"MS is not the end": Claudia Brunner wants to encourage other sufferers with her book "MS and healthy".

Created: 07/02/2022, 17:00

By: Andrea Beschorner

“Everyone can actively work on their health.” Claudia Brunner wants to convey this message with her book about her MS disease.

© Birgit Gleixner

Claudia Brunner from Kranzberg has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) for over 13 years.

Now she has written a book to encourage other sufferers.

Kranzberg

– Claudia Brunner from Kranzberg has been living with multiple sclerosis (MS) for more than 13 years.

The disease began in the now 39-year-old with up to five relapses a year.

She had to discontinue several basic therapies due to lack of effect or excessive side effects.

She has been living without relapses and symptoms for eight years now.

What sounds a bit like a miracle is, above all, one thing: knowledge.

Knowledge that Claudia Brunner has collected over the years and that she now wants to make available to all those affected and their families in a book.

"MS and healthy".

Sounds contradictory - but after talking to the author, it becomes clear that it is absolutely not.

Ms. Brunner, on your website you introduce yourself with the words: "Today, despite the crumble cake in my head, I've been free of relapses and symptoms for about eight years." How important is it to take an illness with a certain amount of humor?

Very important.

But I didn't always have that attitude.

When you get such a diagnosis out of nowhere, it pulls the rug out from under you.

It took me several years to get where I am today.

The diagnosis initially plunged me into depression.

I was 26 then.

Tell about the day you received the diagnosis.

Were you able to do something with it immediately?

I honestly didn't know what to do with it.

Although the path to this diagnosis was a process.

I have to go back a bit for that: I worked as a management consultant after graduating.

The job was extremely stressful.

And then came the consultant crisis.

Many people were exhibited - I was there too.

During this conversation I felt pain as if I had a knife in my head.

And this pain got worse every day, especially whenever I entered the office.

In addition, I was losing sight in one eye.

In the eye clinic, I was referred to the university clinic to clarify whether I had an inflammation in the optic nerve or whether something was pressing on the optic nerve.

A few weeks later, after an MRI, I finally sat at the neurologist, still having no idea what was wrong with me.

(By the way: everything from the region is now also available in our regular Freising newsletter.)

With that neurologist who then told you?

Yes.

That's 13 years ago now.

And I still know today exactly what the chair I sat on looked like.

I was there with my husband, we weren't married at the time.

The doctor's first question was: are you married?

When I said no, he said he had many married patients who had children.

He told me something about chronic inflammation of the central nervous system and gave me brochures.

That's it.

That didn't take five minutes.

The word MS was not mentioned.

I only read it after looking at the brochures.

It featured a woman in a wheelchair.

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I never wanted to take myself out of my dreams.

Claudia Bruner

So there was no informational talk?

No, not with this doctor.

My boyfriend, who is now my husband, immediately looked for a specialist who then took his time and explained everything to me.

And how has the diagnosis affected your life?

First of all I suppressed it, convinced myself that there was nothing there.

After that I got really angry – first at myself, later at others.

I have to say that my illness didn't affect my work at the beginning, everything was fine there.

It was different in private life.

There were friends who had a big problem with it.

Some just didn't get in touch because they didn't know how to deal with it.

One asked me when I wanted to break up with my boyfriend because I couldn't do that to him.

You say everything was fine at your job.

Is it because you simply didn't allow the disease there?

In fact, I never wanted to take myself out of my dreams.

That's when I started my PhD.

I have always been a very goal-oriented person, success and career were important to me.

And yes, sickness and dysfunction weren't meant for me.

Keep going: That was my motto.

Looking back, do you still think that was true?

It was absolutely right to do the PhD.

But what I have to admit: I could and should have learned earlier that it's okay to say no and consciously get help.

It took me years to come to this realization - and frankly, I still find it difficult to this day.

I've learned that it's okay not to just function all the time.

Claudia Bruner

What has your MS disease taught you?

This allows me to recognize and accept my own needs.

I've learned that it's okay not to just function all the time.

To be honest, I wouldn't have had three children so quickly without my illness: The illness helped me to classify what is really important in life.

And that's not the next step in your career.

What is important is what remains: family.

In the first few years things went very badly for you.

.

.

Yes, it was a horrible time.

I had a lot of relapses at first, up to five a year.

I suffered from paraesthesia, numbness, further inflammation of the optic nerve.

Fatigue syndrome – a chronic state of exhaustion – was particularly bad while I was writing my doctoral thesis.

At noon I was absolutely unable to concentrate.

During that time I always did things that didn't attract attention.

And then you decided to take matters into your own hands.

Was there a key experience for this?

I was quite successful in my academic work.

That's why I was invited to the Lindau Nobel Laureate Conference as one of 400 young scientists.

I should sit next to John Nash, my biggest idol, he was my hero.

I was so looking forward to it.

It was my greatest dream, there was no greater honor for me.

