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APRIL 2022
THE OFFICIAL SUPPORTER NEWSLET TER O F M U LT I P L E S C L E R O S I S S O C I E T Y S A & N T
MS SOCIETY SA & NT
CALL 08 7002 6500 ms.asn.au
Empowering people to live well. Supporting research.
FIGHTING MS: JORAM’S STORY Joram is a lover of the outdoors, so when he was diagnosed with MS, he started to think about what this diagnosis could mean for his future. Would his condition progress to the point that he wouldn’t be able to go out camping, fishing and scuba diving anymore? The diagnosis happened very quickly and without warning. He went to the doctor with tinnitus in the ear. It was by mistake that the doctor found the diagnosis of MS at all – what they thought was a spot on the ear drum turned out to be a lesion in the brain. Joram says that while his symptoms are quite mild, every day he thinks about what this could mean for his future and the impact it could have on the things he loves to do. He loves the outdoors and being in the water. The heat exasperates Joram’s fatigue which started to affect his work. Working in aircraft maintenance, means that his job requires working eight hours a day out on an aircraft in a physically demanding role. “I knew throughout the years it would get worse and worse. So, I went from that position into a planning position in the office. It’s airconditioned
so it’s a lot more comfortable. It’s about staying out of the heat and keeping your core temperature cool,” Joram says. Joram says that he is so grateful to have received support from his family, friends, doctors and the MS Society to cope with the diagnosis and he really wanted to do something to give back to others who are also living with this disease. Over two months and 10,000 kilometres, Joram and his mates Leo and Shaun travelled through central Australia and Queensland with just their motorcycles on the adventure of a lifetime, raising over $11,000 for the MS Society towards services for people living with MS. Joram, Leo and Shaun have been planning to take on this challenge since 2020 when they had originally planned to ride their motorcycles across the
USA. Unfortunately, the unprecedented events of COVID-19 saw their plans come to a crashing halt. A year went by and going overseas still seemed so far into the distance – so they decided to take on their own home country instead. They set out in September, leaving from Adelaide, riding all the way up central Australia to Darwin, and around the coast to Southern Queensland. “We’ve dropped bikes, broken bikes, been hit by kangaroos, had our ankles nipped at by snakes and crossed some of the most rugged land our country has to offer and we still can’t take the smiles off our faces.” “The kindness and generosity of people as we’ve crossed our beautiful country has been beyond belief. Thanks so much for the donations and support, it means a lot as we continue the battle against MS.”