MS Madness: A "Giggle More, Cry Less" Story of Multiple Sclerosis

by Yvonne deSousa

Yvonne deSousa's diagnosis of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis came with an insightful declaration from a new doctor ("MS sucks") and a brother's helpful advice ("You could totally get one of those handicapped parking plates now"). What followed was a year of "accidentally" kicking an officious male doctor in the crotch, becoming an undercover agent to pay for medication made from Chinese hamster ovary cells, discovering the amazing effects of legal speed, and battling her arch-nemesis, the dreaded food vegetables. Throughout her MS journey, Yvonne learned how to use humor to find acceptance in her diagnosis, and how to smile in the face of a debilitating chronic illness. MS Madness will make you laugh while learning the real story of what MS, a disease that affects 400,000 Americans daily, can do to a perfectly normal person. Life with multiple sclerosis can be daunting, but Yvonne shares her giggles at the bizarre world she has unwittingly entered and the new perspectives it has given her on life. MS Madness makes us realize that with a sense of humor, we can survive anything.

ebook

First published February 24, 2014

About the author

Yvonne deSousa has worked as a street sweeper, a shell seller, a babysitter, a candy peddler, and a guest house manager, all before the age of sixteen. Later on she worked as a waitress, sales clerk, library assistant, victim’s advocate, and at the front desk of a doctor’s
office.

Two years before Yvonne’s diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, a relative volunteered her to write an article for a local newspaper. Little did she know it was the beginning of a writing career. When MS threatened to turn her into a lunatic, she started writing more frequently and quickly discovered that writing about the insanity that is MS was helping to keep her sane.

Her work has appeared on CapeWomenOnline.com, and in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Finding My Faith and Something On Our Minds, Volumes 1 and 2. Yvonne also writes a weekly blog on www.yvonnedesousa.com the website that uses a giggle stick to beat up on MS. Since finishing MS Madness! A “Giggle More, Cry Less” Story of Multiple Sclerosis, she has started presenting programs designed to help others use humor to help cope with
chronic illness.

Her latest book, Shelter of the Monument: A Provincetown Love Story, published by Black Rose Writing in 2023 is a coming-of-age memoir that reflects first love, life in a small, seaside town, addiction, and finding one's inner voice.

Reviews

[R.W. Lang · Rating 4 out of 5]

In MS Madness, Yvonne gives us an in-depth analysis of what the disease can do, not only physically, but emotionally as well. But this is not a poor me story, well maybe just a little. An overactive bladder, chronic fatigue, depleted cognition and an inability to focus are some of the issues she faces with her Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis. Dealing with legal speed, a new computer system at work and massive doses of Vitamin D could make anyone crazy. Yvonne flexes her Humerus muscles and beats back those nasty symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis with her funny bone. She leaves two things perfectly clear, Free Cell Solitare is a tough game and MS sucks!