Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
Updated: Mar 12, 2025
“I’d never heard of MS before I was diagnosed, but my mother, [...] she was the one there bawling her eyes out, crying her head off.”
While you may not have ever been diagnosed with MS, like Imran Siddique was, you might be in the same boat with never having heard of the disease. MS affects the nerves in your brain and spinal cord, potentially causing a range of symptoms, from pain and vision problems to difficulties with mobility and memory.
While doctors aren’t fully sure what causes MS, they know it's an autoimmune disease, meaning your body’s own immune system is attacking itself. According to the MS Society, more than 150,000 people in the UK live with multiple sclerosis.
Imran was diagnosed with MS in his 20s, in 2005. He spoke fondly to me of memories of playing football with mates before the diagnosis.
“We’re not professional players, we’re only, you know, kicking each other and falling over.”
However, it was after falling over playing football that he started to notice that something was wrong.
“I fell on my elbow to break my fall, and that weekend my arm was numb. I thought, okay it’s probably tennis elbow or something, it’ll wear off, but for a few weeks it didn’t go away.”
He also noticed some slight difficulties with walking at the time. Imran then visited the GP multiple times, before being referred to an MS Neurologist at Salford Royal Hospital.
“He said okay, I’m sorry you’ve got MS, multiple sclerosis. And that’s when my mum was bawling her eyes out because she knew what it was. I wasn’t clued up at all, I had to go back and find out for myself on the internet.”
20 years on from his diagnosis, Imran’s MS has left him disabled, with him struggling to walk or use his right hand, meaning he can no longer work. One part of his life he told me he always really looks forward to, however, is the meetups through the MS Society Trafford and Southwest Manchester Group he is a part of.
“I mean now because I’m not going out as much, nowhere near as much as I used to, but now, now the only thing I have to look forward to is these MS meetings or, you know, these days out that we plan.”
Going on days out isn’t the only benefit of being part of a support group however, as they can be great places to meet friends who may also have the same condition as you – MS in Imran's case. I asked him if he’d recommend joining a support group for this reason.
“Yes, yes, I would definitely. To be part of a group that suffers from your illness where people can explain to each other, and obviously that helps each other as well with how to stay on top of it [is great].”
Last year Imran joined the MS Society’s ‘MS Walk’ for the first time, a yearly 5k event held to raise money and awareness for the charity and disease. Imran did this with his brother and sister-in-law and even managed to walk for a small amount of time himself.
Most people with MS in the UK are likely to get diagnosed in their thirties and forties, with the disease being two and a half times more prevalent in women than men. For some, the disease can also worsen over time, meaning symptoms can compound and intensify. Symptoms of MS do vary from person to person however, and Imran told me how his experience of the disease is completely different to that of his friend Kate’s, who also has MS.
For Imran, as the disease has now left him disabled, one of his worries about the future is linked to his mother, who is his carer.
“I don’t wanna be horrible but what am I gonna do after my mother's gone, who’s gonna be my carer then?”
“Because yes I am 45, I’m not young, but still, I’ve still got years ahead of me.”
Research into MS however is on-going, and more is being understood about the disease from technology such as MRI scans and AI. The MS Society alone has invested over £260 million into MS research since 1956. This means that diagnosis, treatments and services are all improving day to day.
If you wish to learn more about multiple sclerosis, donate or find a support group, I will leave the link to the MS Society’s website below, which has an incredible amount of information on it.
To finish off I asked Imran what he wants those unaffected by MS (and other conditions) to remember. He explained how he doesn’t look disabled all the time, but that it is important for people to remember that not all disabilities are visible all the time, but that kindness and understanding are still so important.
MS Society: Here for everyone with MS | MS Society
Thank you for this wonderful blog raising awareness of MS. It is very interesting to read Imran’s experience and to hear the difference MS Support groups make in the lives of those with MS.