7 Questions with A Couple featuring Dr. Aaron Boster

Neurologist, The Boster Center for Multiple Sclerosis President and Founder, MS Vlogger

Welcome to “7 Questions with A Couple,” a monthly series that includes quick conversations with a variety of experts and influencers from throughout the MS community. We truly can’t think of many other people who define both “MS expert” AND “MS influencer” better than Dr. Aaron Boster. Dr. Boster is a compassionate MS Specialist, President and Founder of The Boster Center for Multiple Sclerosis in Columbus, Ohio, and a leading MS vlogger. From his work as a neurologist to his keynote presentations and engaging videos on social media and YouTube, Dr. Boster connects with patients and providers worldwide with a mission to EDUCATE, ENERGIZE and EMPOWER people impacted by MS. We are so excited and humbled to share with you this conversation we had with Dr. Boster. 

1. It’s been reported that you decided at the age of 12 to become an MS doctor. Is this everything you thought it would be? 

It’s true that I grew up in the household with Multiple Sclerosis. My earliest memories of my Uncle Mark include him with MS. I do have memories of him walking, but they are really vague memories. I grew up in a mausoleum of assistance equipment in my grandparent’s attic as he went from a cane to a four-prong cane to a bi-lateral cane, Canadian crutches and a walker, to a walker with wheels and scooter, then a manual wheelchair, and to an electric wheelchair. You know, that was kind of my childhood. I remember getting in trouble because my sister and I would sneak up to the attic and mess around with the wheelchairs and try to pop wheelies and stuff. And my grandma would come up and scream at us, but we didn’t mean any disrespect. We just thought it was a fun thing to do.

If you fast forward to the moment you are commenting on, I went over to my grandmother’s house where my uncle lived. He was in the living room watching TV because that’s what he did, and my mom and my grandma were distraught that they couldn’t get ahold of his doctor. They felt really scared and alone, and honestly they didn’t have a support system or the inter webs and stuff because this was in an ancient era of long ago, and I remember telling my mom I was going to learn to do it better. And I had no clue what I was telling her. At the time I knew nobody should make my mom cry or my grandma cry, and nobody should make my family so alone because we believed in education and hard work, so why were we having so much trouble? I think that culminated in me having this very directed mission-driven goal of helping people impacted by MS and, in particular, families impacted by MS to live their best lives. So I don’t know if it’s everything I thought it would be, but I think it has been a journey, and I am very happy where I am right now. I mean it’s almost 2022, and what I get to do makes me feel really lucky.

2. What ultimately gave you the confidence to go beyond being an MS doctor and launch The Boster Center for Multiple Sclerosis?

It is something that if you had told me, “Aaron you are going to be an entrepreneur and business owner and an employer of near 20 people, and be in private practice doing only MS,” I would’ve laughed at you and said that’s not possible. When I finished my residency in neurology and fellowship in neuroimmunology, it was all in ivory towers. I was told time and time again the only thing I could do was go into academics. Largely I was told that because the people who said that were in academics. The idea of going into private practice, doing my own thing, delivering care the way I think it should have been delivered, that was never a thought because I was told that would not work. So I took an academic job at a prestigious place, and I did that for a long time but I was frustrated by the systemic bureaucracy. Nothing about a particular hospital, just the system. My point in bringing this up is that if I hadn’t gone through, then I don’t think I would be in the position to enjoy the success right now.

I think it has been an evolution, one of those journeys, that I look back on and say, “Wow how did that happen?” I never intended it. But The Boster Center for Multiple Sclerosis is a really exciting place to be. It is embedded in the woods, and it’s a place for every aspect of care. It is centered around the patient and the patient’s family, and we have removed the bureaucracy. It’s a tremendously flat model. Everyone has my cell phone number and the business manager’s phone number. If you want to talk to someone, everyone is right there. It just feels really good.

3. From YouTube to Twitter to conference keynote speaking to Facebook Live videos and chats, you seemingly are everywhere. Oh yeah, and you’re also a husband and a father. How do you find the energy to do all of this, stay on top of MS research and serve as a world-class MS specialist?

It all started with a realization I made around 2014ish: MS is a chronic condition, and if you see a doctor four times a year – and for about 30 minutes a session – that leaves 361 days during the year that you are dealing with MS and you’re nowhere near a clinic. I often think of the game of chess. If I was teaching you how to play chess, and we met for half an hour every three months, you would suck at chess. There are certain ways to circumvent that issue. Everyone and their chicken has Facebook. There also have been some changes in social media. Social media and YouTube platforms are very robust ways to up people’s game outside the confines of showing up in clinic. It makes knowledge much easier and more accessible.

