Table of Contents
Introduction: The Fire in the Forest
The neurologist’s office was a landscape of muted grays and sterile whites, a world leached of color.
For Elena, a 35-year-old graphic designer whose life was a canvas of vibrant hues and bold lines, the contrast was jarring.
On the screen, the images of her brain and spinal cord were stark black and white, marred by bursts of brilliant, alien white.
The neurologist, a kind man with tired eyes, pointed to them.
“These are lesions,” he said, the clinical term landing with the soft thud of a closing door.
“Plaques, or scars, where your immune system has attacked the myelin.”.1
Multiple Sclerosis.
The words echoed in the silent room.
An inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system.2
Elena had come here seeking answers for the strange betrayals of her body: the sudden, painful loss of vision in her right eye that her ophthalmologist called optic neuritis; the phantom tingling in her fingertips that made holding a stylus feel foreign; the terrifying tightness that wrapped around her chest one evening, a crushing, invisible vise her doctor would later call the “MS hug”.4
Her world, once a sprawling, predictable terrain of creative possibility, had suddenly shrunk to the size of this diagnosis.
It was as if a wildfire had erupted in the dense, intricate forest of her nervous system.
The neurologist explained the treatment strategy, handing her a glossy brochure for a Disease-Modifying Therapy, or DMT.
The goal, he said, was to “slow the progression,” to build firebreaks against the encroaching flames.1
She left the office clutching the brochure, her mind reeling with the emotional aftershocks of the diagnosis—fear, grief for a future she had taken for granted, and the profound, disorienting stress of a life now defined by uncertainty.8
In those first few weeks, Elena discovered a profound disconnect between the clinical reality of her disease and her lived experience.
The medical world spoke a language of objective, measurable outcomes: annualized relapse rates (ARRs), Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores, and T2-weighted MRI lesion burdens.1
Her new medication was designed to improve these numbers, to contain the fire on a radiological map.
But her daily life was consumed by a different set of metrics, a shadow-world of invisible symptoms the treatment paradigm seemed to barely acknowledge.
She was battling an all-encompassing exhaustion that went far beyond simple tiredness, a “brain fog” that frayed her focus and made following conversations a Herculean task, and a deep, gnawing anxiety about the unpredictable nature of her own body.13
The medical plan was focused on the fire, but Elena was lost in the smoke.
This gap between what was being treated and what she was experiencing became the central, defining conflict of her new life, the catalyst for a journey that would lead her far beyond the sterile confines of that first office visit.
Part I: The Fire Containment Strategy
Elena’s life as a person with MS began with a new vocabulary.
She learned she was now a “spoonie,” a term born from an analogy used to explain the finite energy reserves of those with chronic illness.15
Each day, she awoke with a limited number of spoons, and every action—showering, making breakfast, answering an email—cost her one.
Some days she had twelve spoons; on bad days, maybe six.
It was a constant, draining calculus of conservation and compromise.
Her neurologist started her on a first-line injectable DMT, one of the so-called “A-B-C” drugs—Avonex, Betaseron, or Copaxone—that had been the cornerstone of MS treatment since the 1990s.17
The ritual became a dreaded fixture of her week.
The side effects were, as her nurse had gently warned, significant.
Within hours of the injection, debilitating flu-like symptoms would descend, leaving her shivering and aching for a full day.18
The injection sites became a painful, rotating constellation of red, irritated welts on her thighs and abdomen.18
She was containing the fire, she told herself, but the firebreaks were built of her own misery.
Her life became a complex logistical operation, managed by a team of specialists.
She was no longer just Elena, the designer; she was the CEO of a failing biochemical corporation.
The neurologist managed the DMT.
A urologist prescribed medication for the bladder urgency that had become a constant, humiliating companion.4
A psychiatrist prescribed an antidepressant to manage the mood changes and anxiety that were now understood to be not just a reaction to her diagnosis, but a direct symptom of the disease itself.4
A physiatrist recommended muscle relaxants like Baclofen for the spasticity that made her legs feel tight and clumsy.4
Her medicine cabinet looked like a pharmacy shelf, a daily, multi-colored reminder of her body’s fragmentation.
She was in a constant state of reaction, playing a frantic game of symptom whack-a-mole, patching leaks in a system riddled with systemic corrosion.20
Her body was a battlefield, and the treatments, while necessary, felt like their own form of assault.
