Understanding Multiple Sclerosis (MS)

This course was very insightful, I am a parent of a 22year old diagnosed on her 19th Birthday after going blind in one eye with Rapidly Evolving Severe MS (her sight did return it happened twice 3 months apart),Neurologist found four lesions in her brain in the November by January she had 14 in her brain and 2 in her spine it has been an horrendous journey, she works part time and is a full time Uni student studying Animal Biology & Wildlife Conservation. Her brain cognition and behaviour was awful she began to get drop foot and speech issues feelings of wetness insomnia stomach bowel and bladder problems and her balance was going she couldn't eat for the sickness, She also developed voices in her head to kill herself along with self harm and a long dark depression. These last 4 years have been horrendous however since she had DMT Lemtrada her last infusion Sept 19 It has transformed her. She still has stomach problems and fatigue and almost showing signs of being on the Spectrum as slightly autistic which we never noticed before along with anxiety level with depression but no way as detrimental to her safety as before. At one point I lost my daughter and our relationship was breaking down the aggression and anger of the diagnosis on top of the symptoms she had you can imagine we both considered suicide as there was no help no discussion no support until I called our GP after she broke down and said she has voices telling her to end her life she the was referred to the Mental Health team and had CBT. The relationship is a lot better however I feel guilty as my grandmother had MS and I was very ill during my pregnancy with Renal disease I also smoked as had terrible sickness and smoking helped me vomit so I could eat quickly. I was in hospital all of my pregnancy being pumped with drugs to stop me getting urinary infections. However every person and family that get a diagnosis of MS should sit this course it would of helped my tremendously.
Please feel free to contact me at [redacted] if you wish to discuss further Thank you for this insightful course I would like a certificate please :)

Sending you prayers, I was diagnosed in 2010 and seemed to go down hill quickly. In six years I could no longer work and had real problems with balance and joint pain. Brain fog was really bad sometimes. I took rebif and had a lot of problems and had to quit. I have been on techfadera (not spelled right) for a few years and have several side effects. I felt lost and decided to quit my meds due to side effects. Our care provider introduced me to Ayurvedic treatment. I had a total decline of all symptoms including vision problems, numbness and others. Sometimes, i totally forget i ever had MS. Visit Natural Herbs Centre web-site naturalherbscentre. com. I am very pleased with this treatment. I eat well, sleep well and exercise regularly. God bless all MS Warriors

This is the third time that I have undertaken the Understanding Multiple Sclerosis (MS) online course. After the September offering in 2020, I repeated the course a year later for revision. When UTAS contacted me again with the information that new material was going to be presented in the September offering 2022, I was just curious and enrolled for the third time in three years.
It is fascinating to hear in Module 5 Disease Management from Jane England, a person living with MS, about her perspectives with stem cell therapy. Though the video is short, it is packed with information. As stem cell therapy is a bone marrow transplant, this procedure is not to be taken lightly. It is considered when disease modifying therapies (DMT's) have failed. Jane England is very open about her approach to this difficult and dangerous procedure she went through. Being under the age of forty years of age, having failed three disease modifying therapies already, having be still a person with relapsing remitting MS and lastly a person with very high MS activity, made her a candidate for stem cell therapy. Jane did ten years of research before undergoing the procedure. Eight months post stem cell therapy, she is pretty much of all her medications and her biggest problem which is nerve pain is at bay.
Thank you for this new video so well presented, so inspiring and so full of information.
Module 6 Living with MS with Caitlin Wilde, a person living with MS for eight years, is even shorter but explains so well that pregnancy is possible at the right time. Caitlin felt well during pregnancy but relapsed after birth with symptoms which did not come as a surprise because that information was given to her before falling pregnant.
Again, a wonderful addition to current material.

I found the course Understanding Multiple Sclerosis (MS) an excellent presentation with an array of Professionals one comes into contact with when living with MS.

Even though my diagnosis many many years ago and whilst I have let medical assistance lapse somewhat, having a resource such as this is an extremely helpful way to keep up to date particularly concerning disease modifying medications that where not available in my early days of living with ms. In terms of medication I would like included options such as Low dose Naltrexone, and medical cannabis researched and other alternatives to DMM.

In relations to work, I feel superannuation options, impact of reduced hours on payment and the likelihood of meeting with discrimination on disclosure could be covered. Welfare payment options briefly touched upon also.

