Ward has been participating in MS Bike which encourages participants to choose their distance and make a difference by building awareness and raising much needed funds for research and services that are fundamental to changing the lives of people living with multiple sclerosis (MS).
While the MS Society was unable to host in-person events this summer, the organization encouraged participants to take part in their communities, with local events and specified bike routes across the country. Riders were able to choose their own route and ride safely in their community and in accordance with local and provincial health authorities.
“This year, I registered for the Waskesiu virtual MS Bike event,” Ward told Yorkton This Week.
“Earlier in the summer I set a biking, as well as fundraising goal, for myself to complete in the Virtual MS Bike event on September 18th. Not knowing if I was going to go to Waskesiu to do an actual ride along the previous MS Bike route, I set a goal of biking 904 km (565 miles) on the gravel roads and highways around our farm. I chose 904 km as it the round-trip distance from our farm to Waskesiu.”
Ward has been tackling her goal with a series of short rides.
“I have been doing some shorter rides on the gravel around the farm -- anywhere from 8 to 50 km at a time -- to log kilometres or miles to meet my goal.
“Usually our children do not ride with me, but I try to log some smaller rides (three-to-10 km) with them so that they feel like they are a part of what I am doing. Sometimes it just means tacking on a couple miles at the end of my ride so that they can ride too. They are already asking when they can ride in MS Bike as well.”
For Ward MS is very real.
“I was diagnosed with MS in 2017. It was not a shock when I did receive the official diagnosis as I had numerous ‘attacks’ in the year leading up to the diagnosis which included everything from numb and tingling areas on my body; head, legs, feet, to optic neuritis which resulted in a temporary partial loss of vision.
“It was not the diagnosis I ever wanted to get, and I cried a lot shortly after the diagnosis but I am not a person that wanted to dwell on all the bad things that could happen so I decided just to be positive about all the good things in life. MS tends to show up in one branch of my family tree so I was somewhat familiar with what MS was and could mean.”
Of course with the diagnosis came new challenges and change.
“The diagnosis was the hardest part,” said Ward. It was one thing to suspect that it was MS. It was another thing to hear the neurologist confirm it was MS and look at the MRI highlighting the areas on my brain that were showing active lesions or scar tissue caused by MS.”
It helped Ward had support.
“My family and friends were really supportive as we worked through the diagnosis and the MS Clinic in Saskatoon was really helpful at answering my questions and providing info that I didn't even know I needed in the early diagnosis. “
Of course part of the change is that MS remains something of a mystery.
“There is so much unknown about MS and each person can be affected so differently,” said Ward.
“The MS clinic was really helpful at providing information on how to manage MS and also in terms of wading through the disease modifying therapy options.”
And not all treatments work for all patients either.
“The first disease modifying therapy that I did, did not work for me,” said Ward. “For a year, I did daily injections of one of the common approved MS disease modifying therapies. It was not effective at managing my MS and my MS symptoms remained quite active and continued to do damage to my body.
“It is pretty disheartening when that happens.
“We tried a second treatment option over a period of two years which I have found to be quite effective at stopping or slowing the progression of MS. While it has improved a lot of the physical symptoms of MS, fatigue and cognitive symptoms still seem to be the factors that affect me on a regular basis.
“As someone diagnosed with MS, I know that while these disease modifying therapies can be effective at managing or slowing the progression of MS, they are not a cure.
“One of the biggest unknowns that is always in the back of my mind is what happens next?
“What happens when my body no longer responds to the therapies or what will the next attack or relapse bring?
“I have dealt with my MS diagnosis through a number of ways - staying active, eating balanced, healthy meals, and surrounding myself with family and friends that support me.
“At the end of the day, I try not to let MS impact every decision I make which can be quite hard when there are life decisions to make that can impact our family, our farm or my work, which could completely be thrown out the window with an MS attack.”
Ward has also become active in trying to support others with MS, becoming a SK based MS Society Ambassador.
It was a decision made because Ward saw a need to help.
“Canada has one of the highest rates of MS in the world, with an average of 12 Canadians diagnosed every day,” she said. “Most people either directly or indirectly know of someone who is affected my MS.
“When I was asked to be an ambassador, I saw it as an opportunity to raise awareness about MS, the MS Society and how much great research, programs and services are being made possible through events like MS Bike.
