You may have just been, or are in the process of being, diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. You could be the partner, relative or friend of someone who’s received this diagnosis. You may be experiencing a huge range of emotions, among them anger, shock, fear or even relief (especially if it has taken some time to be diagnosed).

There are no rules to say how you should feel or behave when you’re told you have MS. Just as the condition affects each person differently, so every individual has a unique response to the news. Nobody else – whether it’s your doctor, partner, family or friends – can tell you what you should or shouldn’t be feeling or how you should react.

You might burst into tears, or feel stunned into silence. Conversely, you could feel angry and want to lash out at other people. Or you might feel grief for the loss of your identity as a healthy, carefree person.  Equally, it’s not unusual to feel guilty or wonder what you’ve done to deserve MS. 

You might want to shout your diagnosis from the rooftop, or you might wish to keep it a secret. Your diagnosis could spur you to read everything ever written about MS, or it could make you feel you want to bury your head in the sand and ignore it. Then again, it’s possible to feel a combination of all of these, either together or one after the other, at any time over the next few years. They are all normal responses.

Many people going through the process of getting a diagnosis describe themselves as being in limbo since doctors are often reluctant to confirm a diagnosis until they are 100% certain. Talk to others who are going through this or who have just been diagnosed on the MS Society discussion boards.