Oops, no time for an e-mail yet.. . Well, I might as well say what I know right here
My mom was diagnosed with MS, in 1968. She was happy because she finally knew what was wrong with her, and also because she could be treated from now on. But she was oh so wrong! They knew so little about that "new disease" then.... . And, they had no idea how to treat it . She was 43 years old then. We also realised she was sick for many years without knowing it. When I was 3, she saw me playing on the lawn, and then she saw two of me . She said she had such a bad balance for many years before that; so I know she had MS already when she gave birth to me. I have no idea if that is the reason why I have such a bad back... .
She got her first wheelchair in '68 then, but she could still walk with crutches till I was 20. On my wedding day, she sttod up from her chair for a picture. It is the last time I saw her on her feet....