CAMERON, N.C. -- Today, Anisha Hankins is a motivational speaker, a radio talk show host and an advocate for those struggling with multiple sclerosis.
But for years it was the former Portageville, Mo., resident who was struggling.
Hankins said she was in her 20s when she first experienced tingling and numbness in her hands and feet. The symptoms would subside so she ignored them.
When the symptoms got worse, a doctor told her she had gout. For more than 10 years, there were more symptoms, more tests but no relief.
The pain became worse. Hankins's neck developed an s-shape curve, her hands were starting to become misshapen. Her doctor sent her to a specialist.
"She started doing some basic tests," recalled Hankins. "I was what she called a 'unique case,' which I didn't want to hear. She sent me for a nerve conduction study. I failed that."
That failure led to a diagnosis. Hankins was suffering from multiple sclerosis.
Multiple sclerosis causes the body's immune system to attack the sheath that normally protects the nerve fibers of the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves. As the attacks continue, the sheath is destroyed leaving scar tissue, or sclerosis, which gives the disease its name.
Hankins calls MS a "sneaky" disease, explaining its symptoms often mimic those of other diseases.
The nerve damage that occurs in MS can result in the numbness and tingling that she experienced. Other symptoms include fatigue, visual problems, difficulty with balance and problems with thinking and memory. Many of those diagnosed with MS deal with depression.
Hankins, who received her diagnosis the day before her birthday in 2008, said she, too, battled depression. It was always the worse, she said, around her birthday.
A veteran of the U.S. Army, Hankins decided to take on her disease and fight back.
Following her MS diagnosis, it was discovered she was also battling other autoimmune disorders including lupus and Sjogren's syndrome. According to Hankins, this put her in the complicated case category and she was accepted as a patient by the Mayo Clinic.
Working with her doctors, she began taking the only medication then available to MS patients. She learned to administer her own shots. There were lifestyles changes as well.
"You want to make sure you diet, you exercise. Also it is very important to keep a positive support system. Because MS is just as much a mental fight as it is the physical -- the more positive you can be the better chance you have," she said.
Rather than becoming depressed around her diagnosis date and birthday, Hankins said she came to realize those are days to celebrate.
"No more depression; the new me is living with MS," she said. "It is about not letting MS take away anything else and doing my best to stay positive and to know that I will celebrate two days. Yes, even the day of diagnosis because that is when a long mystery was finally solved and I could fight what for many years had no name and was so mysterious.
"I would also celebrate my birthday happily because as long as I'm still on this earth, I have purpose. I will live and I will fight with all I have."
She enlisted her family in her battle with MS. The daughter of Dorothy Partee of Portageville, Hankins is a mother and a grandmother.
She said her children wanted to understand the disease.
"They really educated themselves. They are very aware of what MS looks like and even what it doesn't look like. On the outside you don't look sick," she said.
Armed with a degree in science and after having worked as a medical professional for many years, Hankins is educating others.
She has served as an administrator for many MS groups, produced awareness videos and is a radio show host with MS & Me. Also Hankins is the vice-president of MS & Me Media and the director of outreach for the Multiple Sclerosis Global Support Network.
Her radio show, which began last July, is titled "My Journey." Hankins said the show isn't just about her efforts to deal with the disease.
"I spend most of my time educating the newly diagnosed," she said. "I hear back from them. I hear them say to me: 'Thank you so much. Now I know that I'm not alone.' That lets me know we are doing the right thing."
Hankins said it is important that those with MS document their symptoms, when and what they are. They should bring the documentation with them when seeing the physician.
"Things for us change from one second, from one minute to the next. You are fine one second and the next you are not," she said.
The MS medication is expensive. Hankins encourages those who are fearful they can't afford their medication to talk with the manufacturers, many of whom have programs to reduce the costs.
Although there is no cure for MS, with "My Journey" Hankins provides first-hand information about the strides made in treatments to help modify or slow the disease course, manage symptoms and improve daily living. Treatments have gone from the shots which patients gave themselves to pills.
At the Mayo Clinic, Hankins is a candidate for the newest medication, Ocrevus.
"I've only had the first dose; the next is coming up. (The doctors) will wait about a year to see what it is doing," she said. "I'm very hopeful that it is going to do what we need it to do. I'm hopeful, I'm very hopeful."
She also encourages those with MS and their families to become involved in MS Awareness, pointing out March is MS Awareness Month. The National MS Society is an excellent source of information and support, she added.
Hankins said she she sees herself becoming even more involved in MS outreach and support in her local community and beyond.
"MS does not just affect us that live with it but also our families, friends and caregivers. It affects everybody that is around," she said. "This is a difficult disease to deal with. We need a cure."
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Anisha Hankin's radio show can be heard live at 4 p.m. Sundays at radio.msgsn.com.
The National Multiple Sclerosis website is www.nationalmssociety.org