ORANGE FOR #MSAWARENESS

This week’s threads & such post is a bit different and longer than usual. With this post, I hope to bring awareness to a cause that is very close to my heart, while also tying in a bit of fashion!

In August of this year, I noticed that my right hand started to tingle. On a Sunday, it had only started in my hand, so I assumed that I slept on it wrong and it just “fell asleep”. By that Thursday, it had taken over the whole right half of my body below my neck, my left foot, and my left hand.

I went to my doctor on that Thursday. She was just as confused as me and sent me to the emergency room to get an MRI. This was totally not what I was expecting—I had never been to urgent care before, let alone the hospital.

I was admitted for the day and had my MRI scheduled for 11 pm. It was two and a half hours long! I had to lie still for almost three hours. I finally returned to my room, and an emergency room doctor came in with some results. He said he was pretty sure I had Multiple Sclerosis.

I broke down. I didn’t know much about MS, but that it can be a very debilitating disease. I was scared—there was so much going on at that time. I was admitted five days before I was to head back to D.C. to start my sophomore year of college. I was in the process of applying for my internship; I literally wrote the mock post from my hospital bed. (Hey Maricia!) I was released from the hospital less than 24 hours before my 5 am flight with almost a week’s worth of time lost.

I spent six days in the hospital and was so excited to leave. I left with the doctors not completely sure of my diagnosis, but I kept in touch with the extremely kind nurses and my amazing neurologist. Thankfully, my neurologist doesn’t believe I have MS, but diagnosed me with Clinically Isolated Syndrome. Basically, this means that it was a one-time episode. I’m no longer on medication and I’m completely symptom free!

Unfortunately, for the more than 2 million people living with MS, they don’t have the same story. I want everyone to be aware of the symptoms, just in case they creep up on you or someone you love as they did for me. If you have weird symptoms that you’ve never had before, call your doctor. It can be something as simple as “my hand fell asleep” that leads to a major diagnosis.

On a lighter note, help me support #MSAwareness by showing me your poppin orange outfits! If you want to support, hashtag #MSAwareness on Instagram and tag/mention me in the pic so I can see it! I picked a few posh orange pieces to help inspire your outfits!

1. Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini Wool Pullover, $635 2. Givenchy Small Antigona Tote, $2,280 3. MSGM Faux-Leather T-Shirt, $295 4. Topshop Faux Wrap Body-Con Dress, $40 5. Kenzo Sweatshirt, $300 6. Nike Roshe Run Women’s Shoes $75 7. Jil Sander Tristano Wool Pants, $160