A Couple Takes on MS
Digmann/Evon
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Top 10 A Couple Takes on MS Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best A Couple Takes on MS episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to A Couple Takes on MS for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite A Couple Takes on MS episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Episode 41 – MS in Their Voices
A Couple Takes on MS
11/21/22 • 7 min
New segment – MS in Their Voices – launches
A new segment for our podcast is MS in Their Voices. This segment features the writing of MS authors who will read to you the powerful words of their personal essays, poetry and prose.
Our first featured author is Tamara Sellman. She is the author of INTENTION TREMOR, a book published by MoonPath Press in 2021. This hybrid collection of poems and personal essays chronicles her life in the five years following her MS diagnosis in 2013.
Tamara lives in the Seattle area and writes regularly on MS topics.
INTENTION TREMOR is available wherever books are sold. For information or to order a signed copy, visit www.intentiontremorbook.com.
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Episode 40 – Louie Preciado and his newly diagnosed perspectives
A Couple Takes on MS
10/24/22 • 41 min
In this episode, we pull in our friend Louie Preciado to share his perspectives as a person recently diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. He was formally diagnosed December 1, 2021.
This diagnosis didn’t stop him from achieving his goal to ride the Texas MS150 in April 2022 and six months later finish the MS Ride to the River. But rising to the challenges of these rides was just part of Louie’s journey in navigating his life with MS.
Join us in our conversation with Louie as he talks honestly about adjusting to living with an unpredictable disease, how his persistence ensured he was prescribed the disease-modifying therapy of his choice, and what he does to stay on track and keep moving forward.
Oh yeah, and see what he has to say about whether we were correct in our assertion in Episode 37 that people with MS (like each of us who have had the disease for 20+ years) are forever newly diagnosed.
Here are a few ways to connect with Louie:
Episode 36 – Taking on MS with Kathy Reagan Young
A Couple Takes on MS
08/26/22 • 36 min
At last! We are hosting the first guest on our podcast! Sure, we have 35 episodes under our podcasting belt, but trust us, Kathy Reagan Young was well worth the wait!
Join us as we welcome the dynamic host of TWO engaging podcasts – FUMS: Giving MS The Finger and Patients Getting Paid. Kathy also maintains the FUMS Now! blog and then some, is the proud mother of two daughters and also is living with MS.
Yeah, she’s that good.
In this episode we learn about what led Kathy to decide to launch a website with such a seemingly inappropriate sounding name (listen to hear her more sophisticated alternative interpretation of FUMS), what keeps her moving forward and what brings her joy.
We felt so blessed to be the first guests on Kathy’s FUMS podcast – she now has 113 under her belt! – and it truly is an honor to feature her as the first guest on A Couple Takes on MS podcast.
Here are the links we reference for you to follow up on:
• FUMS: Giving MS The Finger – Follow this to listen and subscribe to Kathy’s podcast
• Patients Getting Paid – Check out “Your safe place to connect, learn, and cultivate a chronicpreneur lifestyle.”
• Using Intermittent Fasting to Manage Your MS with Cynthia Thurlow – This is the FUMS episode Jennifer brought up with Kathy that sparked our venture into trying intermittent fasting.
• 7 Questions with A Couple featuring Kathy Reagan Young – Consider this a bonus prequel interview to our podcast conversation with Kathy.
Episode 43 – Committed to challenging us with MS
A Couple Takes on MS
12/28/22 • 28 min
We’re going beyond New Year’s resolutions in 2023. Who’s with us?
OK, so what we’re talking about technically isn’t a resolution. It really is more of a commitment to hold ourselves accountable to our personal challenges to improve ourselves in different aspects of life.
Join us in this episode as we follow up on the doctor visits we discussed in Episode 42 before delving into starting the new year with the challenge (a concept we learned about from award-winning author and podcaster Jay Shetty) to build on the momentum we started the final weeks of 2022.
