You know, with all the tough news in the world,
it's good to be inspired by those who turn a tough blow into something positive.
Just months from graduating high school in 2018 and
with a scholarship to play soccer for U dub
is
Aqua Claudia Longo was diagnosed with multiple
sclerosis that paused things for a bit.
She just focused on her health, but her determination
to get on that soccer field
and into college kept her going. So then fast forward almost six years.
Claudia is not only thriving personally, but she is focused on helping others
other young patients with MS and she joins me now. Thank you for being here.
Thanks for having me. All right.
I can't imagine what it was to have been like as a,
as a teenager to hear that diagnosis.
Can you take me back to that moment?
What was it like for you?
Yeah. So I've been having some crazy symptoms for a few years in high school.
Um, obviously I was training a lot for soccer. So
I kind of chalked up the numbness, the tingling,
the throwing up to just over training.
Yes, which was, I mean, I just had to justify all the, all that was happening. So,
um when we got the MRI S and when I received the diagnosis,
it definitely was not on my radar.
Um I was pretty taken aback. I had heard of MS,
but I'd only heard of it in a negative light.
I had heard of older adults having it but not really anybody my age. So
it was a bit of a blow.
Um But I do feel so lucky to have the support of like incredible doctors
and my family who set me on the path straight away from day one.
They were like, you're, you're gonna be OK. That's huge, right?
Having that support, having that positive attitude because again, like you said,
you don't hear about young people
and it is a situation that we're, we're seeing more and more of
you took a season off to focus on your health and then you started playing for U Dub.
What kept you going
a
lot,
by the way, those symptoms did not go away. No. Um a few things.
Number one, the first day I was diagnosed,
I remember being in the doctor's office and it wasn't like,
uh will I be able to play again?
It was I'm going to play again. How am I gonna get there?
And I think from the get go having that mentality of
like I'm gonna play again is what really kept me going.
Um So one believing in my journey,
but also having the support of so many other people.
Um my head coach at the time,
sat down our, you know, trainer, our doctor,
our nutritionist got everybody in a room and was like,
how are we gonna make this happen?
So
I had the support of coaches, I had, you know, family friends.
My team team has always been such a big part of why I
play sports and my entire team rallied behind me from day one.
So
I would say that was probably the biggest thing
is like leaning on those people in my corner.
It's so important team sports,
especially kind of helping lift you up after a few seasons with the Huskies.
You graduated
now, since then, you've been focused like this has been your focus, helping
connecting with young people about MS. Tell me about your work now.
Yeah. So we actually launched last year.
Um,
and it kind of came about just as I was starting to
play soccer and my story was getting out a bit more.
I started connecting with people from all over the country that were like, hey,
I'm young and this is so cool to see that
you're also playing soccer and living a healthy life.
So
I kind of found this need and realized we should meet it.
So, um, we did start a 501 C three organization last year called MS Impossible.
Um, we do a few things.
Support is our biggest thing.
Um we always say connection at the core of everything we do.
I wanna sit down with folks who have been diagnosed.
I wanna sit down with people who have had it.
I just wanna get to know, you figure out how we can help and you know, ways forward.
Um We also give out financial aid.
So a lot of therapeutic approaches for folks with MS can
come with a cost And so we wanna kind of help cover
that and make sure you're all set parting of the part
of the getting to know you factor happens in these webinars.
You do as well, right? Yeah, absolutely.
So we also host monthly, you know,
meetings for young adults with MS to join cameras on, you know, mics aren't muted.
We're all just getting to know each other.
Um We have folks from DC Chicago kind of all over the map that join,
which is really fascinating.
Um And it's a chance for us to connect and chat through what we're going through,
but we also bring in a keynote speaker.
Um maybe they have MS but they've done cool things. Maybe their work is
focused on MS.
They come in and they tell us some tips and tricks for how to navigate, you know,
life with MS and it's important to talk about different treatments.
Right. Absolutely. And you need the field needs to expand. Obviously,
you mentioned that financial aid aspect, let's talk more about that,
how the treatments can be really costly.
Right. Yeah, absolutely.
We are lucky in this day and age that there are so many, you know, they call it disease,
modifying therapies
that help, you know, slow the progression of the disease. But there's also
a lot of alternative approaches such as, you know, diet, your diet is so important,
sleep is so important, mental health.
All of that
is so vital when you're dealing with this diagnosis,
but often times not covered by insurance or if it is, you're still paying a lot.
And so our grants try to cover that because we want
people to access all the resources that are out there.
And you also just made a really interesting distinction.
I said treatments, you said
that it's uh it's
a
say what
just approaches, right? Everyone.
The thing about.
Yeah, exactly.
And the thing about MS is every, it shows differently for everyone, right?
For me, you know, my legs are numb, I'm throwing up.
But for others, it may be, you know, optic neuritis,
they're having issues with their vision.
So I say approaches because there's so many ways
to combat this thing and it's different for everyone.
So just trying to have ways that we
can tailor to every individual is super important.
It is, it is.
So you were gonna deal with MS for the rest of your life. How has that changed you?
And what do you tell young people who are also facing this.
Yeah, I think, you know, from day one, as I mentioned,
I always believed that my story in my journey was possible.
And I think that transcends even beyond the diagnosis,
I think you go through the trials and tribulations of everyday life.
Um But I think I honestly carry with that the I'm possible mindset in everything I do.
Um And hopefully that's important for other people to
I know there's, you know, folks out there that don't have MS,
but I still hope that they can connect with my story and still find inspiration,
whether it's MS or whether it's your job or your family.
I feel like those principles can translate to just everyday life in general.
Well, you have certainly inspired us today.
Thank you so much for coming here to share your story.
Thank you for everything you're doing
to share with others.
And of course,
one of those mission I'm possible webinars that
Claudia just talked about is actually tonight.
And we're gonna have the links to that on our website at King five.com/new Day
as well as other ways that you can support Claudia as she continues
to build this community of support for young people living with MS.