I will admit I am not awesome at balancing everything in that second part of your question. I have an amazing wife, Christine, who is in a Renaissance woman, and I have two amazing kids, Maxwell and Betty Mae, who are very understanding. I am opening up a clinic in a global, viral pandemic which is just bound to have its share or challenges. We have to be efficient with our time. As a family, we sit down at dinner, which is a special, special moment and discuss the highs and lows of our day. Often times the high for me is that dinner. I just try to stay centered and focused getting through what I do.

4. Some people are hoping for a cure for MS, others (like us) are hoping for a fix for the damage it’s already caused. How likely are either of these to happen in our lifetime?  

That’s an excellent thoughtful question. I think that the goal of re-myelination and regaining function is probably closer to hand than a cure. I have to make a caveat that every gain of function we’ve been trying to hit remyelination for several years now, and we’ve had some near-successes and obviously some failures. But I feel that is within striking distance. As far as a cure, that is more nebulous. Our understanding of MS is predicated on our understanding of the immune system, which is still fledgling. That fact that we don’t understand remyelination speaks to the fact that there is a lot that we don’t understand yet. My opinion is that the global MS research community is not going to cure this autoimmune condition, or probably any other autoimmune condition, in our lifetime, but we have gotten to the point where we can make it boring. I think having a goal where you want to keep yourself as fit and healthy as possible so that when a remyelination therapy becomes available you’re able to receive it, that’s a beautiful goal and I think that is something we can all really rally behind.

5.  There are people from throughout the United States and the world who wish they could move to Ohio and have you as their neurologist. This isn’t very realistic, but what advice do you have for people who aren’t satisfied with their neurologist to find the one who’s best for them? 

The goal is not to go to the shiniest center with the biggest bells and whistles or to the most powerful research center. Honestly, the goal is to find the way to live your very best life despite having MS. I think it’s very important to have a partnership with your clinician. It is very important to understand the concept of advocacy and self-advocacy. It’s important to not fall prey to the idea of therapeutic inertia you have to learn to stand up for yourself and make sure your doctor hears you. Make sure the doctor addresses what you are bringing. Be empowered. Write down questions. You say, “Hey, I have four questions I need to have answered.” My second suggestion is to bring a village member. Yeah, bring someone who is on your team and is someone who can help you navigate the logistics. And that can be very helpful. Having a second set of ears with you is very powerful. The third thing you can do is to tell the doctor what your goals are. And the fourth thing is we can educate ourselves in a way we never have been able to before. There are so many powerful resources and organizations available that cultivate and disseminate information and truly bring the MS community together.

6.  Assuming your MS-related work isn’t all-consuming, what do you enjoy doing to relax and give your mind a rest?

That makes me smile—I’ll be honest with you, I have been accused of working long hours, but in my defense I did launch a standalone, comprehensive MS center right at the beginning of a global, viral pandemic, so there has been a lot to do in the last year and a half or so. That stated, I think if I am not in good health or I’m not taking care of myself and my mental health, then that’s not going to go so well. So what have I done? I will be very frank and open with you, this has been a work in progress. There have been times where I haven’t been good at it, but recently, I am doing much better. 

One thing, I have my dog, River Tam Boster. Having my dog is therapeutic to me. She sleeps with us and rides in the car with me. No one will be in my car anymore because it’s full of hair. She drives in the car with me, and she visits patient with me. She is a huge stress reliever. 

I have been teaching myself mindfulness and also practice shower meditation. I went from not being able to count to 10 to quiet my mind, and now I can practice shower meditation for 20 to 30 minutes. 

I spend a lot of evenings sitting by the fire burning wood. I find that very relaxing and centering. I have a busy life, and I have two teenagers, so I enjoy spending time with my family. Family time is precious.

No late-night wild disco parties. I am a boring Midwesterner in many respects.

7.  You went through medical school, internships and residencies (including at the University of Michigan where Jennifer was one of your patients). That all gave you the book smarts, but what/who inspired you to be such a personable and approachable provider?

Transparently, it was not my Uncle Mark. My Uncle Mark had a lot of problems with social cognition as his MS progressed, but it was not through talking with him that I learned this. My grandparents, who are called Nini and Pop, very early in my Uncle Mark’s disease, they knew he needed help. They brought him into their home in his early 30s. They were his care partners until he died in his early 60s.

I come from a very tight-knit close family. My parents sent me to my grandma and grandpa’s, and I watched my grandparents become LPNs and taking care of my Uncle Mark. I watched them change their home into a hospital. And this occurred in an era when there was no therapy, no way to change the course of MS. They didn’t have that. I got to see as a child what MS meant to my family. I got to see Uncle Mark having trouble with cognition, trouble eating, remembering a simple word at the table long before I understood the pathology and immunology of the disease. To fully answer your question about who inspired me, it would be my grandparents.