Our initial challenge for 2023 is grounded in our PT-CONECT sessions with the Central Michigan University Doctor of Physical Therapy students. Check out our blog post MS, PT and moving forward one punch and one high step at a time to watch the videos of our work and learn more about this one-of-a-kind community PT program.
How about you? What are you challenging yourself to do in the first few weeks of the coming year?
Here are the links we reference for you to follow up on:
- 3 Ways to Get Out of Your Comfort Zone & 3 Ways to Challenge Yourself This Week – Jay Shetty’s On Purpose podcast that inspired us to think of resolutions more like personal challenges
- CMU Department of Physical Therapy – For everything you wanted to know about the awesomeness of the best PT program in our world
Episode 66 – Transforming caregiving stress into strength
A Couple Takes on MS
11/22/23 • 33 min
More than 50 million people across the United States live with the primary responsibility of caring for a loved one, such as a spouse. A parent. A child. A sibling. A close relative. A friend.
They are the family caregivers who offer their selfless support for everything from managing and administering medications to assisting with the most basic tasks of daily living.
November is National Family Caregivers Month in the U.S., which calls attention to family caregivers and the important role they play in the lives of those they care for.
In this episode of A Couple Takes on MS podcast, we celebrate National Family Caregivers Month and open up about the challenges and stresses we face while serving as each other’s primary caregiver.
Sure, we know how much the quality of our lives are improved by having a spouse who understands what it’s like to have MS, but being a caregiver for the other is tough and can be quite stressful. Yes, it is rewarding too, but we know how important preventing caregiver burnout is.
Here are the links to the articles and resources we discussed:
• iConquerMS Caregivers – The newly launched caregiver website developed by the Accelerated Cure Project and iConquerMS to provide information, support and community.
• National Family Caregiver Summit – Stream sessions from this first-ever two-day online event presented by caregiving.com. Be sure to check out the Male Caregiver session where Dan served as one of four panelis
• Caregiver Burnout – Cleveland Clinic webpage that delves into the causes and symptoms of caregiver burnout and ways to treat and prevent it. • 14 Life-Changing Tips to Relieve Caregiving Stress – Article from caringbridge.org
Episode 63 – The high co$t of living with M$
A Couple Takes on MS
10/04/23 • 32 min
The annual economic burden for the nearly 1 million people living with Multiple Sclerosis in the U.S. is, wait for it ... $85.4 billion.
That’s billion. With a “b.”
The $85.4 billion, according to a report from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, is the total cost to all of society, which includes people living with MS; employers; health insurers; and federal, state and local government.
Join us for this episode of A Couple Takes on MS Podcast as we bring awareness to the high-cost realities of what it takes to live with MS and a disability.
The reality is that there is nothing cheap about living with MS. Whether it’s having to pay for a hotel room while visiting friends and family because their homes aren’t handicapped accessible, covering costs for purchasing and maintaining a power wheelchair and accessible van, or all the added supplements and heath care products, life with MS is expensive.
And we haven’t even mentioned the astronomical costs for disease-modifying therapies. How astronomical? As of February 2022, the median annual price of the brand MS DMTs is close to $94,000. Six of the MS DMTs, all on market since 2009 or earlier, have increased in price more than 200% and nine DMTs are now priced at over $100,000.
The sad thing is that the aforementioned figures are from studies released last year, so Lord knows how much annual increases and inflation have ballooned the costs related to having MS.
And, as we note in our podcast, we aren’t talking about this to complain or go on a rant; rather, it’s to increase awareness about the seemingly unfair financial facts of life with MS that so many of the nearly 1 million people in the U.S. living with the disease are just expected to deal with and accept.
Here are the links to the articles we discussed:
• The Economic Burden of Multiple Sclerosis in the United States
Episode 39 – Covid, Cats, and Catsup
A Couple Takes on MS
10/07/22 • 49 min
This one is another Ketchup Episode where Dan, Jennifer, and Ryan just chit-chat. This talk starts with the Digmann's discussing their diagnosis of Covid. That leads into Ryan sharing news about his Grandma, it's sad, so be warned. They do pick it up at the end with talk of Ryan's new kitten, (unnamed at time of recording, but he is now named Buddy or BB) and ending on moments of joy.
