Capital Radio DJ reveals life-changing health diagnosis after ‘delaying doctor for lash appointment'
A CAPITAL Radio DJ has revealed a life-changing health diagnosis after 'delaying doctor for a lash appointment.'
Zofia Rogers of Capital Dance fame took to social media to tell her 12,000 followers what had happened.
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A Capital Radio DJ has revealed a life-changing health diagnosis after 'delaying doctor for a lash appointment'
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Zofia Rogers is of Capital Dance fame
She wrote: 'Health update: After months of appointments, tests, scans and investigations I finally have a diagnosis of MS (multiple sclerosis).
'This has come as a huge shock to me as I never expected it to be something like this, and I'll have to have lifelong treatment to manage my symptoms and make sure it doesn't get any worse.'
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The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- The Irish Sun
I ignored eye issue while driving before being diagnosed with incurable disease – watch out for key signs
A WOMAN has told how she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis after noticing a strange symptom while driving. Affecting over 9,000 people in Ireland, the incurable disease is the most common disabling neurological disease among young Irish adults. 4 Marie Pickup is a 38-year-old mum who was diagnosed with MS last December Credit: Journalist Collect 4 The brave mum-of-two had symptoms for over a year before her diagnosis Credit: Journalist Collect 4 And she is now sharing her story with others on social media Credit: Journalist Collect Marie Pickup from The 38-year-old's journey began in October 2023, when she first noticed pain in her eye while The mum then visited the eye casualty unit where she was diagnosed with optic perineuritis, a rare inflammation around the optic nerve. Marie said: 'It all started in October 2023 - and it was just one of those things where when you're driving and you're looking behind you to go into another lane, I would notice that my eye was sore. READ MORE IN HEALTH 'I was just kind of ignoring it to be honest - I didn't have any reason to think it was anything major. 'It was actually my mum, who's a nurse, that said to go into eye casualty and just let them have a look at it, because it wasn't going away. 'They thought it was optic perineuritis, where you have a protective funnel that your optic nerve goes through becomes inflamed.' This led to Marie getting her first MRI scan, which revealed initial lesions on her brain. Most read in Health Treated with steroids to reduce the inflammation, the Multiple Sclerosis explained Over the following year, Marie underwent a series of tests, including lumbar punctures and blood samples sent to specialists in By October 2024, and over a year after her initial symptoms, her consultants were 97 percent certain she had MS. And this diagnosis was formally confirmed in December 2024. She said: 'At that point, you're like, am I hoping for MS, or am I hoping for whatever else they're testing for? 'By the time October last year came around, they were 97 percent sure - and then when my symptoms progressed between then and December it was a definite diagnosis as a lesion was now on my spine. 'At this point, my whole central nervous system was being affected.' When Marie first heard the words 'multiple sclerosis,' she admits it was overwhelming. Although she revealed she wasn't shocked with the diagnosis, there were moments of fear and uncertainty about what this meant for her future. At the same time, she felt slightly relieved because finally there was an explanation for the symptoms and the uncertainty around her Despite her fear, Marie decided to face her diagnosis with a positive mindset, refusing to let MS define her life or limit what her future entails. And she describes this attitude as essential in coping with the uncertainty and variability that MS brings. She added: 'I suppose, when he said it to me, it wasn't a surprise to be told I had it - at this point I had major symptoms and a 97 percent chance of having it. "Even though it's not a shock, it's just something it's very hard to get your head around, because MS is one of those things that obviously there's no cure for. 'The hardest thing to get my head around, was like, this is forever - and you know, there's no getting better. 'But now you hear people who are 70 and are doing great - you wouldn't even know they have it. It's a completely different diagnosis from 20 or 30 years ago because treatment has progressed so much." MS is known as a ' And Marie experiences this firsthand. Major warning signs of MS In May 2024, she began experiencing double vision while in December she had a major relapse where her left leg and arm went completely numb. Severely impacting her mobility, she needed a walking stick and began physiotherapy to regain some function. Fatigue remains one of Marie's most debilitating symptoms, as it does for up to 80 percent of MS patients. She also struggles with vision problems and cognitive symptoms like difficulty concentrating. Living with these symptoms has brought its challenges - causing her children to worry about her health, forcing her to leave her Still, Marie finds strength in her support system. Her husband Graeme, two sons and family have been a constant source of encouragement. And the mum-of-two has also connected with MS Ireland along with a childhood friend who lives with the illness. She said: 'My family are just absolutely wonderful - we've kind of been through a few things recently that aren't great, but we've just always been close. 