Before that I was at a conference in Portland, USA, and traveled back to Germany three days before that.

It was all extremely stressful.

But I was fine.

That morning I woke up with the worst flare up to that point.

It was so frustrating, so incredibly bad.

Of course I went to this conference anyway, I would never have had the chance to meet John Nash again in my life.

Still, it was so frustrating

to experience this dream under such circumstances.

My left arm was completely paralyzed, I couldn't go to the buffet.

That evening I made the decision that it couldn't go on like this.

A few days later I started sifting through all the scientific databases for what I can do myself to positively influence the course of the disease.

To be honest, that sounds a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack.

I've worked my way up there.

The first topic I tackled was stress.

From my own experience, I now knew that stress has a massive impact on the course of the disease.

And indeed, there were individual studies back then that showed that stress reduction might be helpful.

I've been doing qigong ever since.

Next was the issue of nutrition.

And so there were always new aspects.

In the end I had read thousands of studies.

I had learned through my PhD how to read, understand and interpret statistics and studies.

I am able to evaluate studies, to see how good a statement is and whether the study is really worth anything.

I summarized everything.

For example, in the area of ​​MS and sports: 20 years ago it was still said that one should avoid sports and use the little energy

save what you have available.

This has also been refuted in the meantime by studies.

What did you do with all the information?

I have optimized myself, I have gradually looked to integrate everything that somehow works into my life.

And you've been relapse-free ever since...

Eight years, yes.

To person

• Claudia Brunner studied business administration and philosophy before taking up a position in a well-known management consultancy after graduating.

  The subsequent doctorate in the field of business economics led to numerous scientific publications.

  Several years of research followed.

• Various further training courses, including one on nutritional science ("Nutrition Science") at the Stanford School of Medicine, as well as one on "Evidence-Based Optimal Nutrition" at the Harvard School of Public Health as well as "The Brain" and "Brain Health" at the She also graduated from Harvard Extension School in order to optimally prepare for her book project.

  Today Claudia Brunner works as a lecturer and is the mother of three daughters.

  She received her MS diagnosis in 2009.

• Further information about the book and the author can be found online at www.ms-und-gesund.de.

What specifically did you change?

I used to be more of a couch potato, but now I do a lot more.

Spinning training three times a week, riding a racing bike – in other words: training three to four times a week, very dedicated.

I switched my diet from fast food vegetarian to plant-based whole foods.

However, in my book I recommend eating fish regularly.

But that's an ethical consideration for me.

And many more things that I go into in detail in the book.

Your book “MS and healthy” was published on May 25th.

What is your intention behind this?

I would like to show that everyone can actively work on their health.

Self-efficacy is an important building block on the way to a self-determined life.

The book is intended to protect people from feeling at the mercy of an illness and the doctors for years, as was the case with me.

MS is not a set path.

Every MS patient can have a great, fulfilling life.

At that time, I was missing someone whose story could have shown that things went well.

And I would now like to be that someone for others.

Is the book giving people something they would have wished for after their diagnosis?

Yes, I would have wanted it that way, it would have helped me so much to be able to live well with this disease right from the start.

The book shows adjustment screws that everyone can turn for themselves.

It's about exercise, sleep, stress reduction, dealing with stimulants, mental health, nutrition, cognitive training and social life.

I also show the importance of socializing because solitude is extremely detrimental to brain health.

Basically, the right combination of medical care, medication and your own lifestyle is what everyone should optimize for themselves in order to live well with MS.

I advise anyone diagnosed with MS to seek psychotherapy.

Claudia Bruner

How is your book structured?

My personal story is told in the introduction.

This is followed by an easy-to-understand overview of the disease.

The main part of the book deals with the already mentioned building blocks for a good course of MS.

Each sub-module is summarized at the end, and there are also recommendations in a box with a gray background.

Background information and further explanations are marked with an info sign.

Personal experiences and my story are written in italics.

The second large part of the book will explain selected therapies as a compact reference work - including possible side effects, things to pay special attention to and the effectiveness of the therapies.

The following chapter is aimed at relatives before the book closes with the question

How have your values ​​changed since your diagnosis?

I now know that the importance of relationships, people and family is so much more important than the pursuit of reputation and reputation.

What is your advice to people who are diagnosed with MS.

What can anyone do other than read your book?

I very, very strongly advise everyone to go into psychotherapy – and relatively soon.

It gives you stability and you learn to deal with it.

It's incredibly difficult to do alone.

It takes strength to adjust your lifestyle.

And for that, too, a psychotherapist is essential.

And everyone should find a doctor they feel comfortable with and have the courage to change doctors if they don't feel comfortable or no longer feel comfortable.

A good relationship with his doctor is the most important thing.

What message do you have for all those affected?

MS is not the end, nor is it a one-way street.

As those affected, we can significantly influence our course and lead a self-determined life.

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