Tricia is a 37 year old mom who was diagnosed with MS after the birth of her daughter, Jordan, 7 years ago. She spent her career as a school teacher for jr. high and elementary aged children. She spent her last several years teaching at Yeager Elementary in Houston, Texas and two years ago happened to be Brett's 3rd grade teacher. That is when I got to know Tricia. I knew she had MS but had no idea she suffered as badly as she did.
I actually saw for myself her rapid decline in her physical abilities throughout the school year. In the past 7 years, she has quickly gone from being a very active, athletic, and energetic young woman to someone who has extreme physical difficulty just making it through a day. She no longer can play the organized basketball and softball she loved to do. She can no longer ride her bike or rollerblade with her dog. And worst of all, she misses out on many fun activities with her daughter and husband. These are just a few of the ways MS has affected her life.
On a daily basis Tricia also lives with pain and numbness. She constantly battles problems with optic neuritis which is pain and visual problems in the eye. She has difficulty with her legs which makes walking a challenge and causes her to be physically unstable. Living in Houston doesn't help matters...in fact it makes things worse. Heat is a very aggrevating factor and can make MS symptoms much worse! Fortunately for Tricia, she gets lots of help and support from her husband, Mike. He does most of the cooking and helps out with house cleaning and laundry.
Almost 2 years ago Tricia became so physically challenged, she made the difficult decision to retire from teaching to better manage her health. She is greatly missed by everyone at Yeager! MS has drastically changed and challenged her life, the lives of thousands of others, and their families. It can be a very painful, crippling, and despressing disease that affects so many people. Let's help put an end to MS!
