MS Awareness, Life Awareness, Self Awareness, JOY is Awareness worth Celebrating.

March Is About Awareness. AND Not Just the Ribbon Kind.

March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month — a time when orange ribbons pop up and people say, “I didn’t know that about MS.” Yeah...That’s the point. We are making you aware!

Awareness changes behavior.Awareness shifts research funding.Awareness makes invisible symptoms visible.

But I want to stretch this a little wider.

What if awareness this month wasn’t just about MS? What if it was about noticing what’s happening inside of us — and around us — before it quietly steals our joy?

Because here’s the truth: MS may affect my nervous system.But unexamined stress? That affects all of ours.

The Science: Joy Is Not Frivolous

We’ve been socially trained to treat joy like a dessert. Optional and sometimesy, but don't overindulge. However, biology disagrees.

Here’s what we know from research in psychoneuroimmunology (the study of how thoughts and emotions impact the immune system):

1. Chronic stress increases inflammation.

Long-term psychological stress is associated with elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines (like IL-6 and TNF-alpha). In autoimmune conditions, where the immune system is already dysregulated, chronic stress can contribute to symptom flares and disease activity.

2. Positive emotional states buffer stress responses.

Studies show that people who regularly experience positive affect (joy, gratitude, amusement, hope) have lower levels of inflammatory markers and improved immune regulation compared to those in chronic negative emotional states.

3. Laughter impacts immune function.

Research has found that laughter can temporarily increase natural killer cell activity and reduce stress hormones like cortisol. It’s not a cure. It’s a regulator.

4. Social connection reduces disease burden.

Isolation is correlated with worse health outcomes across chronic illnesses. Supportive relationships are linked to lower inflammatory markers and improved resilience in autoimmune populations.

Translation?

Joy is not denial.

Joy is regulation.

Joy is nervous system hygiene.

JOY IS A MUST if you want to live a life of quality.

MS Awareness… and Self-Awareness

Living with MS requires a certain hyper-awareness of the body. Is this fatigue normal or is this MS fatigue? Is it hot in here or just me? Is this a hot flash or MS? (over 35...ladies you feel me🥴) Is my vision off or am I overthinking? Am I pushing myself too far? We are in constant questioning about what is happening inside our bodies.

But what about awareness of the quieter things:

• The news cycle that spikes our nervous system.

• The random IG post of latest political happenings that makes us feel powerless.

• The relationship that drains more than it deposits.

• The inner voice that narrates our life like a war documentary.

We monitor our symptoms.We track our medications.We attend appointments. But are we tracking what steals our joy?

Because here’s the uncomfortable truth...Not everything that exhausts us is autoimmune related:

Some of it is access.

Some of it is overcommitment.

Some of it is comparison.

Some of it is people who only call when they need something. And we save them even though we are exhausted ourselves.

Awareness means noticing before resentment turns into inflammation.

Protecting Joy “At All Cost”

Now let’s be clear. Protecting your joy, does not mean bypass reality.

We live in a world with real problems, with real medical bills, with real symptoms, and real grief.

Protecting your joy means:

• Setting boundaries before your body sets them for you.

• Logging off when your shoulders climb to your ears.

• Choosing rest before collapse.

• Saying no without a 3-page dissertation explaining why.

  
  

For those of us with autoimmune conditions, the margin is smaller.Which means the stewardship has to be tighter. Joy becomes a form of energy management.

A Practical Awareness Audit

(Playful, But Serious)

This month as we are being AWARE of things... try this:

1. Notice what spikes you.

For one week, track what raises your stress quickly. News? Certain conversations? Your own thoughts? Awareness precedes choice. Journal about it or write a quick note in your note apps on your phone. GET CURIOUS!

2. Notice what restores you.

Is it quiet? Music? Laughter? Texting that one friend who gets it? A warm shower?

Restoration is not random. It’s data. Take note and adjust accordingly.

3. Protect one small joy daily.

Not a vacation. Not a grand reinvention of your life. One small thing:

• Sit in the sun.

• Watch something ridiculous without shame.

• Call someone who makes you laugh.

• Eat off the good plate, not the chipped one. Be fancy for one meal.

Consistency regulates the nervous system more than intensity.

The Reframe

MS Awareness Month is about educating the world. But it can also be about educating ourselves about how stress lives in the body and how joy is medicine-adjacent. We can learn about how our immune systems are listening to more than we think and noticing what it hears.

You do not need to be positive all the time, though you do need recovery.

And sometimes, joy is recovery.

So this March, wear the orange. Advocate and share the facts.

But also — become radically aware of what you are allowing into your nervous system.

Because protecting your joy is not selfish.

For those of us living with autoimmune disease, it’s strategy.