Unfortunately, I couldn't find the referral for the MRI. It had been some time since my last visit, and it must have gotten lost. Well... Life goes on. I immediately sought the opinion of a well-known and respected doctor worldwide, Dr. Google. After typing in my symptoms and combining them with the MRI referral and the mysterious demeanor of the young ER doctor, the phrase "DEMYELINATION" appeared before my eyes. It didn't take long for it to be linked with the term "MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS" and for cold sweat to cover my entire body.
What is multiple sclerosis? How is it treated?? Does demyelination only occur with multiple sclerosis??? Is multiple sclerosis only treated by a neurologist????? I don't remember how many hours I sat in front of the computer, and the truth was that the more I delved into the topic of multiple sclerosis or demyelination, the less I knew, and I was increasingly consumed by anxiety and even fear. Fear of disability, vegetating, or becoming a lesser person because of being disabled, dependent, and reliant on others. I hope God forgives me for thinking this way about sick, disabled people in my fear. Today, in hindsight, I can fully attribute such a view of disabled people to a lack of proper knowledge and, most importantly, awareness. Now I know that often fully able-bodied individuals are less resourceful and more helpless, and I dare say, less useful to others or society than a person in a wheelchair.
I remembered that some time ago, when my father had a stroke, I ran with his MRI results to various neurologists, and each one gave a different description of what they saw on the MRI images. One claimed to see a bleeding tumor in an inoperable location and warned of the worst, while others had different theories. I mention this for a reason. I want to show with a separate case how a doctor can be mistaken or how difficult MRI results can be to interpret, and that one should not rely solely on the opinion of one doctor. After all, they are only human and can make mistakes, working with different equipment. In one place, the equipment might be more sensitive, while in another less sensitive, resulting in completely different MRI images. I will describe what to pay attention to in the next part of my story.
The next morning, I was already at the clinic to get a referral to a neurologist. When I found out about the nearest appointment time with our favorite NHS, I decided to see a neurologist privately and also have the MRI done privately. That's when I slowly began to understand the saying that no bag of money is endless...
To be continued next month.
Author: Andy - CEO of Biomelius LTD, who was diagnosed with MS in 2017
