ARCOLA - Every day in Canada, 12 people are diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) and 75 per cent of these people are women, according to MS Canada, and Stephanie Dayman is one of them.
Dayman lives near Arcola on an acreage with her husband Trevor and their two sons, Rexton and Rylin.
Raised on a farm near Steelman, Dayman had a regular childhood and was no different than any other kid.
Upon graduating from high school, Dayman attended the University of Regina in the elementary education program. At the time, she had no idea what would happen to her in the future.
Dayman became a substitute teacher, but while at home she would experience her first episode with multiple sclerosis.
She felt off, like she was having a stroke. Dayman’s left side became numb and tingly at the same time. She struggled with her speech and felt dizzy. She was taken to the hospital, where they would run tests for a stroke but nothing showed up.
The next day she would be taken to Regina for more testing to rule out such things as a brain tumor or Bell’s palsy; once they were ruled out, a CT scan was ordered. It too came back with nothing to show.
On June 24, 2014, an MRI was done on Dayman. It was first only on her head, but when the MRI was completed, the doctor ordered it down her neck and spine. Dayman was sent home to wait for results in the following days.
When Dayman and her husband reached the Arcola Co-op, the phone rang from the neurologist asking if they were still in Regina, but they were already close to home, so the news came over the phone only a few hours after her MRI.
“I remember that phone call like yesterday, when the neurologist told me ‘You have lesions on the brain and spine, you have multiple sclerosis,’” said Dayman.
Her first thoughts would be she would end up in a wheelchair and be a burden to all those around her. She knew this would be a lifelong issue and told her husband that he could move on if he wanted to, as Dayman’s world would have a lot of uncertainties.
Another issue was having children and the doctor asked the couple if they planned to have any. They both said they wanted children, and the neurologist told them they should have kids now.
“When I was first diagnosed, I was angry, frustrated, confused, sad and would always think, why me,” said Dayman.
She became pregnant and had a healthy baby boy named Rexton in 2017. She felt great during her pregnancy and in 2022 had another baby boy named Rylin.
Over the past few years, a new medication has been used on Dayman called Ocrevus which is an infusion done twice a year. It takes four to five hours to be administered and done in Saskatoon at an infusion clinic. Dayman was the second person to receive this treatment.
She tried another medication, but through bloodwork it had a rare side effect and she had to stop taking it. Another one did not help, and her lesions became bigger. It is now nine years that Dayman has lived with MS.
“During my relapses, I would always tell people I want to be normal,” said Dayman.
When she sat back and looked around her, she saw that everyone has some kind of issue.
“People struggle with diabetics, mental health, infertility, the list goes on, so is there such a thing as feeling normal?” said Dayman.
She will always need regular MRIs to check on the lesions. A dye is used and if the lesions do not light up like a Christmas tree, it means they are not active. This medication freezes them in place, and some even got smaller. Although this medication works to slow the lesions it is not a cure for MS.
Dayman said she still feels incredibly blessed.
“The medication has stopped the progression of my MS,” said Dayman. “I have an incredible supportive husband and two beautiful boys.”
“Living with MS is a blessing and a curse at the same time,” said Dayman. She was always on the go, never sitting still. Now she takes the time that her body needs. When she is tired, she takes it easy. She spends as much time with her boys as possible.
It took Dayman several years to accept the fact that she had MS and now deals with it in a positive manner as much as possible as it is not going to go away.
“We will go through life together and support each other at every obstacle and hurdle thrown our way, just like everyone else does in this crazy thing called life,” said Dayman.
