Wish In One Hand

The true story of a 26 year old woman who is misdiagnosed with a brain tumor and after seven agonizing days is given the correct diagnosis of multiple sclerosis.

The true story of a 26 year old woman who is misdiagnosed with a brain tumor and after seven agonizing days is given the correct diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. The brain tumor diagnosis left me feeling vindicated and relieved! Living with an invisible illness is torturous. Day after day listening to doctors minimalize my fears and dismiss my concerns I spiraled into an self-induced internal beat down withdrawing from family, friends and life itself thinking I was losing my mind. In a strange way the brain tumor diagnosis was a relief. There are no words powerful enough to demonstrate how much my life changed overnight astonishing myself and others with a ‘don’t worry it’s no big deal’ attitude and an amazing inner strength I never knew existed. Reality slapped me in the face and nothing would change the situation. Clearly I had only two options let the brain tumor take me down or live life to the fullest until they knock me out for surgery. Steve picked up the phone and listened intently to the Neurosurgeon. After several minutes lapsed Steve hung up the phone turning towards me I see a smile as he says great news you do not have a brain tumor, his statement sounded unfinished, more like a question. I respond okay and… Steve continued you have multiple sclerosis. Falling dramatically into the chair behind me like a rag doll seeing images of Jerry‘s kids, telethons, wheelchairs. Mind now spinning completely out of control, I am terminally ill, I don’t have long to live, I know Steve and the Neurosurgeon are conspiring to spare me this horrible news after all I don’t have long to live anyway!

Jill Barton was born and raised in Oklahoma, married her high school sweetheart, has two grown sons with families of their own, one granddaughter, more grandchildren on the way and several furry babies and grandbabies. To learn more about Jill and her family or to chat with Jill please visit her blog mimispage.com. You will find Jill is very candid and humorous about her journey with multiple sclerosis (ms) and passionate about family. Through her blog she wants to relay a message of hope that ms is not life ending but rather life changing where you can find valuable life lessons and even humor. After being incorrectly diagnosed with a brain tumor in 1986, Jill and her husband moved their young family to Colorado where she decided to keep ms a secret after a neighbor accused her of lying for attention. Humiliated and embarrassed by the neighbor’s reaction she told no one, not even friends or co-workers for over 15 years. There have been a few instances after a relapse that Jill was unable to leave her house unescorted and she found herself with her face plastered up to a computer screen desperately trying to find something, anything to relieve the loneliness. She would like to connect with others that might be in a similar situation and simply need someone to talk with.