Opinions, politics, and COVID-19 lockdown

Ian Franks discusses political leanings, writing for The Locus, the COVID-19 lockdowns along with protests in the US.

Vulnerability of MSers and Trump’s ‘reopen’ confusion

Confusion reigns across the world, especially among people with multiple sclerosis - and then there's Trump.

Coronavirus: Lockdowns in USA and UK, where MSers considered vulnerable, Spain doubles fines

Coronavirus: Several US states as well as the UK enter forms of lockdown, people with MS included in UK's vulnerable list, Spain's police enforce country's harsh restrictions as fines are doubled.

Birthday presents: True diagnosis and a possible treatment

It was a strange day, well, certainly out of the ordinary! I am talking about last Friday, November 8, 2019. First of all, it was my birthday (yep, now 67, getting on a bit) but it was also the day I had to see my neurologist for my regular MS check-up. Not the day I …

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Late night police visit to pick me up

Police on your doorstep late at night is never a good sign. If their business cannot wait until the morning, it must be serious, right? And, so, it happened. Just before midnight, a car pulled up and two uniformed officers came straight to our house. No, we had done nothing wrong – they didn’t want …

Wife who is carer is really a wonderful, loving, angel

It's been an eventful few days for the two of us at home here in Spain. On Saturday, nine days ago, my beloved Lisa asked me to help put the washing out to dry. It's an easy job that I can do sitting down, so I readily agreed. The trouble was that it was not …

One year on: Living with MS in sunny Spain

It was this Sunday a year ago that Lisa and I arrived in Spain to start our new life in the sunshine, just 15 minutes from the Mediterranean. Yes, although even the two of us find it hard to believe, we have lived here in Spain for 12 months. And we love it. Two of …

Hotel group bans disability scooters

Able-bodied people are being blamed for hiring and misusing mobility scooters leading to one of the leading hotel chains in Benidorm, Spain, to ban the scooters that are essential mobility aids for people with one or more of a whole range of disabilities. As I live with multiple sclerosis and use a powered wheelchair, you will …

It might have been April 1 but it was no joke

April Fools Day is not a feature of life in Spain1 but yesterday’s events certainly appeared like a huge practical joke but, sadly, they weren’t. First I need to explain that all Spanish people are given an identity number, known as a DNI, and anyone from foreign countries planning to live in Spain for longer …

Scanned again – but not for MS

Back to hospital today for a second CT scan as part of the follow-up to my life-saving visit to the same Spanish health service hospital six weeks ago – which is when I made my first trip to the same machine. Regular readers will no doubt remember that I was urinating blood and the cause was …