This is the central paradox for many living with Ms. The arsenal of DMTs has expanded dramatically since the early days of injectables.
There are now over two dozen FDA-approved options, including oral medications like fingolimod (Gilenya) and dimethyl fumarate (Tecfidera), and powerful intravenous infusions like natalizumab (Tysabri) and ocrelizumab (Ocrevus).7
This evolution offers more effective ways to reduce relapse rates—some by as much as 70%—and limit new MRI lesions.11
Yet, this increased efficacy often comes with a heavier price.
The list of potential side effects is a daunting litany of risks.
Oral medications can require regular blood tests to monitor for liver damage or lowered white blood cell counts.24
Infusion therapies, while highly effective, carry the risk of serious infusion-related reactions and, in some cases, a rare but potentially fatal brain infection called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).23
Patients find themselves caught in a relentless negotiation, a constant weighing of benefits against burdens.
As one qualitative study found, patients consider a drug’s potential effectiveness and its side effects to be the most critical factors in their decision-making, far more than convenience.26
The sentiment is clear: “There’s no sense having something that’s 50% effective if it’s going to make you feel lousy”.26
For Elena, this calculus was agonizing.
After two years on the injectable, her MRIs were stable, but her quality of life was in tatters.
She felt perpetually sick from either her MS or her medication.
She and her neurologist decided to switch to an oral DMT.
The daily injections were gone, but they were replaced by new anxieties—the regular blood draws, the worry about long-term risks, and a new set of side effects, including flushing and gastrointestinal distress.24
The change felt less like a step forward and more like a lateral move to a different part of the battlefield.
This journey through the efficacy-tolerability trade-off can be profoundly disempowering.
The patient’s own experience—their satisfaction with their current therapy, their tolerance for risk, their definition of a “good” day—is a critical variable that can get lost in clinical algorithms focused on relapse rates.9
Elena felt like a passive subject in a long-term experiment, her body the testing ground for a series of imperfect solutions.
This feeling of lost agency, of being a problem to be managed rather than a person to be healed, became an unbearable friction.
It was the slow, grinding pressure that would eventually force a tectonic shift in how she viewed her illness, her body, and her future.
Part II: The Ecological Epiphany
The breaking point came three years after her diagnosis.
A severe relapse, triggered by a stressful period at work, erased the fragile progress she had made.
The fire had jumped the breaks.
It roared through her spinal cord, leaving behind a smoldering landscape of intensified symptoms.
Her left leg dragged, a clumsy, uncooperative limb.
The brain fog thickened into an impenetrable wall, making the complex creative work that defined her feel impossible.
She was forced to take a medical leave, her identity as a capable, vibrant professional crumbling into dust.9
The containment strategy had failed.
In the quiet, empty days of her leave, adrift in a sea of despair, Elena fell down the rabbit hole of the internet.
She scrolled past the clinical websites and the sterile medical journals, landing instead on the messy, human terrain of patient blogs and forums.
There, amidst stories of struggle and shared frustration, she found a post that changed everything.
The author, a woman who had been living with MS for over a decade, wrote about her illness not as a war to be won, but as a damaged ecosystem to be restored.27
The metaphor struck Elena with the force of revelation.
A forest fire is not an invading army; it is a natural process, often exacerbated by an ecosystem that is unhealthy, brittle, and out of balance.
For years, she had been focused on fighting the flames, but she had never once thought to look at the health of the forest itself.
This idea became her lifeline.
She began to read voraciously, not about MS, but about systems thinking, ecological resilience, and the profound interconnectedness of the body’s systems.30
She learned that systems thinking rejects the isolated, linear cause-and-effect model of her current treatment plan—this symptom, that pill—and instead focuses on the web of relationships and feedback loops that create the conditions for health or disease.32
She discovered the concept of resilience, defined in ecology as the ability of a system to absorb disturbance, reorganize, and adapt.31
Her epiphany solidified.
MS wasn’t just a fire in her nervous system.
It was a sign—a brutal, terrifying sign—that her entire internal ecosystem was profoundly out of balance.
The inflammation was a symptom of a system-wide crisis.
The goal, she realized, could no longer be just to contain the fire.
The goal had to be to rewild the forest.
