If you have multiple sclerosis, occupational therapy can help you adapt to the changes in your body and function more effectively.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease that attacks myelin, the protective coating on your nerves. These attacks damage and break down the coating.

As myelin wears away, communication between your brain and your body may be interrupted. Eventually, MS can damage and destroy the nerves themselves. This damage cannot be reversed.

MS causes a variety of signs and symptoms. The symptoms you may experience depend on which nerves the disease is targeting and how damaged they are. The type of MS you have determines how quickly your symptoms progress.

But there are ways you can live a stronger, healthier, and more fulfilling life as you learn to cope with MS and your changing body. One way you can do this is through occupational therapy (OT).

OT is a healthcare profession that aims to help people with specialized needs live more independently and productively.

Although OT is similar to physical therapy, there are a few key differences. While physical therapy focuses on overall strength, joint range of motion, coordination, and gross motor skills, OT focuses on helping you perform everyday activities with greater independence.

Occupational therapists help people live better with a disability or health condition. They do this by improving the skills needed to accomplish everyday tasks or finding alternative ways to perform them.

OT services may include:

  • assisting with routine daily activities such as showering, cooking, and getting dressed
  • assessing your home and work environments to identify potential hazards and create a more functional environment that suits your needs
  • recommending special equipment or assistive devices for use at home, school, or work
  • showing you how to properly use adaptive equipment such as orthotics, braces, and wheelchairs
  • helping with budgeting, scheduling, and daily planning
  • working with schools or workplaces to ensure that you’re meeting your goals
  • recommending exercises to strengthen your fine motor skills, coordination, and mental alertness
  • teaching you stress-management skills

OT can help you learn how best to care for yourself when living with MS. Below are some examples of how you can benefit.

Help with day-to-day activities

One of the main goals of OT is to help you lead a more independent life. With MS, even routine activities may be challenging.

An occupational therapist can give you the tools you need to more efficiently perform day-to-day tasks such as:

  • showering
  • using the toilet
  • working
  • taking medications
  • driving
  • cleaning
  • getting dressed
  • grooming
  • preparing meals
  • cleaning
  • doing laundry
  • engaging in hobbies

These tools become especially important when MS symptoms affect your memory, concentration, and organization or make you constantly fatigued.

Energy conservation

Conserving energy is one of the biggest challenges of living with MS. Exerting yourself or becoming physically exhausted can be disabling — it could cause your MS to flare or make a flare worse. This is a concern because it’s not always possible to recover from the damage caused by a flare.

An occupational therapist can help you learn to use your energy and abilities in ways that are beneficial, not harmful. They can also help you identify tools and techniques that will simplify tasks and reduce the burden on your body.

Setup of adaptive devices at work, school, and home

One of the most important tasks of an occupational therapist is to evaluate how you interact with your work, school, and home environments. They can then identify ways to improve these interactions based on your personalized needs.

There are hundreds of adaptive and assistive technologies and gadgets available to promote independence. Your occupational therapist can recommend which ones will help you the most.

Here are some examples of adaptive and assistive devices that could be helpful if you have MS:

  • wheelchairs, canes, and walkers
  • bathroom equipment, such as grab bars, to help prevent falls
  • devices that improve driving safety and comfort
  • weighted utensils to counteract tremors
  • a reaching tool for picking up items off the floor
  • reading and writing aids, such as pencil grips
  • jar openers
  • visual aids, such as magnifying readers
  • computer screen reader software

Improved strength and coordination

Many people with MS lose strength or coordination in their hands, which can make even the simplest tasks, like buttoning a shirt, very difficult. An occupational therapist can teach you exercises to improve your hands’ strength and range of motion.

An occupational therapist will also know about the adaptive technologies that are available to help meet your needs and overcome a lack of hand strength.

Cognitive rehabilitation

An occupational therapist can evaluate you for issues with memory, concentration, or problem-solving and then find ways to compensate for these issues.

They may recommend computerized cognitive training or teach you to use smartphone apps to help you remember important events or manage your finances.

You can talk with your doctor about seeing an occupational therapist. Anyone with MS can benefit from this discussion.

If you’ve recently received an MS diagnosis

On your first visit, the occupational therapist will conduct an exam to establish a baseline for your abilities. This will help them know what your limitations are.

Later, they may visit your home and workplace to get a sense of your environment. This allows them to evaluate your specific needs and recommend ways to improve your accessibility and mobility.

Taking all of this into account, you and the therapist will begin working together to establish techniques and strategies for helping you ensure greater independence for as long as possible.

If you have advanced MS

If you’ve had MS for a number of years, you may already have lost some abilities because of the disease’s progression. But it’s still important to work with an occupational therapist.

Energy conservation becomes increasingly important, especially as the disease progresses. An occupational therapist can help you find ways to maintain your independence while caring for yourself without risking greater damage to your body.

Not everyone with MS will need OT. Consider asking your doctor for a referral to an occupational therapist if you find that your MS symptoms:

  • affect your ability to perform day-to-day tasks or take good care of yourself
  • make it difficult for you to be productive at work or school
  • prevent you from enjoying hobbies or pastimes

With a referral from your doctor, most insurance plans will cover OT services.

Learning to cope with the symptoms of MS can be challenging. OT is one way you can improve your functioning and adjust to some of the changes in your body and abilities.