For Jess, the most inspiring part of her neuro journey has been the community she has met along the way. And the MS Moonlight Walk is where she sees that community spirit shine the brightest.

Jess was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2013. She recalls mixed feelings. “For years I had been made to feel like my symptoms were ‘in my head’. So, when I heard the words ‘MS’, my first thought was relief. ‘I’m not crazy. There is something “wrong” with me, and it has a name.’ But at the same time, I felt devastated. The future felt unknown, with a condition I didn’t really know much about.” 

Jess was able to come to terms with her condition as she learned more about it – and got the right supports in place. “Shortly after my diagnosis, I found a fantastic neurologist that I really connected with, and that made a big difference. Getting my medication right took quite a bit of trial and error over a period of a few years – and when we did, that gave me a lot of stability, and a better picture of what my days would look like.” 

For the first few years, Jess was determined not to let her MS change her life. She continued in her job as a health & safety analyst, a demanding role which required regular travel. “I would work from my hospital bed during relapses and tell myself I could do it all. But as the functionality in my leg deteriorated, I realised I needed to stop working to focus on my health.”

This proved to be a big adjustment, and one that came with many ups and downs. A big “up” has been building her own home – a granny flat attached to the home of her parents Glenn and Jan, with modification for the wheelchair she now uses.

“To have that sense of independence has been incredible, but I’m still close enough to mum and dad if I need them. I’m very lucky.” 

Her new roommate is her support dog, Campbell, a “little ratbag with a big personality.” He helps Jess manage her daily life, picking up something she’s dropped, or fetching her parents for help if she needs them. He also gives her emotional support, helping her to settle in the night if she wakes through pain or anxiety. 

But most of all, it’s been the community she has found that has helped her to embrace life. Says her mum, Jan, “Jess always says, ‘the most important thing is to surround yourself with the people who work best for you.’ That can be a medical team, physiotherapists, carers, friends. It’s so important that you have people around you who are going to be positive and support you no matter what.”

When Jess first attended an MS information meeting, it was the first time she had met other people who lived with the condition. “For the first time I had a sense that I wasn’t alone in this.” 

She started attending regular community meetings. “A group of us would get together and help each other in ways that may have seemed small, but that had a huge impact on us all: helping order an e-reader tablet for an avid reader who had lost her sight, or pointing someone in the direction of a piece of knowledge or equipment they needed.” Jess and her family could not be happier about the opening of MS Queensland’s first Neuro Wellness Hub in Milton, which has reinvigorated that sense of community by providing a warm and inclusive meeting place.