b'Life with MSDDeessiiggnniinnggHHoommeeMMooddiiccaattiioonnssffoorrMMuullttiipplleeSScclleerroossiissBy Lori Bellport, Certied Aging in Place SpecialistOne thing that we tend to cherish as individuals is living with independence. The disruptive symptoms of MS can make this difficult, especially over time. One important strategy in planning for your future when diagnosed with MS revolves around helping you maintain the highest quality of life through design.Designing your space with intention will Altered sense of balance help you manage and ameliorate the issues Weakness of MS while bolstering quality of life. This Numbness means thinking about architecture, engagingFor this reason, safety needs to be the rst in renovation for accessibility, and utilizingpriority in home modications for MS. At the assistive productsespecially assistivetop of the safety pyramid lies fall prevention.technology. Small actions add up, making yourThe rst order of business is to eliminate home a place for work, therapy, and rest.tripping hazards in the home. We step across Home modications and assistive productsraised thresholds all the time without strengthen quality of life on two fronts:considering how tricky this could be for alleviating the challenges of specic symptomssomeone with gait, balance, or vision problems.and meeting individual needs. Based on a blendMinimizethisriskbysmoothingout of these, we group home design modicationspassageways. This could involve matching according to the following considerations. varied oor heights, adding gradual ramps Safety and Accessibility instead of stark thresholds between rooms, or remodeling a bathroom with a zero-barrier Some common symptoms of MS increaseshower. everydayaccidentrisks. ThinkabouthowRedesigning can also place the most-often- theseissueswouldmakesomeonemoreused appliances, storage, and household items likely to experience mobility issues and injurein the easy reach zone. This might be as themselvesespecially in a fall:simple as repositioning shelves or as extensiveVision changesas changing countertop heights. msfocusmagazine.org 50'