b'and self-care as possible and acquired thethat I had to change my life with MS, and that knowledge for myself. I utilized acupuncture,began by accepting it for what it was. And applied kinesiology, yoga, meditation, herbs,from there, I felt more comfortable adding vitamins, imagery, and healthy eating.chronic illness and multiple sclerosis to my areas of focus. Issues of acceptanceAsMSalteredherpersonallife, WerfelWellness and educationheeded the call to adapt to professional changesIn addition, Werfel specializes in hypnosis, as well. Over the years, I developed certainwellness, anxiety, stress, pain reduction, and magic in working with young people, but thatprofessional caregiver stress management in began to shift, she said. My colleagues,individual or couple psychotherapy. Notwith-however, were excelling with the kids while Istanding, most of her clientele are unaware connected more with the childrens mothers.that she has MS. Ill share it with them if I That is when I realized that I should transitionfeel its appropriate, or if they heard about it, into working withadults.California wasshe said. What I can tell them, though, is that cutting services by the late 1980s, and theeverything I do with them, I have experienced programsWerfelfoundherselfinhadnomyself. You go through it yourself when more funding for their psychologists. youre training in hypnosis, imagery, somatic To continue her work, she took the adviceexperiencing, relaxation, or pain management, of colleagues and began her private practiceand in that way, I can bring that understanding in 1993; however, she would not work withto them. Of course, people who dont live with clients who also lived with MS for anotherany disease can learn to help others, too, but two years. I didnt think it was appropriate toit means something more when you share start treating clients with multiple sclerosisthose experiences with clients. until I got a handle on it in my life, WerfelWerfels objective is to help those with MS remarked. I didnt want to match my clientsdiscover suitable ways to live with the disease, fears as they worked through the emotionsteaching them to listen to their bodies to that accompany early diagnoses. Not that Ibecome experts in self-management. Together, had magically gured out MS, but I did gureshe and her clients prepare wellness plans out how to live with it and not be in a state ofthat meet their individual needs. Since MS trauma or fear all the time. is inammation-based, stress management, Before starting her private practice, Werfelfor instance, is an integral part of symptom, arrived at the acceptance of living with anfatigue, and pain management because stress incurable chronic illness. I worked in anis a component of living with it, she said. alcohol treatment program, she said. There,When in pain or discomfort, we become tense, I learned about the twelve steps and howwhich only makes matters worse. Using mind alcoholism is a disease. But at one point, itand body techniques, I try to help clients relax hit me that while I have never been an addictinto the pain, or, in other words, to stop ghting oralcoholic,I wasexperiencingthesameagainst it; if we can accomplish this, the pain thing as they were: issues of acceptance. Itcan become more manageable. I often tell was not any different for me to understandpeople to leave the fight with MS to their 25 msfocusmagazine.org'