She had to restore the health, diversity, and resilience of her own internal landscape, to create an environment where the fire was less likely to start and less able to spread.
This shift from a defensive battle to a proactive cultivation of health represented a complete paradigm shift, a new map for a journey she had thought was leading nowhere.
This transformation in thinking—from a fragmented, reactive model to a holistic, systems-based one—is a crucial turning point for many who find a way to thrive despite a chronic diagnosis.
The two paradigms can be summarized as follows:
| Feature | Conventional/Containment Model | Ecological Resilience Model |
| Primary Goal | Slow disease progression; reduce relapses & new lesions.11 | Restore systemic health; improve quality of life & build resilience.29 |
| View of Body | A machine with broken parts; a battlefield.1 | A complex, interconnected ecosystem.30 |
| Role of Patient | Passive recipient of care; compliant with treatment.26 | Active steward of health; knowledgeable partner in care.27 |
| Key Interventions | Disease-Modifying Therapies (DMTs); symptom-specific drugs.7 | Foundational lifestyle changes (diet, exercise, stress); targeted nutrient support.38 |
| Measure of Success | Stable MRI scans; low relapse rate.1 | Reduced fatigue; improved function; emotional well-being; NEDA.10 |
This new map didn’t mean abandoning the old one entirely.
The firebreaks—her DMT—were still a critical part of the strategy.
But now, she had a parallel plan, one that was proactive, empowering, and focused not on fighting her body, but on healing it from the ground up.
She was no longer just a patient.
She was becoming the steward of her own ecosystem.
Part III: Tending the Internal Landscape
Elena’s journey into rewilding her body was not about finding a single magic bullet.
It was about understanding that the systems within her were deeply interconnected.
The research she devoured on diet, the gut-brain axis, mitochondrial health, and Vitamin D was not a collection of separate remedies, but different windows into the same room.
They all pointed toward a unified web of causality revolving around the core processes of inflammation, immune dysregulation, and oxidative stress.
She began to see how a change in one area could create positive feedback loops throughout the entire system.
Improving her diet could nourish her gut microbiome.
A healthier gut could send anti-inflammatory signals to her brain and immune system.
Reduced inflammation would lessen the oxidative stress on her mitochondria, improving her energy levels.
It was the essence of a systems approach: the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, and a single, well-placed intervention can have cascading benefits.30
Her new strategy was not a list of things to do; it was a single, integrated project: to improve the health of the entire ecosystem.
Restoring the Soil – The Gut-Brain Axis
Elena’s first project was to tend to the soil.
She learned that her gut was not merely a digestive tube but the literal foundation of her internal ecosystem, home to trillions of microorganisms that form the gut microbiome.48
This microbial world, she discovered, is in constant, bidirectional communication with the brain via the gut-brain axis, profoundly influencing her immune system, mood, and neurological health.2
A growing body of research revealed that people with MS often exhibit “dysbiosis,” an imbalance in their gut bacteria, which is frequently associated with increased intestinal permeability, or “leaky gut”.2
This condition allows inflammatory molecules and bacterial components to escape the gut and enter the bloodstream, triggering systemic inflammation that can contribute to the autoimmune attack in the brain and spinal cord.2
Studies have identified specific bacterial signatures in MS patients, such as a lower abundance of beneficial species like
Faecalibacterium and an altered ratio of Bifidobacterium to Akkermansia.48
The evidence was compelling: the health of her gut was inextricably linked to the fire in her brain.
Armed with this knowledge, Elena began to radically change her diet, viewing food as the most powerful tool for reseeding her internal landscape.
Drawing inspiration from protocols like the Wahls Protocol and the Overcoming MS (OMS) program, she embarked on a new way of eating.46
She eliminated foods known to be inflammatory for many people: processed foods, gluten, dairy, and refined sugars.52
Instead, she began to flood her system with the things that would nourish beneficial gut bacteria and calm inflammation.
Her shopping cart, once filled with convenience foods, now overflowed with color.
She followed the Wahls Protocol’s recommendation of nine cups of vegetables and fruits daily, broken down into three cups of leafy greens, three cups of sulfur-rich vegetables (like broccoli, cabbage, and onions), and three cups of brightly colored produce (like berries, beets, and carrots).47
She focused on high-quality proteins and healthy fats from fish, rich in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids.54
It was a dramatic shift, but patient stories of remarkable turnarounds—of regaining the ability to walk, of fatigue lifting, of feeling healthier than ever before—fueled her resolve.10
She wasn’t on a diet; she was actively cultivating a healthier, more resilient ecosystem from the soil up.
