Behind the Scenes – May 2018

So somehow we are already through the first week of June and I haven’t yet provided our Behind The Scenes update for May.  As always, I encourage everyone to share their thoughts on the style and content of these articles via Facebook, Twitter or by e-mail.

A few big things happened last month, so without further ado, let’s get into it:

SEEING MS AWARD PRESENTATION

It was with great pleasure that we attended the People with MS Victoria Incorporated Annual Conference on May 5th to receive the 2017 Seeing MS Award from Multiple Sclerosis Limited.  You can view the video of this presentation here.  As mentioned during my speech, I really do want to highlight the fact that we view this as recognition of not just us, but the whole MStranslate community and everything that you do to help make us successful.

One of the best parts of these events for me is the opportunity to walk around during the morning tea and lunch breaks and talk to members of the MS community.  One of the things that really surprised me during these chats was how many people still aren’t aware of MStranslate and what we do.  It is really important for so many reasons that the information we are providing is reaching as many people as possible, as well as our platforms providing a resource and safe place for people to ask questions.  

With this in mind, I’m issuing a challenge to you…find one person that is part of the MS community (e.g. person with MS, carer, family member, friend etc) that would be interested in what we do, mention MStranslate to them and get them to follow us on our social media platforms!  If everyone that followed us on Facebook could do that, our community would grow from 1,850 to 3,700!!  That’s a lot more people getting fantastic information, but also many more people who can provide valuable feedback and contributions to our discussions.  So come on, what are you waiting for?  Take the challenge…3,700 likes on Facebook by the end of June!

EMOTIONAL STABILITY – IS IT ALL IT’S CRACKED UP TO BE?

May also saw MStranslate partner with the School of Psychological Sciences at The University of Melbourne to record their last May Lecture series event, presented by Dr Peter Koval.  The talk, “Emotional Stability – Is It All It’s Cracked Up To Be?”, presented information from recent studies that suggests that being too emotionally stable might not necessarily be a good thing, which goes against the general public perception on this topic.  As we are sure that this information will be of direct interest to people living with MS and the MS community in general, we will make sure to share the recording once it becomes available online.

Out of curiosity, is this topic of research one that you would like to see covered in more detail on MStranslate?  Do you think there is enough focus placed on emotional and psychological health for people living with MS, or is it too often overlooked? 

WORLD MS DAY

As many of you are probably aware, May 30th was World MS Day.  As part of the events for this, I had the privilege of talking to the Sunbury MS Peer Support Group, based 45 minutes from Melbourne, here in Australia.  My presentation used the hashtag for World MS Day, #bringinguscloser, to emphasise not only how research is making progress in our understanding of multiple sclerosis, but also (and perhaps even more importantly) the role that the MS community play in this process.  As I have said many times before, I strongly believe that the sharing of individual experiences, being advocates for things that you think are valuable and continuing to be engaged with published multiple sclerosis content are incredibly important steps that everyone can be taking to help on a daily basis.

That’s it for now, but I look forward to providing more insights next month!