Billy Joel’s song Honesty is playing through my head right now, why? Because when it comes to your MS doctor it is the only way.  Your MS doctor is probably a neurologist of some sort maybe they’re an MS specialist maybe they’re not, but whatever the doctor you need to have a special enough relationship with them that you can speak honestly. You need to be able to be really comfortable that you could say anything especially as the years go on and things change in the disease and symptoms arise. If you’re really honest and look at the stats the chance of the progression of the disease are still relatively high. MS has no cure.  The bladder issue which I actually wrote about yesterday was so hard for me to discuss with my doctor and he’s been my doctor for a very long time. It’s embarrassing and humiliating but if I didn’t say it to him how could I ever received anything to help me.  Understand the bladder issue  is bad but there are still others that are bad. You need to be able to talk to your doctor. You need to be able to feel comfortable enough to say what’s really really going on. Your doctor is almost one of your best friends in the situation.  Whether  you’re having pain, numbness, weakness, cognitive difficulties or other symptoms that we get with MS this is the person that is tracking your disease from every step from every point of view. This is the person that  is tracking every test every MRI and putting together a large puzzle to make it as simple as possible. Plus they had the script the writes the medicine. Your family is your support system but so is your doctor you need to look at them almost the same way.  I actually have two MS doctors. The first one diagnosed me 18+ years ago who is a general neurologist and I have a specialist in New York City. The two doctors do talk  and mostly the doctor in the city is the one who is prescribing things to me now. You may ask then why keep the first doctor? Because he’s the one who’s been with me from the beginning he is the one I feel the most comfortable. He’s actually the one who gave me the doctor in the city.  He’s the one who’s known me from day one when I first got sick. He has seen me struggle he is seeing me get better and he is seeing the extent of my deterioration from day one. I can call him on the phone and say something is not right and he’ll know somethings not right.  That’s the kind of relationship do you need with the doctor. It just makes things so much easier. It makes you feel somebody else is on your side that understands completely what you’re going through not just somebody in your family. My doctor  has got me through a lot of tough times he knows my body he knows my limits he seen all my changes. He knows my family.  He knows my ex-husband, my ex-boyfriend, my daughter, but the most important thing is he knows me. I absolutely love the specialist as well she is the most amazing person and I knew she would be because he recommended her. I see ther now because my disease has really progressed and I need an MS specialist more on point with what’s coming down the pike. So right now I keep them both and talk to them both  and see them both and they all talk to each other it’s a win-win for me for sure. But your doctor and I say this to everyone with MS or any other chronic illness that you’re dealing with needs to be one of the most important people on your team. Honesty is really one of the most important words especially with them.