Move It or Lose It – Episode 103 Replay: The Down and Dirty Truth About Living With MS
Host: Kathy Chester
Guests: Julie, Dawn Morgan
Release Date: August 13, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of "Move It or Lose It" offers a candid, unfiltered discussion about the realities of living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Host Kathy Chester, herself an MS warrior and fitness trainer, invites friends and fellow MSers Julie and Dawn Morgan to share their raw experiences, daily challenges, emotional struggles, and strategies for coping with both MS symptoms and the stresses of life. The talk peels back the curtain on invisible illness, guilt, resilience, the importance of support, and the beauty that can exist within difficulty.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. The "Typical" Unpredictable MS Day [00:38–07:40]

• Dawn’s Story: Dawn shares a stressful weekend that captures the unpredictable, compounding nature of MS:

  • Lost car keys, dealing with a malfunctioning old car, confusion with dealerships ("Why would they cut a key and not probate it?" – Dawn, 04:10)
  • Managing single parenthood while her son falls sick with strep throat, feeling overwhelmed and stuck waiting for help.
  • How MS-related cognitive fog and fatigue amplify everyday problems.

  Notable Quote:

  "I don't know if it's MS brain, I don't know if it's me. But they never really treat women correctly [at the dealership]." (Dawn, 04:24)

• Emotional Toll: Kathy and Julie empathize, highlighting the heavy emotional tax everyday setbacks take when compounded by MS.

  Notable Quote:

  "I would be in tears, I think." (Julie, 05:48)

2. Spoon Theory & Energy Management [07:40–10:41]

• The group discusses how even a "successful" routine activity—like making it to a doctor's appointment—can drain all available energy ("Your spoons are done." – Kathy, 08:37), leaving no bandwidth for the rest of the day.

  Key insight:
  Healthy people often underestimate the impact of routine events on those with chronic illness.

3. Parenting With MS [09:16–14:31]

• Guilt and prioritization: Balancing care for oneself and dependent children, fearing being a burden or failing their expectations.

• Stress and physical symptoms overlap (e.g., incontinence when under pressure) and the emotional fallout.

  Notable Moments:

  • Dawn recounts having to turn home after a bathroom accident:

    "Total TMI, but it's real. Peed all over myself." (Dawn, 11:20)

  • Kathy:

    "Failing and pretending like we're okay... that's our whole life." (Kathy, 12:40)

4. The Invisible Illness & Hiding the Truth [12:54–17:43]

• Discussing why MSers hide struggles, even from partners and children, to avoid being seen as weak/burdensome or facing abandonment.

  Julie’s reflection:

  "If we showed people what it was really like, we’d see their true colors, and they probably wouldn’t stick around." (Julie, 14:20)

• Protecting loved ones from their pain ("It’s a protection for them, almost… we don’t want to feel like a burden." – Julie, 15:01).

5. Strategies for Emotional Wellbeing [16:44–19:05]

• Dawn introduces cardiac coherence breathing as a way to manage rising anxiety and regulate stress [17:17].

  Dawn’s practical tip:

  "You watch this ball. It goes up and then it goes down. As it goes up, you inhale for like five... and then exhale as it goes down. It lowers your heart rate." (Dawn, 16:50)

• The group discusses therapy, the difficulty of medication side effects, and seeking holistic support.

6. The Power of Community and Online Support [18:14–20:25]

• Recent Instagram Live sessions to foster real conversations and peer support, especially valuable for single parents and those who feel isolated.

  Insight:
  "Nobody really gets it but us." – Kathy (27:07)

• Acknowledging the benefit of having a support network (family or found family) and the pain/guilt when asking for help.

7. Guilt, Overcompensation, and Asking for Help [25:44–29:13]

• Danger of believing needing help is failure, when actually "people that are worth it in your life don't mind stepping in." (Julie, 26:01)

• Internalized guilt prevents reaching for needed support, even among friends.

8. Sharing Realities with the Newly Diagnosed [29:13–30:56]

• What helps newcomers: seeing others thriving despite long struggles, honesty about the bad days ("I went from naive optimism to newly diagnosed again" – Julie, 30:16).

• There’s comfort in honest negativity and mutual validation, not empty positivity.

9. Dealing with Disease Progression and the Medical System [29:48–38:35]

• Julie discusses recent disease progression—"I felt like I had control... and then it was gone. Just like that." (Julie, 30:07)
• The emotional whiplash when progression occurs despite best management.
• Kathy and Dawn critique the healthcare system's lack of urgency and empathy for chronic illness needs.
• Medication side effects deeply impact mental health ("I've never really battled depression with this disease until [this drug]." – Kathy, 33:56)

10. Therapy, Neuropsychology, and Emotional Coping [40:44–42:42]

• Julie starting neuropsychological therapy for the first time, encouraged by the group.
• Importance of finding the right therapist ("By the third time, if you don't feel the connection, move on." – Kathy, 42:09)
• Tools and actionable strategies for coping with emotions and cognitive challenges.

11. Gratitude, Resilience, and Final Messages [43:13–45:14]

• Despite the pain, each panelist expresses pride in their lives and resilience:

  Notable Quotes:

  • "I wouldn’t trade this life for another life… I'm really proud of all of the work that I do." (Julie, 43:43)
  • "I'm proud of myself. I love who I am now... I would pick this life. Sounds crazy, but I would." (Dawn, 43:55)
  • "Just look for the beauty within that hardness." (Dawn, 44:27)

• The episode closes with encouragement to find beauty in tough times, to reach out, and to recognize the extraordinary strength that often goes unseen.

Notable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• "Nobody gets it unless you get it, unless you have this insane disease." (Kathy, 01:29)
• "Our whole life is literally failing and pretending like we're okay." (Kathy, 12:40)
• "If we showed people what it was really like… they probably wouldn't stick around." (Julie, 14:20)
• "Make it your mission. Turn a negative into a positive." (Julie, 43:43)
• "I'm proud of myself. I love who I am now… I would not trade anything either." (Dawn, 43:55)

Key Timestamps for Important Topics

• Dawn’s chaotic day & the emotional toll: 02:01–07:40
• The Spoon Theory and energy management: 07:40–10:41
• Parenting through MS and invisible struggles: 09:16–14:31
• Why MSers hide their illness: 12:54–17:43
• Cardiac coherence and coping tools: 16:44–19:05
• Instagram community and single parenting: 18:14–20:25
• Guilt & help-seeking: 25:44–29:13
• Progression and honesty with newly-diagnosed: 29:13–30:56
• Medical challenges & mental health side effects: 33:56–38:35
• Therapy and neuropsychology: 40:44–42:42
• Final affirmations and gratitude: 43:13–45:14

Episode Tone

The conversation is deeply candid, empathetic, occasionally raw, and darkly humorous. The hosts and guests embrace emotional vulnerability, mixing laughter and tears, frustration, encouragement, and hopeful realism rather than empty optimism.

Summary

"Move It or Lose It" Episode 103 is a masterclass in MS authenticity. Kathy Chester, Julie, and Dawn lay bare the daily chaos, invisible symptoms, emotional storms, and guilt that come with MS, while also celebrating the fierce resilience, love, and camaraderie that sustain them. It’s an invaluable listen for new and seasoned MSers, loved ones, and anyone seeking to understand the true day-to-day of chronic illness.