'There's my husband Graeme, our two boys, my sisters, mum and dad - and we've always been a close family, but especially in these last few years. 'I can call them whenever I want, if there's anything going on I can call my parents or my sister and they would come - I know they would do it. 'I've also reached out to MS Ireland and through TikTok I've connected with an old childhood friend who also has MS - the support has been absolutely amazing.' Although she can't stress enough that she's no MS expert, Marie has recently made major lifestyle changes to try and gain back some control. WHAT IS MS? Multiple Sclerosis is a complex and often unpredictable In simple terms, it happens when the immune system mistakenly attacks the myelin sheath - the protective coating around nerve fibers. This causes inflammation and damage that disrupt the messages the brain sends to the body, leading to a wide range of symptoms that can be overlooked. Statistics show it strikes Recent lifestyle changes Since May, she has adopted a vegan And she now talks openly about listening to her body, allowing herself to rest on difficult days and pacing herself to avoid burning out. One of Marie's biggest hurdles since her diagnosis has been discussing her MS publicly - and at first she feared stigma or being misunderstood. But she eventually turned to And this brave mum-of-two said she now hopes to use her platform to challenge common misconceptions about the illness. She added: "For the most part MS is a disability you can't see and if you know someone with it one day they could be absolutely fine and the next they're not. "A lot of people with MS suffer in silence and it is a very difficult thing to have. "Just because somebody looks okay doesn't necessarily mean that they are, and I suppose we all need to have a bit more empathy around that.' 4 The mum-of-two is refusing to let MS define her life or limit what her future entails Credit: Journalist Collect
Irish Daily Mirror
30-05-2025
- Irish Daily Mirror
'I'm reclaiming my life' - Clare woman speaks of her experience on World MS Day
A Clare woman with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) says she is reclaiming her life after the shocking diagnosis left her in a dark space. Shirley Keane O'Brien, 46, was diagnosed with the chronic illness in 2021. She found it incredibly difficult to accept at first and didn't tell her children Evan, now 16, and Lauren, 18, until a year later. The mother-of-two felt this was the right thing to do, as she wanted to make sure she was in the right headspace to share the news. The diagnosis was particularly tough as the country was amid a strict Covid-19 lockdown. However, Shirley is in a much better and more positive space now and is an ambassador for MS Ireland. Speaking to the Irish Mirror about her diagnosis as today marks World MS Day, she said: "I wasn't the kind of person that showed a lot of vulnerability. I was a busy mother, a strong, independent woman, working full time. "It was a really difficult time, you kind of go into a depression. Depression in MS can manifest in extreme irritability, so I think that's kind of what I experienced. "The Covid-19 lockdown hit, and I found myself retreating into isolation. In a strange way getting space to process what was happening was good, but it was also one of the hardest times of my life." MS symptoms vary greatly from person to person. Common symptoms include fatigue, numbness, tingling, vision problems, muscle stiffness or spasms and cognitive difficulties. Around 9,000 to 10,000 people live with the condition in Ireland, as the disease's onset usually occurs between the ages of 20 and 40. It affects the central nervous system, particularly the brain and spinal cord, and there is no cure. MS is also an autoimmune disorder, where the body's immune system mistakenly attacks its own healthy tissues. Shirley said she also felt very ashamed when she was diagnosed with MS, a feeling she doesn't think is spoken about enough when it comes to the chronic illness. She added: "It's like the seven stages of grief, there's denial and one of the main emotions that I felt was shame. I felt a lot of shame." This couldn't be further from the truth now for the mother-of-two, who advocates for the community and wants others living with MS to know that there is life after diagnosis. She continued: "I decided I was going to take back control of my life. At the end of 2022, I started some counselling, I was kind of stuck within the same room as the MS diagnosis. I was struggling to sort of move forward and figure out my next move. "That acceptance phase is the biggest hurdle, it's far more than just accepting it emotionally or personally, you really have to put in the work. I stopped fighting with the tools that would help me, and I made peace with everything, including the use of the walker, crutch, and even the wheelchair when needed." The mother-of-two said she is extremely lucky to have made peace with her diagnosis, as some people never get through it. She added: "I'm extremely fortunate because that is not something that comes naturally or easy to people at all. "I think you get to a point after MS diagnosis where you're at a bit of a crossroads and it's very difficult for people to get back control of their lives. So I am very fortunate that I've been able to do that." Shirley is the first guest of MS Ireland's new podcast Living with MS, which was launched today. It aims to give a voice to the Irish MS community to share their stories from diagnosis to today.