A nuro phycologist discussing cognitive testing, cognitive impact on a persons functioning on a day to day level should be covered particularly when a high percentage of people with ms experience cognitive impairment causing life altering tragic impact on quality of life. Which is often experienced early after diagnosis and an invisible disability not understood or accepted by others.

Pain and trigeminal neuralgia would be helpful to touch on the subject.

Overall I am very grateful for the presentation and have recapped and refreshed my knowledge and experience of ms in a positive, easy way in the comfort of my lounge room at no cost on the hip pocket.

I also enjoyed doing the questionaries and seeing my results. A good way to make me pay attention.

Many thanks and much appreciation for a job well done.
Kindly Leanne

I am in my third year of near diagnosis of MS. This course has helped me appreciate why it is often a lengthy process to complete diagnosis. It helped me further understand symptoms I vaguely had glanced through just after talking of my diagnosis. I feel I now have a good handle on what the possibilities are for my future years and how to communicate more effectively with the medical team caring for me, my family and the wider community. The course content was delivered in easy to understand modules in a mix of videos and text plus animations and diagrams. I found the delivery by a mixture of professionals and people sharing their life experiences of having MS an excellent mode for learning. We had the opportunity to voluntarily be involved in a number of discussions on topics, they helped with the learning process but more importantly it provided interaction time with other course members, I found that interaction highly valuable. We also received appropriate positive feedback from our course moderator, so no need to feel no help at hand. There were also quizzes after each module that we could keep doing till we hit 100%, no failure but more importantly it helped concrete the information into the brain. For a first time course I thought it was brilliant. Thanks UTAS from Kristine Bradley.

This course is full of very informative information for both the person living with MS but also their families, friends & work collegues. The course is easy to do, easy to understand and you can complete it at your leisure. The information is given by very educated clinicians and specialists and is all up to date, answering many of the questions that come up when you have been diagnosed with MS, but also how you live your life with MS. The course covers things that may become a little hard and how to overcome some of these issues, topics that are usually not spoken about by your Neurologist. You also get to hear from other people living with MS & their life journeys which is very helpful. The course also provides you with websites to find out extra information that you may want. I thoroughly enjoyed doing this course and it is the second time I have been involved in the course, doing it about four years ago. Although I do not have MS, our daughter does live with MS. The information helps me to support her in her journey of MS with the most up to date information. Well worth doing this course!

Excellent The content was very informative and easy to understand .The amount of work on each section was absolutely spot on. The tests were directly in tune with the work covered and the fact that you could resit a test was very encouraging Personally I don't agree with animations or discussions on the content For me we were given factually correct information from knowledgeable people which I took to be correct I really enjoyed it
I couldn't finish section 7 I did it 3 times and it vanished therefore I can assure people that MS cry because I did on account of this I then tried to go to donations to make a subscription but again would not work Please indicate an entrance to this so I can make a donation I then wanted to enter my address in IRELAND to get my certificate I was unable to put the address in or pay for the cert
Help thank you all so much I see you have a couple of Irish helpers with you
Good luck and thank you again
God bless you wonderful people
Mary Creedon
Mary creedon .
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I must say it was a truly enlightening experience. It delved deep into the complexities of multiple sclerosis, covering everything from its causes and symptoms to the latest treatment options available.

One of the most impactful aspects of the course was its emphasis on the psychological and emotional impact of multiple sclerosis on individuals and their families. By shedding light on the challenges faced by those living with this condition, the course not only increased my awareness but also instilled a sense of empathy and understanding.

Moreover, the practical insights offered in the course were incredibly useful. Learning about the different types of multiple sclerosis, disease progression, and management strategies has equipped me with valuable knowledge that I can apply in both personal and professional settings.

This course has been instrumental in deepening my understanding of multiple sclerosis and its effects. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to gain a comprehensive insight into this complex neurological condition

I thoroughly enjoyed this course. it has just opened a wider understanding of how anyone in the community can relate and understand any person that suffers from MS. i have worked in aged care homes and home care for 20 years, but are now retired.
You can always update your knowledge about health issues anytime, no person is too old to learn about anything especially when it comes to health.
The course was very informative, it gave examples of people who suffer from MS how they coped on a daily basis and their pass history how they came to have MS.
The conversations between the health team and the clients was good information, made you release more about the disease its self as it comes from them.
The course was well laid out each module and easy to understand, I reccomend any person out there to do these courses offered by UTAS , you will understand and enjoy them immenesly no doubt.
Many thanks to the professional health team and I look forward to doing some more courses with you all.

