You say flare. I say exacerbation. Or is it relapse? Whatever you call it, MS is progressing.  

All it took was the recent Healthline article Is an MS Flare-Up the Same as a Relapse? to make us remember that contrary to wearing orange and observing March as MS Awareness Month, increasing understanding of this chronic progressive disease is a year-round venture.

After all, we each have had Multiple Sclerosis for 25+ years, and we still had questions about what exactly IS the difference between an MS flare-up, attack, exacerbation and relapse. You say “tow-MAY-tow” I say “tow-MAH-tow,” right?

Not necessarily.

Join us as we figuratively pick our brains to make sense of what should be a seemingly simple concept. And yes, it is a big deal. This – whatever you call it — is at the core of monitoring and measuring the progression of what actually is a very complex disease.

And in breaking this down, we expand our MS awareness conversation to include discussions about:

• The advice we each share with someone who is newly diagnosed with MS

• What we wish someone living with MS would have told us about the disease when we were first diagnosed

• The importance of staying informed and being flexible in dealing with MS

• How to keep conversations about MS going throughout the other 11 months of the year

And remember to rate, review and subscribe to A Couple Takes on MS Podcast for two insightful perspectives on this one multifaceted disease.