President and Founder of MS Views and News
We often comment that knowledge is power when it comes to living with Multiple Sclerosis. A person who knows this far too well is Stuart Schlossman. He is the President and Founder of MS Views and News, a leading organization that provides educational information programs and services for the global MS community. He is driven, focused and committed to helping people diagnosed with this chronic disease to live their best lives. And he totally understands this because he has lived with MS for nearly 25 years. He is a visionary leader in providing this resource for the millions of people worldwide living with MS, and we are grateful that he took the time to connect with us for these 7 Questions with A Couple.
1. You were diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1998, a time before the Internet became the information resource it is today. There now is so much information – at times almost too much – readily available at people’s fingertips. Do you wish this wealth of info would have been available when you were diagnosed nearly 25 years ago? Why or why not?
Fortunate for me, I was able to use the internet in 1998 when I was diagnosed. And with that knowledge, I shared with people from my support group, anything they wanted to know of MS but were afraid of the internet. It was from here too, that Stu’s Views and MS News was formed. The amounts of people that wanted information at that time was the beginning stages of where we are today with a magnitude of people still needing information to be provided to them.
2. What led you to decide to launch MS Views and News in 2008? Is it everything you hoped it would become?
MS Views and News is so much more than I ever expected. I never thought we would get out of the State of Florida, let alone to become a nationally known organization and a member of the MS Coalition. It is truly amazing but surely earned, for what we are doing to provide to those affected by MS.
3. From maintaining the MSVN e-newsletter (The MS BEACON) and blog to hosting hundreds of in-person and virtual events, what are your goals for the organization and how do you measure its successes?
I believe the measurement of success has already been fulfilled in knowing what we have been able to do. However, reaching my goal will be nearly impossible as there is still so much ground to cover in the USA, in providing our Compass to MS Care – Reaching Rural America and Underserved Communities series. Way too much ground to sufficiently cover. So much so that I do not think that if only, all the organizations focused on just seeing these locations over a two-year period, this would hardly make a dent in the total big picture. Still though, we plug along as best we can, in providing as much information as possible, live, in-person and virtually.
4. You are a self-admitted workaholic. How do you maintain your pace and energy in spite of having MS?
As Kenny Rogers sang, “Know when to hold them, know when to fold them,” meaning playing cards. I simply need to know when I need a break, for 10 minutes… Just joking. Maybe a full day here and there. A key thing is that I get energy and power just from thinking of all those communities that need our programs to reach them. And of course, I love travelling. I rest while flying. So the more I fly, the more I rest. Who knows, maybe I will find a beautiful location one day, where I will say, “I want to simply relax here for a few days.” Then, though, the hammer will drop on the other foot when I get back to work and see the load waiting for me.
5. OK, so for as much as you are a workaholic, there needs to be a work-life balance. What do you do to relax and live beyond MS?
To relax means to travel. To relax means to get together with friends, shooting billiards, or going for a 3+ hour ride to our studio, staying there for a couple of days and then the 3+ hour ride back. Going to restaurants with friends or getting together with my parents and helping them out. BTW: My laptop goes too but is hardly opened except to check emails. Yes, a true workaholic (even when I had Covid, I worked through it all). Travel to rural America for me (except when running late for a connection flight) is relaxing…
6. People look to MSVN for credible and quality information about living with MS. As a person who also is living with MS, where do you turn for your information and inspiration for living your best life with this disease?
I do not much need to turn to look for help as it is already flowing to me each day. However, when I am MS symptomatic, I am fortunate to have several MS neuros (names not fair to mention) and MS NP’s (also not fair to mention) willing to listen and give advice. As for Inspiration, I often listen to my MS Peers (like yourself). Those that inspire others and I too listen to their brilliant words. The MS community contains a large group of people who inspire others and often inspire me as well. Plus, there are clinicians in the MS medical community that simply overpower you with so much information, but you need to be listening to actually hear what they are saying.
7. What keeps you motivated, and what is next for MSVN?
What keeps me motivated is my aggressive attitude. Always thinking what more can I/we (MS Views and News — MSVN) do to provide information and resources that will put smiles on those that attend, who listen and learn, from having attended our meetings (live and virtually).
What is next concerns our planning for 2023 and how much land (old and new) we can cover in the Mainland USA reaching as many people as possible with the live (in-person) programs and with all of our virtual events. What’s next is how many locations we can actually serve. What’s also next is for me to get the Digmanns onto an upcoming MS Conversations NOW event so I can ask similar questions to the two of you.