# More recommended for who works in neuro and Rehabilitation department.
# Provides detailed information about the disease, symptoms, risk factors, advanced
treatment and how it affects people who lives with MS in long term.
# Give live examples and experience of people with MS in each module which gives more understanding of how the disease diagnosis ,progression and treatment , warning signals and risk factors and how it differs in each individual.
# The team presentation is very organized and precise. Video presentations makes it more interesting and includes specialist from MS team .
# Each module has a break and you can plan your lessons.
# The first module was even well designed about the anatomy and physiology of central nervous System , which helps to come to the topic and was more relevant .

I heard about this MS study from Mr. Ivan Novak and I was immediately interested. I was diagnosed with MS in 2021 after many years (more than 12) of problems, various treatments and ailments that I would not wish on anyone (blind on the left for about 3 months, deaf in both ears for 2 months, nystagmus, chronic fatigue, congitive disorders, etc. )
No one ever sent me to do an MRI, but they gave me the names of Dr. House case and the like.
In the end, a doctor did send me, and then 9 lesions were discovered.
Basically, this tradition helped me to finally put some things in place and to hear a little more about the disease itself and how to behave in it.
I look forward to every next school like this because it is a way for me to practice both the English language and this type of study.

I heard about this MS study from Mr. Ivan Novak and I was immediately interested. I was diagnosed with MS in 2021 after many years (more than 12) of problems, various treatments and ailments that I would not wish on anyone (blind on the left for about 3 months, deaf in both ears for 2 months, nystagmus, chronic fatigue, congitive disorders, etc. )
No one ever sent me to do an MRI, but they gave me the names of Dr. House case and the like.
In the end, a doctor did send me, and then 9 lesions were discovered.
Basically, this tradition helped me to finally put some things in place and to hear a little more about the disease itself and how to behave in it.
I look forward to every next school like this because it is a way for me to practice both the English language and this type of study.

The course was designed with such clarity and provided in small chunks of information, allowing participants to understand each module clearly. The infographic helps further understanding, and the video and audio were clear. The quiz was helpful in strengthening the information and ensuring we had a goal and were more focused on learning.

For me personally, I think all modules are equally important because there is a flow from module 1 to module 6, and if I missed one of the modules, I might not understand the gravity of MS. However, if I have to choose one topic that is valuable, it is the economics of MS because health economics is one of my research interests, and from this topic, I understand the economic burden of MS in Australia.
The dashboard is easily navigable!

The Menzies MS course is really worth taking, a clear and straightforward method of learning about MS. It's not only for MS sufferers wanting to learn more about this disease, it's surely invaluable for the neurologists, doctors, MS nurses and Field Workers, not forgetting the innumerable care workers, employers, and, most importantly of all, all those families affected by MS. This course covers such matters as MS physical manifestations, the way the brain & nervous system is affected, unseen symptoms, videos from professionals, even some of the myths surrounding this mysterious disease, which is suffered by so many.
As a MS sufferer myself I have kept myself up-to-date by taking this free course 3 times now, and can't recommend it enough.

The most valuable aspect of the course on understanding multiple sclerosis was gaining a comprehensive understanding of the disease, its underlying mechanisms, and its impact on individuals' lives. Through detailed exploration of the pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment options, and management strategies, the course provided invaluable insights that enhance my ability to effectively support individuals with MS. Additionally, learning about the latest research advancements and emerging therapies offered a glimpse into the future of MS care, inspiring hope and optimism for improved outcomes. Overall, the course equipped me with the knowledge and skills needed to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those affected by multiple sclerosis.

Have just completed the Understanding MS course and have found it very interesting and informative. Although I have had remitting /relapsing MS since 2005 I now realise I have been in denial and have tried to ignore many of the symptoms that have troubled me. I have not asked the right questions in the past as I did not really know what to ask. This is not helped by casual comments from other people that I look fine. I feel a sense of relief and acknowledgement and am much better informed than I was before the course. I liked the mix of anatomy/ research/ interviews with a range of people with MS and professionals who work with them. The discussion on Myths of MS was of particular interest to me as was discussion of lifestyle factors I can have some control over. Whether you are someone who has MS are a carer or professional working with people with MS this course has something to offer you.