March is National Multiple Sclerosis Education and Awareness Month and your friends at Brevard Medical Supplywant you to be aware of this little-understood disease and know that we are here to help.

MS is a disease affecting the central nervous system that causes mobility loss, numbness, blurred vision, memory issues and other symptoms.

What is MS? Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system (the brain, optic nerves, and spinal cord). It is thought to be an autoimmune disorder.

Who can be diagnosed with multiple sclerosis:

MS can strike both men and women but is more common in women

MS appears more frequently in Caucasians than in Hispanics or African Americans

MS is relatively rare among Asians and certain other ethnic groups

MS is most commonly diagnosed in individuals between the ages of 20 and 50

There are currently 350,000 to 500,000 people in the U.S. who have been diagnosed with MS and over 2.5 million people are living with the disease worldwide.

If you have been recently diagnosed with MS, your friends and family are going to find out and will want to know. Here are some suggestions about sharing your news from the National MS Society:

• Shock and distress may make it difficult for some people to respond, so be prepared to give them time to deal with the news.

• You may need to provide comfort and reassurance at just the time that you are in need of comfort and reassurance yourself.

• When people don’t know what to say, they may say nothing at all — so be careful not to misinterpret silence as not caring.

• Most people will take their cue from you — so be ready to let them know whether you want to talk about your MS, if you’re willing to answer questions, and if you need something from them.

If you need a wheelchair, cane, walker or any other home medical equipment, Brevard Medical Supply carries many products in our online catalog to help you. We encourage you to stop in if you are in the area and let us assist you in person.

Please visit the www.nationalmssociety.org for more information on the disease.

Sources: The National MS Society