“When I found Overcoming MS, it was just a little light in a very dark place”

My MS diagnosis

My first known symptom was optic neuritis. I was 27, I remember waking up one day, and the vision in my left eye was a little bit off, a little bit weird, and over the period of a couple of days, it slowly got worse. I got to the point where I couldn’t see my hand and I remember panicking. 

I carried on as normal at first – work, gym, everything – because I was so driven back then that nothing was going to stop me.  

My manager encouraged me to go to hospital. I stayed in hospital for a week, had tests and an MRI, and at one point they were looking for strokes. I had steroids and my vision came back, so I decided it was a blip and carried on with my life. 

The appointment that shook me

A few months later, I went to a follow-up appointment. The neurologist pulled up my MRI and said there were lesions and he was pretty sure it was MS – but he couldn’t diagnose it yet.  

He then turned to me and said: “So what’s your plan? Are you gonna have any kids? Because if you’re gonna have kids, and you’ve got MS… it’s a bit dodgy.” 

I was given a leaflet, told who the MS nurse was, and basically sent away with, “go away live your life and forget about it.” 

I remember coming out of that appointment thinking, what just happened? I left feeling completely lost and hopeless. 

The dark place

For the next two years, even though I was told not to think about it, I thought about it every minute of every day. I spiralled into worst-case scenarios – Googling, imagining wheelchairs, imagining losing my independence. 

Over time I had more symptoms – MS hug, numbness and pins and needles, brain fog and fatigue. 

Eventually I was diagnosed in 2018. When I got the official diagnosis, it was relief and dread at the same time – relief that I knew what I was dealing with, dread because people only tell you the bad stories.  

Trying medication, then finding Overcoming MS

At diagnosis I was given leaflets about disease modifying drugs. I remember thinking: you want me to go on one of these, with all these side effects? I followed the advice and went on Tecfidera. 

But not long after, a friend of my mum’s who has MS told her about Overcoming MS. Mum ordered the book for me and said, “you need to read this.”  But I was in such a dark place that reading a big book was the last thing I could face.  

My stepmum read it for me and gave me a list of steps. She said: “We’ll take this one step at a time. Let’s start with the food.” 

When I found Overcoming MS, it was just a little light in a very dark place. 

The changes I made (one step at a time)

Food first. I gave up meat straightaway – easy. Dairy was the hardest and it took about four months. Now I eat a whole food, plant-based diet – and it’s the easiest “diet” I’ve ever done. For the first time, I’m not constantly thinking about what I’m eating.  

Pre-MS, mindfulness felt alien to me – “that’s what hippies do.” Now I meditate every morning and Yoga became a big part of it too – for mind and body, balance and movement – and I even trained as a yoga instructor. I also learned the hard way that stress impacts my MS more than anything else, it hits my fatigue fast. Even big positive emotions can drain me. 

It took time. I’d say a good two years before I noticed real changes in my symptoms. But I remember starting to feel the fatigue lift, my brain fog clear and my balance get better. 

All these years in, I feel so much better, healthier, happier and more content than I imagined I could at the time. I’ve got so much more control over my future. 

The power of community

One of the biggest things for me has been Overcoming MS Circles – especially my local Circle. I still remember our first meeting in Cardiff. It felt like a safe space where we just got each other – a massive therapy session where we laughed and cried. 

I'm still on a journey but I never imagined I'd be this happy and healthy

When I was diagnosed, medical professionals left me feeling terrified. I left my diagnosis appointment feeling completely lost and hopeless. I wish someone had told me that there are things you can do to support your health alongside medical treatment.  

Lifestyle changes don’t happen overnight and the journey isn’t always easy. But step by step, those changes can add up in ways you might never expect. 

When I look back at the person I was when I was diagnosed, I couldn’t imagine feeling this healthy, happy and content again. 

MS: A diagnosis not a destiny

Yasmin shared her story to raise awareness of the role of lifestyle choices in managing MS.

If you want to know more about healthy lifestyle choices, and what the evidence really says take our quiz or read our report here. 

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