His battle has just begun, but multiple sclerosis (MS) sufferer Jason Smith is putting up a fight – for his family.
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Once a sport fanatic and hard working, father of three and husband to Tabitha, 37-year-old Jason is now limited in his abilities after being diagnosed with MS two years ago.
On the back of MS Awarness Week, Jason shares his story.
MS is a condition of the central nervous system, interfering with nerve impulses within the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves. Symptoms vary between sufferers.
It was Christmas in 2015 when Jason started to realise there was something serious wrong with him.
“Leading up to Christmas my eyes started to go on me,” Jason said.
“I was getting travel sickness and I fell off the chair before I had even had a beer on Christmas day.
“I was really sick on the way over to Port Macquarie and when we got there I took my daughter on a Cha Cha ride and suffered from extreme vertigo after. I went to outpatients there and they said to have an MRI when I got home and that they didn’t want to ruin my holiday. I knew something was really wrong.”
By then, Jason’s entire right side of his body had stopped functioning.
“I went to a specialist in Armidale and she sent me for an MRI which showed I had 16 lesions on my brain – they said I had MS. At the time I was happy to hear that because I was starting to think I had a stroke or brain tumour.”
Some days it's a real struggle just to get out of bed, but I'll keep on going for my family.
- Jason Smith
Jason said steroid treatments have slowed the progression of the lesions on his brain but have had no effect on his physical disabilities.
He is returning to a MS clinic in Newcastle next week for more answers.
“My Dr [Habib] has been fantastic but has said I haven’t made any improvement,” Jason said.
“My legs hurt all the time and I’m always dizzy,.
“My speech goes on me and sometimes my legs completely go too. One of the things my doctor has recommended is a walking cane, but I’m only 37 – I really don’t want to do that.”
Extreme heat or cold weather is a struggle for people living with MS.
“The Dr told me Gunnedah is not a good place to live for someone living with MS, but our family is here, my wife works here, my kids go to school here and it costs money to move,” Jason said.
He said the worst part is the burden he feels is put on his family, financially and emotionally.
“I can no longer play with the kids like I used too. And I wouldn’t want to be in my wife’s shoes at the moment, she goes to work everyday and then comes home and does everything there too,” Jason said.
“I feel sorry for her. It must be so hard for her to juggle everything and still work to keep us going.
“My driving has been restricted as well and basically they have said if I go back to work I can only do 15 hours – but who would want to put someone on for that amount of time who has MS?
“You have bad thoughts on days – you can’t work, you can’t do anything and seeing how hard it is on Tabitha, it’s just not fair.
“Some days it’s a real struggle just to get out of bed, but I’ll keep on going for my family.”
The MS Society in Gunnedah covers the cost of Jason’s medication and specialists to help ease the financial burden.
MS affects over 23,000 people in Australia and there is currently no known cure, however there are a number of treatment options available to help manage symptoms.