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nationalmssociety.org/pae | 1-800-548-4611
Young Couples Connections Group
with the chance to see how other couples experience and manage with this disease.
By Michael Black-Smith
The other half of our meetings take a more traditional format. These meetings are held on the fourth Saturday of every-other month at 10 a.m. at Magee Rehab Hospital, 1513 Race Street, Philadelphia.
As my wife and I were starting to cope with an aggressive disease onset in 2009, we turned to a number of sources for help understanding the “how’s,” “when’s” and “why’s” of my multiple sclerosis. Among these resources were the support groups available through the Society. However, helpful as they all were, we still felt the need for a community/group that would more specifically address the things we were going through as a young couple facing MS. We were also looking for a way that my wife could get the same sense of validation through shared experiences that I had been finding with these groups on my own. Thus was born the idea for a group for younger couples – where both the well-partner and the partner with MS could come together for support. The topics we cover range from issues and questions of professional identity, family and children, to concerns about a changed/changing dynamic between the couple. We try to provide both partners
In a slightly non-traditional twist on support groups, half of our meetings are at bars or restaurants that provide an upbeat and fun atmosphere. These casual meetings are on the third Tuesday of every-other month at 6:30 p.m. and since the location changes frequently, please see our Facebook page for details (search for Philadelphia MS Young Couples on Facebook).
For more information about this and other Connections groups, please contact Pat Thieringer at 1-800-548-4611 or email pat.thieringer@nmss.org. n
Young couples support group