My MS and the four-letter fairy

LISA Sheehan hopes she doesn’t offend anyone with the title of her first book, My MS and the F**k Up Fairy.

STEPPING OUT: Lisa Sheehan with her assistance dog Roachie Boy – Lisa has written a book on her experiences called My MS and the F**k Up Fairy. Photo: Adam Hourigan

LISA Sheehan hopes she doesn't offend anyone with the title of her first book, My MS and the F**k Up Fairy.

The former aged care nurse from Grafton said living with multiple sclerosis has made her think she might have a naughty fairy following her around, making her drop things and fall over.

"It's a joke I have with my husband. Anytime I would drop something I would say, the f**k up fairy made me do it," Mrs Sheehan said.

After being diagnosed with third stage primary progressive multiple sclerosis in 2010, Lisa's world changed dramatically.

"I used to ride my bike 36km before going to the gym for three hours every day. I miss that," she said.

"Now I don't have any balance so I can't ride bikes any more. I drop things and fall over easily, and I can't work.

"But I can walk my dog. He gets me up and walking of a morning. Now I walk half a block four times a week."

"I used to be so independent - I'm still independent, but I've had to accept I need to allow other people to help."

She said her book, a collection of short stories, came about after a friend suggested she write about her experiences of living with MS.

"I was writing for myself but my friend said the stories were funny and I should publish them and I thought 'Why not'?"

She hopes anyone living with MS, their friends and families will enjoy her stories, which she said are another way of looking at what can be a daunting experience.

"When you get diagnosed you think you're the only person in the world with it," she said.

"The process of writing it helped to lift my confidence, giving me hope that some people might benefit from this and made me think I could do something wonderful."

My MS and the F**k Fairy is self-published, funded by a scholarship grant of $3000 awarded by the MS Society last year.

All proceeds from the book will be donated to the MS Society.

My MS and the F**K Up Fairy by Lisa Sheehan will be released next month. Early orders can be made by phoning 6643 1461.

Originally published as My MS and the four-letter fairy