Recharging the Power Grid – Mitochondrial Health
The most debilitating of Elena’s invisible symptoms was fatigue.
It was a profound, bone-deep exhaustion that no amount of sleep could touch, a core feature of MS that often forces people from their careers and social lives.13
Her research led her to the concept of mitochondria, the microscopic “power grids” within every one of her cells, responsible for generating the energy currency, ATP, that fuels life.57
She learned that in MS, this power grid is under assault.
The chronic inflammation and oxidative stress that characterize the disease create a toxic environment for mitochondria, leading to their dysfunction and damage.58
This mitochondrial failure is now recognized as a central driver of MS pathology.
It not only causes the pervasive fatigue but also contributes directly to neurodegeneration.
When an axon loses its insulating myelin sheath, its energy demands skyrocket to maintain its electrical signals.
If the mitochondria within that axon are already damaged and cannot meet this demand, the axon eventually starves and dies, leading to irreversible disability.57
Elena realized that her anti-inflammatory diet was her first and best line of defense for her mitochondria.
The abundance of antioxidants from her nine daily cups of vegetables helped protect the delicate machinery of her cells from oxidative damage.52
The sulfur-rich vegetables, a key component of the Wahls Protocol, provided the building blocks for glutathione, the body’s master antioxidant, further bolstering her cellular defenses.51
Beyond diet, she began a gentle but consistent exercise program.
Far from depleting her precious energy stores, she learned that regular physical activity can actually improve mitochondrial efficiency and even stimulate the creation of new mitochondria.38
She started with short walks and simple yoga, gradually building her strength and stamina.
It was a slow process, but for the first time, she felt a flicker of energy returning, a sign that the power grid was slowly, painstakingly, being brought back online.
Letting in the Sun – The Vitamin D Imperative
Elena had always known that MS was more common in regions farther from the equator, but she had dismissed it as a strange statistical quirk.
Now, she understood its profound significance.
The link was sunlight, and the “sunshine vitamin,” Vitamin d+.61
She learned that Vitamin D is not just a vitamin but a potent steroid hormone that acts as a master regulator of the immune system.61
Its receptors are found on nearly every cell involved in the MS disease process, from immune cells to the neurons and oligodendrocytes in the brain.63
Low levels of Vitamin D, particularly during childhood and adolescence, are one of the most strongly established environmental risk factors for developing Ms.5
The mechanism is twofold.
First, Vitamin D is a powerful immunomodulator.
It helps shift the immune system away from the pro-inflammatory Th1 and Th17 pathways that drive the autoimmune attack in MS, and toward a more tolerant state promoted by Th2 and T-regulatory cells.61
Second, and just as critically, Vitamin D is directly neuroprotective.
It helps stabilize the blood-brain barrier, making it less permeable to invading immune cells.
And remarkably, it promotes the differentiation of stem cells into new oligodendrocytes—the very cells responsible for remyelination, or repairing the damaged myelin sheath.64
Elena immediately had her blood levels tested.
Like many people with MS, she was deficient.
Under her doctor’s guidance, she began a high-dose supplementation regimen to bring her levels into the optimal range, followed by a daily maintenance dose.62
It was a simple, powerful action.
She was, in essence, ensuring her internal ecosystem was no longer starved of the sunlight it needed to regulate itself and heal.
Improving the Climate – Stress, Sleep, and Movement
The final piece of Elena’s rewilding project was to change the overall “climate” of her ecosystem.
She recognized that even with the best soil, a healthy power grid, and plenty of sunlight, a forest cannot thrive in a climate of constant drought and pollution.
For her body, the pollutants were chronic stress, poor sleep, and a sedentary lifestyle.
Living with a chronic, unpredictable illness is inherently stressful, and this stress can itself fuel inflammation, creating a vicious cycle.9
Elena committed to a daily mindfulness meditation practice.
It wasn’t about emptying her mind, but about learning to observe her thoughts and feelings without judgment, creating a crucial buffer between herself and the anxiety that had consumed her.19
She prioritized sleep hygiene with the same seriousness she applied to her diet, knowing that restorative sleep was essential for brain health and immune regulation.
