b'How has your experience with MS changed personally, with your healthcare community, or with support groups in the past few years?Emily: The pandemic was a blessing because it forced me to take a step back and slow down the pace of my life. That allowed me to focus more on myself and my relationships with my family. I really enjoyed having virtual appointments with my healthcare team. It allowed my family to be a part of them and give their input as well. I met my husband during the pandemic and by having him attend my virtual doctor visits, it allowed me to teach him about my MS journey. As for my support group, Oscar the MS Monkey grew more because kids joined worldwide since everyone was forced to be on Zoom. I was pleased to see the community be strengthened within the limitations given by its environment. Staci: Personally, I caught COVID and that caused me to go out less because I want to stay cautious with my MS. If I do go out, I always wear my N95 mask. Things have changed for me a lot because the pandemic caused me to curtail a lot of my activities I once did. I still was able to go to my doctor appointments. I sometimes had some on Zoom, but because my doctor couldnt physically assess me, we made up for that on my in-person visits. I am a part of an MS support group, and we meet a few times a month. Now, they have parties in-person, but I attend the ones that are still done on Zoom. Things have changed for me in the past few years, but I have learned that it is better to be safe than sorry.Sean: Everything is online now which has helped me a lot. Last year, I was able to get a service dog named Oscar and he is a wonderful companion. I did miss out on a lot of social in-person interactions in the past few years but am lucky that I can chat with people through Zoom. I have a support group who I can interact with. It has been good to have things shift to online since I mostly could not get out because of my MS.Jim and Carol (Support group leaders):The pandemic did change things for us with our MS community. We started with 16-18 people in the North Florida chapter but after COVID-19 hit, we lost them all. We have been trying to get people back, but it is taking some time. I personally had to change my medications because I was receiving nancial assistance through a foundation and lost all that help since no one was able to give to that foundation. I am still lucky because things could have been worse for me.Tracy: I was fortunate enough to say that I skated through the past few years. I dealt with the cards in front of me and I have been very grateful because I did not have many struggles. My family lives next door to me and was very supportive of me throughout the past few years. When the quarantine occurred, I was with my husband the whole time and was able to spend quality time.6'