{"id":8630,"date":"2020-02-05T08:00:04","date_gmt":"2020-02-05T14:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/?p=8630"},"modified":"2020-01-30T16:10:15","modified_gmt":"2020-01-30T22:10:15","slug":"when-ms-came-for-her-vision-she-had-help-from-osf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/when-ms-came-for-her-vision-she-had-help-from-osf\/","title":{"rendered":"When MS came for her vision, she had help from OSF"},"content":{"rendered":"

After nearly 30 years of dealing with symptoms of multiple sclerosis<\/a>, Diana Dowacter has learned to roll with the punches.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m the type of person who says do your best, learn to cope with it and move on. My motto is, it could always be worse,\u201d Diana, who lives in Macomb, said.<\/p>\n

Because MS is a disease that affects the brain and central nervous system, its symptoms can be unpredictable \u2013 from pain and itching to muscle spasms, trouble speaking or swallowing.<\/p>\n

Most people with MS experience what\u2019s called a relapsing-remitting disease course<\/a>, meaning symptoms \u201cflare\u201d or come on over the course of several days or weeks. Those flare-ups are followed by periods of remission, where symptoms improve.<\/p>\n

But for Diana, problems with her vision started in September 2018 and only got worse.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy November I was like something is seriously wrong,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would get to the point that I had to cover my eyes and not use them, or use an ice pack or heat. I\u2019d be down for hours or sometimes the whole day with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

A worsening problem<\/h2>\n

A visit to her neurologist<\/a> at OSF HealthCare Illinois Neurological Institute<\/a> in Peoria revealed lesions on her optic nerve, causing her deteriorating vision and photosensitivity \u2013 a painful sensitivity to light.<\/p>\n

An ophthalmologist confirmed she had chronic optic neuritis, optic atrophy, primary open angle glaucoma and extreme photosensitivity. Her best corrected vision is 20\/300 in the right eye and 20\/800 in the left eye, far beyond the threshold for legal blindness.<\/p>\n

They had some recommendations for supports that could help Diana: amber colored glasses to block bright lights and magnifiers to help her read. But Diana procrastinated because she knew she couldn\u2019t afford the expensive equipment.<\/p>\n

She brought her troubles up during an appointment in the OSF INI MS Center<\/a>, and a nurse named Ann Hadley told Diana those costs may be covered by the MS Fund \u2013 a charitable fund available through the MS Council and OSF HealthCare Foundation<\/a> to cover costs associated with MS.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was perfect timing,\u201d Diana said. \u201cIf it wasn\u2019t for Anne bringing up the MS Fund, I wouldn\u2019t have any of what I have now.\u201d<\/p>\n

‘A huge difference’<\/h2>\n

\"DianaDiana was able to request funds for specialized glasses and two high-power magnifiers, one for home and a portable device to use on the go. The MS Fund was able to cover the cost \u2013 more than $4,000 \u2013 for the equipment she needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat the MS Fund did for me was life-changing. It has allowed me to be able to function \u2013 to be able to see, to be able to read. And not to be in so much pain, as far as the photo sensitivity. I\u2019m highly grateful for that,\u201d Diana said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat makes a huge difference in a person\u2019s spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After nearly 30 years of dealing with symptoms of multiple sclerosis, Diana Dowacter has learned to roll with the punches. \u201cI\u2019m the type of person who says do your best, learn to cope with it and move on. My motto is, it could always be worse,\u201d Diana, who lives in Macomb, said. Because MS is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":8669,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[99,223],"tags":[884,953,755],"coauthors":[757],"class_list":["post-8630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-neurosciences","category-patient-story","tag-multiple-sclerosis","tag-osf-healthcare-foundation","tag-osf-ini"],"yoast_head":"\nWhen MS came for her vision, she had help from OSF | OSF HealthCare<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When multiple sclerosis affected her vision, Diana needed special equipment. 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