Movement became a source of joy, not a chore.
She discovered that rehabilitation and physical therapy were not just for recovering from relapses but were proactive tools for maintaining function, improving balance, and managing spasticity.19
Her gentle yoga practice evolved into a passion for hiking.
Spending time in nature, she found, was its own form of medicine, a way to connect her internal ecosystem with the world outside.65
These practices were not add-ons or luxuries.
They were foundational pillars of her new life, as essential as her medication and her diet.
They were the rain and fresh air that allowed her rewilded forest to truly flourish.
Conclusion: A Life, Rewilded
Five years have passed since Elena sat in that sterile, gray office.
Her life today is unrecognizable from the one she led in the first years after her diagnosis.
She still has Ms. The diagnosis is a permanent part of her medical chart, a fact of her biology.
She still takes her DMT, a daily acknowledgment of the firebreaks that help protect her nervous system.
But the fire is no longer the central organizing principle of her life.
Her fatigue, once a crushing weight, is now a manageable hum in the background.
Her mind is clear, her creativity at work more vibrant than ever.
She has not had a relapse in over three years, and her latest MRI showed “No Evidence of Disease Activity” (NEDA), the quiet, beautiful words every person with MS hopes to hear.10
The wildfire is not extinguished, but it is quiescent, contained within a forest that is now thriving, lush, and resilient.
The difference is the ecosystem.
By tending to the soil of her gut, recharging the power grid of her mitochondria, letting in the sun of Vitamin D, and improving the climate of her daily life with mindfulness and movement, she has fundamentally changed the terrain.
Elena’s journey reflects a powerful truth echoed in the stories of countless others who have found a way to live well with Ms. They have moved from being passive patients fighting a disease to becoming empowered, knowledgeable stewards of their own complex and beautiful ecosystems.27
They have discovered that while there is not yet a cure for MS, a recovery of health, vitality, and agency is possible.10
The ultimate remedy for a complex, systemic illness like MS may not be a single drug or a specific diet.
It is the creation of a personalized, comprehensive system of care—one that thoughtfully integrates the powerful fire-containment strategies of modern medicine with the foundational, life-giving work of rewilding our own internal landscapes.37
It is a new map, one that leads not back to a life before illness, but forward to a life made richer and more resilient by the journey itself.
Works cited
- Current approved options for treating patients with multiple sclerosis – Neurology.org, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.neurology.org/doi/10.1212/WNL.63.12_suppl_6.S8
- The Gut-Brain Axis in Multiple Sclerosis. Is Its Dysfunction a …, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2021.718220/full
- Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic Review – DOAJ, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://doaj.org/article/9e68ccda89fd4e94bb27dc035c3ef300
- Treatments & Medications for MS | National MS Society, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.nationalmssociety.org/managing-ms/treating-ms/treatments-and-medications
- Multiple sclerosis – Symptoms and causes – Mayo Clinic, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/multiple-sclerosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20350269
- My Story, With Some Life Saving Advice – Multiple Sclerosis Centers of Excellence – VA.gov, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.va.gov/MS/Veterans/Veteran_stories/Frank_Helenberger_My_Story_With_Some_Important_Advice.asp
- Disease Modification & DMT’s for MS | National MS Society, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.nationalmssociety.org/for-professionals/for-healthcare-professionals/managing-and-treating-ms/disease-modification
- Community blogs, MS stories and more, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.mssociety.org.uk/support-and-community/community-blog
- Patient Experiences with the Impacts of Multiple Sclerosis & Disease-Modifying Therapies, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11921794/
- Rachael’s Story of Hope | Overcoming MS, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://overcomingms.org/live-well/get-inspired/stories-of-hope/rachaels-story-hope
- Disease modifying drugs (DMDs) – MS Trust, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://mstrust.org.uk/information-support/ms-drugs-treatments/disease-modifying-drugs-dmds
- Comprehensive systematic review summary: Disease-modifying therapies for adults with multiple sclerosis – Neurology.org, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.neurology.org/doi/10.1212/WNL.0000000000005345
- Understanding MS – Understanding the Hidden Challenges of …, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://mncenterforms.com/understanding-the-hidden-challenges-of-multiple-sclerosis/
