Jennifer Werk can still manage to put on her make up but her husband does her hair every morning.
Werk, 50, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at age 39, a disease that is typically diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 40.
Her hands don't work as well as they used to, especially her right hand as her middle finger tends to curl into her palm most days, and her feet are almost numb while her right leg drags.
"The worst is when I get muscle spasms in my leg," said Werk. "That hurts like hell."
The spasms are like a big Charlie horse only worse she said, and are down to about once a week but used to come as frequently as once a day. About six months ago Werk got a power chair because she can't work a walker or manual wheelchair anymore.
Each day starts at about 6:30 a.m. because she can't have a shower without her husband Leonard being there in case something goes wrong. She puts on her make up and then Leonard fixes her hair.
She can't cook or clean her own house anymore and Leonard does the household chores.
Some days MS saps all her energy and she can't even find the strength to get out of her favourite chair.
"We have a system when that happens," said Werk, lifting her right leg by pulling at her pant leg. "I put my arms around his neck and he reaches around my waist and up I go.
"That's the funny thing about MS. Sometimes I get so weak I can't get up by myself and then an hour later I'll be OK again."
SIGNS OF CHANGE
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, often disabling disease of the brain and spinal chord. It is the most common neurological disease of young adults in Canada.
The unpredictable effects of MS last a lifetime.
Werk loved to go for long walks. She loved it so much that now taking a long walk with her dog fills her dreams at night.
Signs of change came during one of those daily walks more than a decade ago. She felt really tired afterward and that wasn't usual for her. She thought she was just getting a cold.
Then on New Years Day 2000 the couple and their beloved dog Rex went for a walk, and about half way through she was so weak she couldn't hold up the top half of her body.
"I was bent at the waist and I couldn't get my body upright," she explained. "I didn't think I was going to make it home."
She called the doctor and got the diagnosis not long afterward.
Leonard used to be a logger, Jennifer used to be an insurance agent. That all changed in 2000 when they got the news that she had MS.
"I have a very, very supportive husband," she said.
Leonard quit his job and went back to school to become a design engineer technician.
"2001 was a really lousy year," she said. "I broke my neck in a car accident."
After surgery to stabilize her crushed C6 and 7 vertabrae, and three months in a neck brace, Werk started to heal.
Then the family pet, a German Shepherd cross pup they found hiding in Leonard's parents' woodpile, passed away at 14 years old. It was like losing a family member.
After living in Prince George for years the couple moved to Inuvik for Leonard's work in 2003 but the multiple sclerosis proved too much as climbing stairs became impossible.
"We moved back to Prince George for me in 2006," said Werk. "Inuvik is built on pillars because of the permafrost and there were stairs everywhere and I just couldn't manage anymore."
As the MS took hold, Werk became very sensitive to heat so Prince George was the destination location.
"This was home," she added.
The couple decided to build a barrier-free home, realizing that a wheelchair would be in their future. The doorways are three feet wide, the bathroom is accommodating, and there's an elevator to get to the garage.
But having MS means having to say goodbye to many of life's joys.
"I miss walking, I miss having a dog because I can't clean up after one anymore, I miss dancing and I just wish going to the bathroom wasn't such a big deal," she said.
But Werk still finds some things to enjoy. She likes to read and indulges in what she calls silly vampire books. She watches movies and she shares special moments with her husband when they take out their 2005 Porsche Boxster out for a spin.
"Leonard told me that when the time comes when I can't get myself into the car, he'll carry me."
