What a Difference a Day Makes: 'MS isn’t the life sentence it was, I’m living proof of that'

Receiving an MS diagnosis in March 2020 just as Covid-19 locked down Ireland, Co Mayo dad-of-one Andy Walsh wondered if he was facing his own personal shutdown. He tells Helen O’Callaghan about that iconic day, and how by pushing his limits and re-defining what’s possible, he’s in a better place than he ever expected.

Ballinrobe man Andy Walsh, who has MS. Photo: Ray Ryan

I coach soccer and Gaelic and I’d a problem with my right leg, my back too. I was dragging my leg, it was a bit dead. I put it down to trapped nerve, a slipped disc.

My wife, Sheila, said “go to the osteopath”. But after some checks on me, and because I’d no pain, she was reluctant to work on me. She recommended an MRI. I thought this a bit drastic, and was annoyed she wasn’t going to fix me right then.