- MS Conversations – The Official Blog of the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://blog.mymsaa.org/
- Spoon Theory: How Counting Spoons May Help You Manage Chronic Illness – GoodRx, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.goodrx.com/health-topic/mental-health/spoon-theory
- What Is Spoon Theory?: Eric K. Fanaee, MD: Board Certified in Pain Medicine and Anesthesiology, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.drfanaee.com/blog/what-is-spoon-theory
- Long-Term Treatments for Multiple Sclerosis | MSAA, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://mymsaa.org/ms-information/treatments/long-term/
- Multiple sclerosis disease-modifying drugs: first line treatments, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.gosh.nhs.uk/conditions-and-treatments/medicines-information/multiple-sclerosis-disease-modifying-drugs-first-line-treatments/
- How is MS treated?, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://mstrust.org.uk/information-support/ms-drugs-treatments/how-is-ms-treated
- Introduction to Multiple Sclerosis Symptom Management | MSAA, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://mymsaa.org/ms-information/symptoms/symptom-management/
- Symptom Management in Multiple Sclerosis | National MS Society, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.nationalmssociety.org/for-professionals/for-healthcare-professionals/managing-and-treating-ms/symptom-management
- Disease Modifying Therapies for Multiple Sclerosis – VA.gov, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.va.gov/MS/TREATING_MS/Disease_Modifying_Therapies_for_Multiple_Sclerosis.asp
- Disease-Modifying Therapy Discontinuation in Multiple Sclerosis – Cleveland Clinic, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://my.clevelandclinic.org/departments/neurological/depts/multiple-sclerosis/ms-approaches/disease-modifying-therapy-discontinuation-in-multiple-sclerosis
- Multiple sclerosis – Diagnosis and treatment – Mayo Clinic, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/multiple-sclerosis/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20350274
- My Experience with Infusion Side Effects: Relapsing MS Patient Story – Lemtrada, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.lemtrada.com/stories/experiences-articles/my-experience-with-side-effects
- Perspectives of Patients with Multiple Sclerosis on Drug Treatment: A Qualitative Study, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6295877/
- Shan’s Story | The Elliot Lewis Center For Multiple Sclerosis Care, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://elliotlewisms.com/shan-story/
- My experience attending an Overcoming MS Retreat | Overcoming MS, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://overcomingms.org/latest/my-experience-attending-oms-retreat
- Tell Us About… The Overcoming MS Recovery Programme – – Tripping Through Treacle, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://trippingthroughtreacle.com/tell-us-about-the-overcoming-ms-recovery-programme/
- Systems thinking: taking a systemic approach, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://preventioncentre.org.au/work/systems-thinking/
- Ecological resilience: what it is and why it matters | Enel Group, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.enel.com/company/stories/articles/2023/03/ecological-resilience
- The transformative power of systems thinking in population health management, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.wolterskluwer.com/en/expert-insights/transformative-power-systems-thinking-in-population-health-management
- Systems approaches for chronic disease prevention: sound logic and empirical evidence, but is this view shared outside of academia? – July 2016, Volume 26, Issue 3 | PHRP – Public Health Research and Practice, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.phrp.com.au/issues/july-2016-volume-26-issue-3/systems-approaches-for-chronic-disease-prevention-sound-logic-and-empirical-evidence-but-is-this-view-shared-outside-of-academia/
- RESILIENCE IN HEALTH AND ILLNESS – Psychiatria Danubina, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.psychiatria-danubina.com/UserDocsImages/pdf/dnb_vol32_noSuppl%202/dnb_vol32_noSuppl%202_226.pdf
- (PDF) Resilience in Health and Illness – ResearchGate, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344381715_Resilience_in_Health_and_Illness
- Emerging treatments for multiple sclerosis – Mayo Clinic, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/multiple-sclerosis/expert-answers/emerging-treatments-for-ms/faq-20096786
- Comprehensive Care Approach to MS | National MS Society, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.nationalmssociety.org/managing-ms/treating-ms/comprehensive-care
- Approach to Symptom Management in Multiple Sclerosis With a Focus on Wellness, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://continuum.aan.com/doi/10.1212/CON.0000000000001140
- Complementary and alternative therapies for MS | Multiple Sclerosis Society UK, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.mssociety.org.uk/living-with-ms/treatments-and-therapies/complementary-and-alternative-therapies
