Naty Michele

09/21/2024

On September 4th, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). It took 6 months, 4 doctors and a lot of testing to finally get answers. I have multiple lesions on my brain and my spine, which have affected my mobility and given me a number of other symptoms that I never knew were connected.

This has actually been brewing in my body for a very long time. My oldest known symptoms date back to 2017. It started with tingling and numbness in my legs. Then in 2018 & 2019, I went through weeks of blurry vision. And there were even more symptoms after that. I just didn’t know what was happening. I wish I would have done more testing back then, but I can’t live with that regret.

I wrote a very lengthy blog post detailing this entire journey. It’s all in there and I hope you’ll take the time to read it. You never think things will happen to you until they do. All of this has been such a learning lesson. I hope in sharing my story it can push someone to advocate for themselves a little more and to not stop searching for answers.

I am feeling a mix of so many emotions — anger, sadness, denial, fear, grief for my life before this and even relief in finally knowing. It’s been the missing piece of the puzzle and now I am seeing the full picture.

Sharing health issues is not an easy thing. It comes with a lot of assumptions and unsolicited advice, which can be very confusing and overwhelming. I know it comes from a good place, but please know I am trusting in my doctors, researching and learning, and talking with other MS patients. Next steps are physical therapy and starting my infusion treatment that I’ll be getting every 6 months. I’ll also be making diet and lifestyle changes and doing whatever else I can on my own to heal as much as possible.

I have a very long road ahead of me and I am going to do the best I can to navigate it all one day at a time. Thank you to everyone who has been here to support me through all of this, especially my family. I could not have gotten through it without you. Let this be a reminder to take care of your health, it’s the most important thing. Love you. 🫶🏼 P.S. 🖕🏼MS

https://natymichele.com/my-diagnosis-story-i-have-multiple-sclerosis/

06/19/2024

A few snaps from the weekend 🫶🏼 I had started a tradition for Father’s Day when I lived in NYC where I’d go for a run and take myself out to eat. It was my way of honoring my dad and making the day feel a little less sad. Unfortunately this year I wasn’t able to go for a run. Some of you know I’ve been having issues with my legs, but I am hoping to get more answers soon. 🤞🏼 ⁣
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This year, I took myself out for a glass of wine to toast to him. 🥂 And I went to brunch with my mom. We shared memories of him over yummy food and it was perfect. (Swipe to see her shirt lol)⁣
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In addition to the poem I posted on Sunday, (thank you for the sweet messages!) I’m sharing a few thoughts about grief on my blog. It’s a short post if you want to check it out on natymichele.com 🫶🏼 ⁣
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06/18/2024

A quick blog post 🫶🏼

This was the 14th Father’s Day without my dad. It’s often difficult for me to grasp that so much time has passed by since he’s been gone,...

06/12/2024

I came across this video on tiktok that I shared to my stories yesterday. The message was “Good morning, go live.” Break the pattern of your life, go outside and do something different. Do something spontaneous. It can be as simple as visiting a new coffee shop or going on a 15 minute walk or drive. Whatever it is, go experience something different. Be spontaneous. Focus on the feeling of living. ✨⁣
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This resonated with me a lot. It can be so easy to get consumed with the routine of our daily lives. Things become mundane very quickly and so often we tend to feel stuck or stagnant. Lately, I haven’t focused enough on the feeling of LIVING. And little by little I’m going to change that. Sometimes the universe sends us a message when we need it the most. Maybe someone else needed this reminder too. 🫶🏼 ⁣
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06/01/2024

And just like that, it’s June. 🫶🏼 May was a bit of a challenging month for me. It started off with a few health scares to navigate (I’m ok) and it ended with some much needed clarity — and a new haircut. This first half of the year has not been my favorite. I really entered 2024 thinking that 40 would be my best year yet and that hasn’t been the case. BUT — there’s still time for me to turn things around and I have high hopes for this second half! Really hoping June will be good to all of us. ⁣
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Here’s a few leftovers from May. ✨⁣

05/15/2024

It’s been a family-filled May so far and I wouldn’t have it any other way. 🫶🏼 ⁣Definitely the best part of being back in Jersey! ⁣
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05/15/2024

It’s been a family-filled May so far and I wouldn’t have it any other way. 🫶🏼 ⁣
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05/05/2024

My nieces had their dance recital today and they both crushed it! I am so proud. 🥹 I’ve seen Mia perform a few times now, but this was my first time watching Layla. It brings back so many memories of when my sister and I used to dance. I did recitals when I was 3 to 13 years old. Those were the days! ⁣
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I unfortunately wasn’t able to get any photos of Mia today, but she’s a star! ✨⁣

04/29/2024

The last bits of April 🫶🏼 and what a month it has been. Here’s a few gentle reminders that helped me get through it:⁣
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May you be released from wanting things that are not meant for you. ⁣
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What you focus on, you become. ⁣
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Be more interested in how your life feels than how it looks to others. ⁣
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Some losses liberate us. ⁣
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Your progress is your power. ✨⁣
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04/15/2024

Do you ever feel like you’re not doing enough? I admittedly feel this way more often than I’d like to admit, especially on here. I think I sometimes get too caught up with everyone else’s content and what they’re doing and I’ll start to think I need to change the way I’m posting or that I need to do way more. And I hate that. I hate when I do that. But I’m human and those thoughts do creep in sometimes. ⁣
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I always want to show up in ways that feel authentic to who I am and not by posting things just because it’s what everyone else is doing. This is my little corner of the internet and I want to continue sharing parts of me and my life. For some it will resonate and for others it won’t, and that’s okay. ⁣
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So this is a reminder to myself that I am doing more than enough as long as I continue to show up as myself every day. And maybe someone else needed this reminder today too. “You’re doing amazing, sweetie” 🫶🏼