“The research that the MS Society funds gives me hope that one day there will be a cure.”
The need is close to home too.
“Also, my sister was diagnosed with MS a couple years ago as well,” said Ward. “This is really personal for me through my journey with MS, my sister's journey through MS and the hope that if our kids or family or friends were ever diagnosed, there will be a lot more answers than questions and hopefully a cure for this crazy disease.”
So what exactly does an MS Ambassador do?
“As an MS Bike Ambassador, I am available to share my story and raise awareness as to what MS is, how it impacts those affected by MS, and how the funds raised by the MS Society are used to fund research in terms of medications, treatments, the cause and the cure, as well as the importance of the programs and services that they support for those managing and living with MS,” explained Ward.
“Through my role, I hope to encourage people to either join a MS Bike team, create a team, ride, or consider supporting those who do ride to end MS.
“This year a virtual event is being held on Sept. 18, where cyclists and the MS community will connect virtually across the country to support the tens of thousands of Canadians affected by MS. “
Ward first became involved in MS Bike after her diagnosis.
“I first became involved with MS Bike at the Riding Mountain event in 2018 after my diagnosis,” she said. “Before that I had supported one of my friends through a financial donation to her MS Bike ride. My aunt has MS, and it was an important cause that I wanted to support.
“After my diagnosis in 2017 I wanted to ride in the 2017 ride, but in all honesty, I was having multiple MS symptoms and did not physically, or emotionally feel, that it was the right decision for me that year.
“In the spring of 2018, I decided that I was going to ride MS Bike Riding Mountain in September of 2018.
“I pulled out my bike and started riding on the gravel roads around my farm. Three or four mile rides quickly turned into 15 or 25 mile rides so that the ride from Dauphin up into Riding Mountain and back again over the two-day event would be doable. Throughout that summer, I reached out to family and friends to see if they would support my MS Bike fundraising goals. I posted on social media how and why I was riding and what MS Bike was.
“I rode in 2018 and 2019 in the in-person events at Riding Mountain as part of a team of friends. In both years, the sense of ‘I did it!’ was amazing.
“Knowing that there are many others who are also diagnosed with MS that are not able to do the ride is extremely important I rode not only for myself (physically, emotionally, mentally), but also for those who can't.”
With COVID-19 things changed of course.
“As everyone knows, the world changed in 2019 with COVID and the decision to do a virtual MS Bike event in 2019 was made,” said Ward. “MS and the need for MS research, programs and services did not go away with COVID so it was important that I continued to participate in the virtual MS Bike event.
“Last year, I set myself a goal to bike 300 km on the gravel roads around my farm in the few weeks leading up to the Virtual MS Bike rally -- 300 km was approximately twice the distance of the MS Bike Riding Mountain event that I had participated in the previous two years.
“It was different as we didn't have that in-person interaction and encouragement along the bike route that we would normally have. “
In-person, or virtual, Ward has found a community of support.
“When I attended the in-person event in the past, the community of volunteers has been amazing. In the virtual event, the community dynamic changes a bit,” said Ward. “The community has become a virtual community where we are able to interact with cyclists and supporters from across Canada. I have made some really neat virtual connections with people from both ends of the country and everywhere in between as we are all there to virtually cheer each other on and raise awareness for MS research, programs and services.
“In the times of COVID, my community has been family and friends. Some of whom I see and talk to on a regular basis, others who I haven't seen in 10 years.
“The community has also been people whom I have never met, but because they have either been affected by MS or know someone who is affected by MS, there is common tie to draw people together.
“Sometimes community support has been as simple as friendly word of encouragement or a small donation or other times it is people who you meet on the road that give you a big wave!
“Being that it is virtual, it also means that anybody can participate in MS Bike or support MS Bike from anywhere that works for them. We no longer have to meet at a given place at a given time to be a part of it. This year's MS Bike encourages cyclists and participants to go the distance and make a difference from anywhere. You can ride on your own or get a team to together and do it together, or simply join the virtual rally to help raise awareness and funds to support Canadians affected by MS.”
On Sept. 18, the MS Society will host a virtual live-streamed event – bringing cyclists and the MS community together to rally with tens of thousands of Canadians affected by the disease. The live stream will include participant stories from across the country, highlights from our MS Bike season and the impact of fundraising efforts.