- Mayo Clinic Q and A: Managing multiple sclerosis: Types and treatments, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-clinic-q-and-a-managing-multiple-sclerosis-types-and-treatments/
- Development of the Systems Thinking for Health Actions framework: a literature review and a case study, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10030275/
- Treatment satisfaction with injectable disease-modifying therapies in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (the STICK study) | PLOS One – Research journals, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0185766
- Symptom management of patients with multiple sclerosis in primary care: focus on overlooked symptoms | British Journal of General Practice, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://bjgp.org/content/71/704/139
- Multiple Sclerosis (MS): What It Is, Symptoms & Treatment – Cleveland Clinic, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17248-multiple-sclerosis
- Complementary and alternative medicine for the treatment of multiple sclerosis – PMC, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2901236/
- Real life stories from our community | Overcoming MS, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://overcomingms.org/live-well/get-inspired/real-life-stories
- Wahls Protocol Diet for Multiple Sclerosis (MS) – Verywell Health, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.verywellhealth.com/reasons-to-try-the-wahls-protocol-for-ms-5218077
- Gut Microbiome Changes Linked to Multiple Sclerosis (MS), New Study Finds, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://medicine.yale.edu/news-article/gut-microbiome-changes-linked-to-multiple-sclerosis-ms-new-study-finds/
- The Gut–Brain Axis as a Therapeutic Target in Multiple Sclerosis – MDPI, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/12/14/1872
- A new stool biomarker for multiple sclerosis: gut bacteria’s role in disease progression, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.gutmicrobiotaforhealth.com/a-new-stool-biomarker-for-multiple-sclerosis-gut-bacterias-role-in-disease-progression/
- Wahls Protocol | Does It Actually Work? Read This First, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.drgretchenhawley.com/blog/wahls-protocol
- Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Diet: Foods to Limit, Eat, and More – Healthline, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/multiple-sclerosis-foods-to-avoid
- Anti-Neuroinflammatory (ANI) Diet & Lifestyle – Neuro Frontiers, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://neurofrontiers.org/anti-neuroinflammatory-diet-lifestyle/
- 8 Anti-Inflammatory Foods for Multiple Sclerosis – Everyday Health, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.everydayhealth.com/multiple-sclerosis/anti-inflammatory-foods-ms/
- Laurie’s Story | DrFuhrman.com, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.drfuhrman.com/success-stories/370/lauries-story
- Kellie’s Story of Hope – Overcoming MS, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://overcomingms.org/live-well/get-inspired/stories-of-hope/kellie
- The complexities of investigating mitochondria dynamics in multiple sclerosis and mouse models of MS – Frontiers, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnins.2023.1144896/full
- Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic …, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://acta.tums.ac.ir/index.php/acta/article/view/6901
- Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Multiple Sclerosis – PMC – PubMed Central, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6627385/
- Publications for Clinicians – National MS Society, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.nationalmssociety.org/for-professionals/for-healthcare-professionals/clinical-practice-tools/publications
- Vitamin D and Multiple Sclerosis: An Update – NCBI, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470154/
- Vitamin D and MS: Is there any connection? – Mayo Clinic, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/multiple-sclerosis/expert-answers/vitamin-d-and-ms/faq-20058258
- Vitamin D as a Risk Factor for Multiple Sclerosis: Immunoregulatory or Neuroprotective?, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2022.796933/full
- The Role of Vitamin D in Neuroprotection in Multiple Sclerosis: An Update – MDPI, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/13/2978
- Lifestyle Habits That Really Work From MS – Health Central, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.healthcentral.com/condition/multiple-sclerosis/multiple-sclerosis-lifestyle-hacks
- Multiple Sclerosis Patient Stories & Videos | OCREVUS® (ocrelizumab), accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.ocrevus.com/patient/living-with-ms/real-patient-stories.html
- Recovering From Multiple Sclerosis: A Book of Stories and Testimonials – Overcoming MS, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://overcomingms.org/live-well/resources/overcoming-ms-books/recovering-from-multiple-sclerosis-a-book-of-stories-and-testimonials
- Treating Multiple Sclerosis – National MS Society, accessed on August 7, 2025, https://www.nationalmssociety.org/managing-ms/treating-ms