The Bean/Buddy Relationship in 3 frames:
Episode 35 – Let’s talk about advocation!
A Couple Takes on MS
08/11/22 • 26 min
Dan and Jennifer advocate for advocation! Everyone has a voice and your voice can't be heard if you don't speak in whatever way you can best. They talk about how everyone in Listener Land (that's you!) can get involved in being an advocate and highlight their experiences joining fellow MS activists and meeting virtually with their legislators and members of their staff this month to talk about securing more funding for MS research.
Here the links they reference for you to follow up on:
- National Multiple Sclerosis Society Advocacy — Learn how you can become an MS activist
- The $22 million funding request for the MS Research Program — Look into the details of the main legislative issue we discussed with our federal legislators during their August recess
- Multiple Sclerosis Activists Play Key Role in Passage of Meaningful Prescription Drug and Health Insurance Legislation — See how activist rocked it in this article
- Goodbye to Sandra Dee — Jennifer says farewell to one of her favorites
The images behind our Moments of Joy
Dan's Moment
Jennifer's Moment
Episode 64 – Motivation in the face of MS
A Couple Takes on MS
10/18/23 • 28 min
One of our regular listeners sent us what seemingly was a simple question: “What keeps you motivated in living with Multiple Sclerosis?” Simple, right?
Not necessarily. While it wasn’t necessarily a complex question to answer, it was, shall we say, “Multifaceted.”
Join us for this episode of A Couple Takes on MS Podcast as we unearth some of the elements we turn to daily that give us the encouragement we need to:
• Get out of bed in the morning
• Move forward throughout the day
• Go to bed each night feeling like we’ve either made a difference or like we need to give ourselves grace and know we will do better tomorrow
Here are the links to the articles, book and online support group we discussed:
Episode 71 – Taking on dating and loving with MS
A Couple Takes on MS
02/14/24 • 29 min
This episode released on Valentine’s Day so of course it embraces a theme related to maintaining loving relationships when you or your significant other are living with Multiple Sclerosis.
Just think about it: all committed relationships present their share of challenges. Throw a chronic progressive disease into the mix, and this love connection suddenly presents a different sort of sclerotic dynamic.
This disease literally has a lot of nerve tangling up these loving relationships!
Join us as we – A Couple Takes on MS – offer our perspectives and tips into what it takes to build and strengthen a caring and committed relationship when MS (or any other challenge for that matter) tries to take the focus off the love you’re looking for or the love you and your partner share.
We talk about the places people have found love (reminder: we met at a National Multiple Sclerosis Society event) and delve into the elements that help lead to successful relationships, including honesty, empathy, gratitude, and, yes, love. Lots and lots of love.
Here are some links we reference that offer more insights into dating and loving relationships in spite of MS :
• Living Well with MS/Relationships – National MS Society article
• Young, Single, and Diagnosed With MS: Your Dating Questions, Answered – Everyday Health article
• 10 Dos and Don’ts for Dating With Multiple Sclerosis – Marriage.com article
• Intimacy and MS: Make It Your Own – MS Focus essay
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FAQ
How many episodes does A Couple Takes on MS have?
A Couple Takes on MS currently has 51 episodes available.
What topics does A Couple Takes on MS cover?
The podcast is about Podcasts, Personal Journals, Society & Culture and Health & Fitness.
What is the most popular episode on A Couple Takes on MS?
The episode title 'Episode 41 – MS in Their Voices' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on A Couple Takes on MS?
The average episode length on A Couple Takes on MS is 33 minutes.
How often are episodes of A Couple Takes on MS released?
Episodes of A Couple Takes on MS are typically released every 14 days.
When was the first episode of A Couple Takes on MS?
The first episode of A Couple Takes on MS was released on Jun 16, 2022.
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