To think this is in very poor taste?

[LarrytheCucumber]

My DD has MS. This morning I was on the phone to her and she received the MS Society's Christmas Catalogue featuring T shirts, badges and a glass with 'I'm not drunk I have MS' on them and the words 'Help to spread awareness of MS and the work of the MS Society through the 'I'm not drunk' campaign' printed alongside the items.
I realise this is meant to be jokey, but DD threw hers straight in the bin because she felt it was in poor taste.
I have found it really hard to come to terms with her MS (she was diagnosed 12 years ago and has been through some pretty tough times).
It still brings tears to my eyes when I think about it.
Am I just being oversensitive?

my dh wears a badge with that slogan on. he slurs his words and he doesnt want people to think he is drunk. all the members of our local ms society group wear them. its a factual statement to allow them to function in society without being judged or dismissed as 'just drunks'. it never occurred to me or any of the others that it was meant as a joke tbh. its a tool. just like the little cards that explain bladder and bowel urgency that they all carry. i think you maybe misinterpreted it. maybe just try and see it as a factual, useful tool instead (and its not compulsary to wear them so if your dd is uncomfortable with it, thats fine too )

How your dd feels is how she feels. Same goes for you. No one owns other people's feelings. It must be very hard for you both op.

I also totally see the idea of the campaign. It's difficult.

I can see its a bit marmite, but I can really see the point. I take a drug for (severe, longstanding) nerve pain that makes me a bit slurry generally, but half a glass of wine and it sounds awful. I don't drink around anyone I don't know, and my colleagues/friends know that if I decide to have a drink, I'll sound like that. I hate it, and find its more embarrassing than more obvious things like having to get someone to cut my food up, so very rarely drink.

I would see that slogan as a comment on the ignorant (as in unaware) and judgmental attitudes to disabled people.

OP, I am sorry your dd is upset, there's no right or wrong in being upset, it clearly twangs different strings for her, and ones that are not comfortable.

larry I know its hard coping and dealing with illness but I think as people acept their conditions then its a step forward in living with ill ness and not letting it define you like pps your feelings are your feelings same with your dd nobody is dismissing them.

One of my dd works in a shop and on a disability training she got one of the subjects talked about was never to assume on first glance anybody is drunk so I guess it is a step in the right direction for awareness.

I noticed this today when I got the catalogue (I have ms) but it is something which has done the rounds in the MS community for a while. I was in a club once and they tried to throw me out for being 'drunk', when they took me aside and saw my stick they really backtracked but it was so upsetting and I've never been back.

The card that the ms society gives out for you to carry has the phrase 'I'm not drunk I have MS' on it.

I also think when these things come in the post it depends on your mood. I sometimes get upset when the 'ms matters' magazine arrives and out fall the flyers for mobility cars, wheelchairs and respite holidays (I just use a stick presently) but sometimes it doesn't bother me.

YABU. The public need to know this.

My late father had a fall in asda with his ms and some loudmouth said 'that's ridiculous being drunk at this time in the day'. He got sharp end of my tongue, these slogans help people realise you need assistance not judgement.

At first I thought crass, and really poor taste, but there are lots of ignorant people out there like Fluffyears experience with her late father. So if it raises awareness and gets people to think, its a good thing. Also one other thing to raise awareness about, is invisible disabilities, just because somebody does not present with being physically disabled, does not mean they don't have a disability.

I think sticking the slogan on a glass is definitely pushing the boundaries of taste, but I agree with the campaign in principle...

I have had students who had type I diabetes, collapsed in the street from hypos and were stepped over as they were believed to be drunk so I am on the fence with this.

It's educational and jokey, taking what people sometimes think and teaching them that's not always the case.

Although you'd think even drunk people are allowed to be helped if they're struggling.

If your daughter feels that way then she is entitled to but other MS sufferers have different feelings about their condition and they are allowed those too. Using these products is optional.

Also laughing is part of many people's coping mechanisms.

MrsCumbersnatch my cousin has secondary progressive MS. She was relapsing and remitting for a number of years at the start of her illness.
We know that there is not likely to be a connection between her illness and DD's and that everyone experiences MS differently so there is no way of predicting how it will go. I learnt this from the MS Society, which in terms of the information it gives and the research it sponsors is a brilliant charity.

'People with MS' do not belong to one homogenous group with the same beliefs and attitudes.

I sympathise with you and your DD. It's hard to find a message that would suit everyone I guess.

Thanks. Flangeshrub.
It seems people just think we are oversensitive. Maybe we are.

If it draws awareness to MS I can't see it as a negative thing.

My father has MS and years ago collapsed in the street. People wouldn't help my Mum get him up because they thought he was drunk. Perhaps his MS is more progressed than your DD's, but in his case, when they're out and about, I think it would be a good idea.

I don't think you're being over sensitive, I can totally see why you and your DD would be upset, especially given her age.

But I'm another person with a friend with MS who is thought to be drunk...we've had to stand and argue with bouncers who are refusing her entry to pubs because they think she's drunk, it's pretty horrible, so I get the thinking behind the tshirt as well.

I don't think your dd is BU, she has every right to her opinion. I guess it's just one of those things that some people will love and others will find offensive. I have an intermittent speech and co ordination problem and would welcome something like that to explain it however I don't think the explanation would fit on a t shirt!

unfortunately after a night out with a new job and going home to a new house share I was left blacked out on the floor of the bathroom because my housemate was disgusted by the state I came home in and didn't believe me that I didn't drink.

You also have a responsibility to educate those round you if you have a severe medical condition which may result in death. You may not feel comfortable talking about it but I assume that is a better option than being dead.

"I suffer with X complaint. Here is some literature. If I ever appear drunk/fitting/passed out I am having an episode and you need to take Y action/dial 999/stab me with an epi-pen" delete as appropriate. People are not psychic.