Fight back after MS diagnosis

EMMA BAILEY

KEEPING POSITIVE: Gareth Ford will soon receive new medication for his multiple sclerosis.

Gareth Ford thought it was his years of motocross catching up on him, when his limbs started going numb.

It was 2009 and he was a busy father of two working as a truck driver.

"I was a typical Kiwi male. I refused to go to the doctor and then my left leg stopped working altogether. Prior to that I had the usual seizures where your eyesight goes and your sight is foggy."

He finally went to the doctor and was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, an auto immune disease that affects the central nervous system including the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves. There are approximately 4000 people in New Zealand diagnosed with MS.

"I had ridden motocross for 17 years before that and I thought [the MS symptoms] were my sporting lifestyle catching up on me.

"I had been a truck driver for 18 years, as well as my motocross, and in 2004 had been ranked third in the world competing as a body builder. It really did turn my whole life upside down.

"I went though depression, I lost my partner of five years. I turned to drink and self-medicated with drugs."

He realised he had to get his life back on track.

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Fight back after MS diagnosis