Irish Independent
28-05-2025
- Irish Independent
Ask the doctor: I have pins and needles in my fingers and jawline. What could cause this?
Dr Grant replies: Numbness and tingling is referred to as paresthesias and is generally not something to worry about unless it becomes persistent and progresses to cause other symptoms such as pain, sensory loss, or weakness involving the shoulder, arm, or hand. The most common reason for these type of complaints is compression or entrapment of a nerve that, in its mildest form, causes intermittent symptoms. For example, carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most common mononeuropathy that causes paresthesias in the hand, when the wrist is flexed as the median nerve is compressed in the carpal tunnel of the wrist. Numbness and tingling occur in the thumb, index, middle and half of the ring finger as these are the regions supplied by the median nerve. The symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome are usually worse at night. A radiculopathy is commonly called a pinched root, that occurs where the nerve root exits the spine, typically at the neck and lower back. Cervical radiculopathy is a common cause of both acute and chronic neck pain. Trigeminal neuralgia is common and causes typically one-sided (unilateral) sudden, severe shooting pain in the jaw, teeth or gums. Always consider the possibility of dental infection, impacted wisdom teeth or gum disease. Therefore, a trip to the dentist might be a good idea! There are many possible causes of radiculopathy. Keeping a diary of your symptoms, including the onset, duration, severity, associated symptoms (if any), what brings it on and what may relieve it, can be very helpful in trying to get to a diagnosis. Your age, gender (women are more commonly affected), family history and personal medical history are all important factors. A routine set of blood tests including vitamin B12, thyroid function tests and diabetes testing should be considered. It is unlikely that your two complaints are related, as the anatomy of the nerve supply is different. As you seem to think a certain exercise in the gym involving weight lifting brought on your symptoms, clearly you should stop doing that particular exercise for now and wait to see if your symptoms resolve over time. One of the common questions GPs get asked when patients present with paresthesias is, could this be Multiple Sclerosis (MS)? In general, MS causes vision problems, difficulty walking or speaking correctly, cognitive difficulties, numbness and tingling, muscle weakness, fatigue and other problems. MS is an auto-immune disease when the immune system attacks and damages nerve cells and their connections in the brain and spinal cord. Working with your doctor over time will determine if referral to a consultant neurologist is appropriate or necessary. Features suggestive of MS that are highly characteristic of the disease include: 1. Typical age of onset between 15 and 45 years 2. Relapses and remissions ADVERTISEMENT 3. Optic neuritis causing pain on eye movements or temporary loss of vision 4. Fatigue 5. Lhermitte's sign, which is a sudden buzzing sensation like an electric shock that run down the back of your neck and spine and may radiate into an arm/leg. It is usually triggered by bending or flexing your head forward towards your chest. It generally lasts a couple of seconds but can be very intense. 6. Internuclear ophthalmoplegia causing double vision and nystagmus, which is involuntary side-to-side rapid eye movements that last only a few seconds. 7. Uhthoff's phenomenon, which is short-lived (less than 24 hours), of worsening of symptoms in response to an increase in core body temperature. The classic example is motor symptoms or difficulty moving your arms/legs while trying to get out of a hot bath. Dr Jennifer Grant is a GP with Beacon HealthCheck
