We go through hard times with this disease, and then we may go through very long periods with no problems. How many difficulties have you had in the last while, i.e. is this the first time you've missed work because of MS (at least in a long while)?

I am not paralyzed, and can walk (not far, but I can). I was able to keep working for 14 yrs after I got MS, but the last two were from home. It got to the point where I was unreliable and they could not depend on me, so that was probably the main reason I was no longer "employable". What employer wants to have someone on the payroll that can't be counted on?

So, no . . . you do not have to be paralyzed or anything like that to get disability.

You don't want to try to do the application yourself, without at least getting experienced advice from the NMSS and/or a lawyer. You also need the full endorsement of your doctors. Those points are critical to the success of approval, from everything I've heard from others in the US.

Cherie