VIRTUALLY EVERY PARENT of a child diagnosed with MS has concerns about the impact of the disease on the child's education. The concerns are immediate - What if my child misses too many days of school? What if my child cannot participate in classroom or extracurricular activities? What if my child can't do the required work? Can my child's school provide what he or she needs? How will teachers and classmates respond to my child's MS? And the concerns are long-range - Will my child be able to graduate with his or her peers? Will my child be able to go to college? Will my child be able to succeed?
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| Multiple Sclerosis Education Network |
There are two important things to keep in mind. First, the healthcare team will help you and your child learn how best to manage the symptoms of MS, and how to identify and implement effective accommodations in the school setting. Second, there are laws governing the rights of children in different educational settings at different levels. Specific educational issues are addressed in the American and Canadian versions of Kids Get MS Too: A Guide for Parents Whose Child or Teen Has MS. The National MS Society and the Canadian MS Society can refer you to appropriate resources in your area.
Helping Your Child Be a "Normal Kid"
MOST PARENTS EXPRESS concerns about how protective to be of a child diagnosed with MS. Their instincts range from wanting to keep their child in a kind of protective cocoon in hopes of preventing anything bad from happening, to wanting to make sure that their child gets to do absolutely everything that all the other kids are doing. The most realistic strategy is somewhere in between.
Your son or daughter's physician will let you know if there are any restrictions on your child's activities; your best guidance on a day-to-day basis, however, is likely to come from your child. His or her body will give pretty clear signals. If fatigue is a prominent symptom - as it is for many people with MS - your child will simply not feel up to being very active some days. On the other hand, many children with MS are active in both sports and other extracurricular school activities.
During acute attacks of the disease, fatigue or other symptoms may prevent your child from engaging in physical activities, socializing busily with friends, or even making it to school. During periods of remission, however, both you and your child may feel that everything is back to "normal," with no holds barred. The challenge will be in encouraging your child to listen to his or her body, to avoid becoming overly exhausted, and to learn how to balance periods of activity with rest breaks when needed.
Nobody is going to be an instant expert at this - it will be a learning process for your child over the course of the illness. The main thing to keep in mind is that nothing your child does is going to make the MS either better or worse in the long term. The goal is for your son or daughter to be as active and involved as possible, while maintaining an optimal comfort level. To find out more, you can check out Multiple Sclerosis Education Network.