Facing heartbreak and loss after her Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis, Shelley Lloyd has found purpose in the community, helping others. This is her story:
South Africa (13 May 2025) – May marks the month when people around the world raise awareness for Multiple Sclerosis. The official day each year is the 30th of May, but the whole month has been used to get people talking. The best part is that in South Africa, Multiple Sclerosis South Africa is celebrating its 75th year in raising awareness for the disease and providing support to people who have been affected.
Seventy-five years is a major accomplishment!!! To honour South Africans living with the disease, we are delighted to highlight their inspiring stories as they face the unknown battles with their bodies to live life to the fullest. Each month, we meet a new and inspiring South African who shares their story in the hope of raising awareness. This month, we meet Shelley Lloyd.
The disease is still underrepresented in South Africa, but that is about to change! Multiple Sclerosis South Africa (MSSA) is raising the profile of the disease, offering support for families and raising funds to help make a difference. Their goal is to unite Africa and create a federation for the continent that will empower thousands of sufferers.
We hope to highlight many stories for their 75th anniversary: a diamond jubilee, so to speak. It is a celebration of all the gems who aim to make living with MS a little easier.
What is Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system. It interrupts the flow of information within the brain and between the brain and body. Symptoms can range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis.
Every case is proving unique, and the progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are moving closer to a world free of MS.
Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease. MS affects more than 2.3 million people worldwide. MS is one of the most common diseases of the central nervous system. Today, over 2,500,000 people around the world have MS.
There is so much more to the disease, which we have shared for World MS Day 2023 here.
Shelley’s Take on Living with Multiple Sclerosis.
Shelley Lloyd started to feel the effects of MS long before she got her official diagnosis. As a registered SAIPA accountant, she began noticing that her usual work became a struggle, from meeting deadlines to following simple procedures and tasks.
Before her diagnosis, she shared that she had always been a little high-strung and struggled with stress, but these new challenges were different. When it went beyond her work life, Shelley dismissed her unbalance and slower pace as being unfit. It was when she had a small accident that doctors took action to get to the root of the cause.
She finally got her diagnosis through an MRI, which confirmed MS with multiple lesions. The diagnosis was now the beginning of a whole new struggle. Shelley’s husband of 20 years left, which rocked the entire family, and her children went with him. Thankfully, her son still stays with her every other week.
She has experienced mood swings and irrational behaviour caused by lesions in her frontal cortex, which has sadly further strained relationships. The disease has also taken her ability to work away due to memory loss, balance issues and fatigue, and leg spasms have meant driving is a big challenge.
What is important to take on here is that MS takes so much from a person, but how they fight back becomes the tale of inspiration! While Shelley’s losses have been major, she has pushed herself to find her purpose.
“Joining the Multiple Sclerosis Society and working with my neurologist and occupational therapists have been invaluable. Rehab Matters provided cognitive support and strategies for managing MS. Adopting my Labrador, Honey, has given me a sense of purpose, as has volunteering with NGOs like Top Dogs and participating in community activities such as the Park Run and crochet groups.”
For Shelley, being involved in community projects and giving back through volunteering give her the drive to push through the hard days. Not only that, but she has been able to face other challenges, like doing the Hermanus Camino, an 85km walk, where she found support from total strangers along the way.
“Despite challenges, I’ve completed the Hermanus Camino, an 85 km walk, with help from supportive strangers and friends. My community has been instrumental, from gym partners who keep me active to theatre outings that provide joy and connection.”
Shelley’s MS is currently in remission, but the damage done prior to her treatment persists. She will spend her life managing symptoms, undergoing monthly treatments, and continuously testing for changes and side effects from her infusion treatments. She still has daily reminders of the disease.
Many people with MS choose not to disclose their illness, but for Shelley, sharing her journey has made a big difference.
“Disclosing my condition to others has made a significant difference. People are generally patient and understanding when I explain my limitations. While I’ve lost some friends, the kindness of new acquaintances and strangers has been uplifting.
Living with MS has taught me resilience and the value of support. I’m deeply grateful to my doctors, therapists, family, and the many individuals who have helped along the way.”
Through the process of sharing each story, we have learned one thing of vital importance: community makes it easier. Having someone to lean on makes the journey less daunting. MS South Africa aims to be that space for people who find themselves facing an MS diagnosis.
Just know that if you are still figuring it all out, you are not alone! You can find your community right here.
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