b'Black women like a Black woman, even if they overall health outcomes of Black women buttried. My vision was to unite Black women also to eradicate this disease. andbuildacommunitythatmyselfand According to a 2013 study in the U.S., weothers like me could lean on. I was 25 years have a 47 percent increased risk of MS overold at the time of my diagnosis. I needed to white women. All the more reason the inclusionsee a mother, a wife, and a career woman of Black women is necessary. Among Africanwho was also battling MS while still being the Americans,womenhadtripletheriskofphenomenal Black woman that she isall getting the disease compared to men. Generally,thingsIaspiredtobe.LittledidIknow, Black women deserve to be better taken carehundreds of other Black women needed the of by society. same thing. Most of them had been navigatingtheir MS journeys for decades alone, while For centuries, we\'ve been perceived as toobeingleftoutofthenarrative.Finding strong with a higher tolerance for pain or distress;community matters! thus, receiving less care medically. I thinkIn 2020, we\'ve transformed what was Black women have become so accustomedsimply an awareness campaign into what is tothistreatmentthat we\'vedevelopedanow. We Are Ill is a 501(c)(3) patient advocacy "superwoman"complex,andasleadersinorganization with a vision to redene what ourfamilies,forgettoprioritizeourselves.sick looks like for Black-identifying women Now we are shifting that behavior, advocatingliving with MS. Our goal is to build a fearless for our healthcare, and demanding to be seencommunity and create culturally competent andheard. Asanorganization, We AreIlleducational materials. By facilitating more plans to be at the forefront, making changesrobustdiscussionsontheexperiencesof we\'d like to see, gaining our community\'sBlack women living with MS, WAI is changing enthusiasm, and encourage them to join us.the narrative of MS not only to improve the Connect at weareillmatic.com.53 msfocusmagazine.org'