Michael j Fox said recently that there are a few seconds when he wakes up before his body remembers it has Parkinson’s. I know that feeling -- and those seconds are delicious.

Multiple Sclerosis isn’t as devastating as Parkinson’s but it’s a drag. The mornings are the worst. The best way to begin is to lug my body from bed out to the back yard. Roll a cigarette, look at the garden while I compose myself. The pain is formable and it helps to settle into it before I make breakfast and get the kids to school. Usually by 8am when I’ve dropped the kids off, whatever medical concoction I’ve ingested is working and I feel good enough to take the dogs to the park or run an errand.

Then it’s some chores, or gardening, or bills, and then bed again. If I skip the bed part my family suffers for it later. The fatigue builds throughout the day and by mid afternoon I’m short tempered, evening, plain mean.