I realize this may be a bit late, considering your initial post was nearly a year ago (oops, got the dates wrong, I was looking at your reg date!), but I just wanted to let you know that my mother was diagnosed with MS over 20 years ago. My mom is a nurse and my father was a doctor, and I can tell you that sometimes knowing a lot about medicine only makes it more frustrating that no one really know what causes MS, or how to cure it.

The long and short is, it's usually diagnosed in the 20's or 30's, no one knows if it's in any way hereditary, and it will get worse--for some people the progression is slow, for others it's quicker.

My best advice--make sure you get *lots* of exercise to keep up your muscular strength and flexibility. It will really help, not only physically, but mentally.

My mother is now 56 years old (34 when diagnosed, I was 12--now I'm 34 and crossing my fingers! I recently had a scare with tingling in my leg that lasted a couple of weeks, and I couldn't move my toes--turned out it was probably nerve compression from sitting in a crappy chair in front of my computer, but sometimes I wonder...), and she's still copingpretty well, although she is unable to stand or walk for long periods. She still works, though in a less stressful job for the county health dept. rather than as a nurse in a busy hospital.

Keep a strong body, and a healthy attitude, and you'll be much better off. I can tell you the corticosteriods really suck, but then, so do most medicines. We learn more about MS every year--hopefully by the time you reach 56, we'll have beat it once and for all.