinking I’m a fraud!

I’ve just noticed thus is from 2011 and see I have repeated myself. The same comments still wind me up though!

I find this thread very interesting - it seems people aren’t any more educated about MS than they were 3 years ago!

I have had:

Oh, but you look fine! (from the MS charity lady who questioned why I put a fiver in her collection tin at the weekend)

How long have you got?

MS? My friend’s, sister’s, friend’s dentist has MS. He’s still playing volleyball 6 times a week - you would never know to look at him!

Had some old guy last week , while I was receiving my tysabri in hospital, give me his condolences has I probably only had 18 months at best

Well my grandma when speaking to my mum told my mum that it must be in her side of the family as no-one on my grandma’s side has it.

I wear really high heels and I get told either to my face or my friends get told that I shouldn’t because I’m going to fall over anyway!

I have also been asked if I should be driving, that one’s annoying because I live in the middle of no-where and really need my car!

It was funny reading this thread back. I don’t have the same line manager at work any more - we had a big falling out just a few months after I wrote a comment on here. I think you can tell there was already some friction …

I now have a lovely line manager who empathises but just offers practical solutions. I have had soooo many hospital appoinments this year but that has not been a problem. I have been told my health comes first but my boss also understands my need to keep working and is keen to help me continue with that. I am frequently told how valued my input is at work (that brings tears to my eyes as I’m not used to praise lol). It makes such a difference …

On the flip side, there is a friend who used to make stupid comments out of ignorance and I have been trying to educate her. I think I have still failed as she now says she can tell who has MS just by the way they walk … well she’s doing better than me then as there could be all sorts of reasons why someone has an odd gait and a walking stick and I’d hate to jump to conclusions

Tracey xx

I hate it when people say, why aren’t you on medication, tell your Dr you want some, there’s loads of new medication that’s working, if I was you I would insist… etc etc etc Wound up just thinking about it. Jan

Someone said my wife used to have that, I use a single ride on buggy to try still play golf, someone said, you lazy bastard, wish I had one of them, my answer was, I will gladly swop,

Yeah someone told me I was lucky getting airport assistance I told her I would gladly change places, she wasn’t amused but then neither was I. Happy Golfing Jan

Love this thread!

I am recently diagnosed and the drug company called me about my first drugs delivery and said they would be sending me a ‘welcome pack’ and did I want a ‘holiday pack’!! I don’t really know why but this really annoyed me…I wanted to shout at her down the phone 'i’ve just got this sh***y disease and your talking about welcome packs and holidays like i’d just booked a week away with Thomas Cook!!..its not their fault, just really annoyed me!

My neighbour said ‘I dont know anything about MS, your not gonna die are you???’ we laughed and laughed, and it still makes me laugh now, I loved her honesty!

I had to like all these. Have heard many similar / identical statements over the last (nearly) 4 years.

Yep after having MS for over twenty years certain things still get me. People who ask me is today a good day ok hacks me off. EVERY DAY IS A BAD DAY some slightly less so.

Don

Oops I ment to say some slightly worse day’s.

Same as Don! my boss says “oh are you having a bad day?” And i just want to say no but I dont have the energy to try and ignore it today.

Hello

Was reading the posts and i guess we have been served well by the stupid comments. I have come to the conclusion that some folks can deal with disability, they treat that person with respect and it isn’t to you leave their company that you think i wasn’t treated any different to anybody else. Then you have the others maybe through no fault of their own, I however believe it stems from fear in not being able to deal with the differences in the disabled person , that they can’t help stating stupid comments , yes one of my aunts asked if i got it from my dad’s side. With regards to the car , we get this allowance because unlike abled bodied folk we cant walk to far and as my husband says it is an additional cost being disable, I recently returned from holiday and had to hire a car again, if i was abled bodied i could have walked.

take care

trish