“Of course you’re limping. You walked off a seven-foot wall!” Countless doctors were taken off the scent after my accident in the fall of 2017.
My MS Story
by Gus Quattlebaum
My accident wasn’t a result of MS, but it eventually led to my diagnosis of primary progressive MS on Christmas Eve of ’21. My symptoms were subtle at first. I would limp after about 12 minutes of walking. I would bump into things on occasion. Then in the fall of ’21, I started falling over when putting on the golf course. I knew I needed to see a doctor when I started to feel a pronounced clawing sensation in my left foot, but when I took my shoe off, my toes were not curled.
When I went back to the neurological center at MGH, the doctor noticed something with my balance during the physical exam. He then asked for an MRI on my neck, the one body part I hadn’t taken images of since my fall.
Later that week, a lumbar puncture confirmed what the doctor had suspected. MS!
I’m now part of a clinical trial at MGH, I wear a device on my calf to help my walking, and I’ve prioritized daily PT, meditation, sleep, and a healthy diet. None of which fits well in baseball. I’ve been in baseball for 26 years currently working in the front office for the Boston Red Sox.
There’s always plenty of noise to block out inside the walls of Fenway Park and it’s a shame that it took a life altering diagnosis to wake me up to what really matters more than last night’s game. However, I’m lucky to have scouted for the Red Sox for 18 years. Their relationships within the Boston community have opened countless doors for me to get the help I need to slow down my progression.
Now it’s my turn to help. I’ve joined MS4MS to leverage my network to help raise funds and use my scouting instincts to find other MS patients who lack the resources to fight their battle. I’m honored to serve as an ambassador for years to come.
Keep moving,
Gus Quattlebaum
“Of course you’re limping. You walked off a seven-foot wall!” Countless doctors were taken off the scent after my accident in the fall of 2017.
My accident wasn’t a result of MS, but it eventually led to my diagnosis of primary progressive MS on Christmas Eve of ’21. My symptoms were subtle at first. I would limp after about 12 minutes of walking. I would bump into things on occasion. Then in the fall of ’21, I started falling over when putting on the golf course. I knew I needed to see a doctor when I started to feel a pronounced clawing sensation in my left foot, but when I took my shoe off, my toes were not curled.
When I went back to the neurological center at MGH, the doctor noticed something with my balance during the physical exam. He then asked for an MRI on my neck, the one body part I hadn’t taken images of since my fall.
Later that week, a lumbar puncture confirmed what the doctor had suspected. MS!
I’m now part of a clinical trial at MGH, I wear a device on my calf to help my walking, and I’ve prioritized daily PT, meditation, sleep, and a healthy diet. None of which fits well in baseball. I’ve been in baseball for 26 years currently working in the front office for the Boston Red Sox.
There’s always plenty of noise to block out inside the walls of Fenway Park and it’s a shame that it took a life altering diagnosis to wake me up to what really matters more than last night’s game. However, I’m lucky to have scouted for the Red Sox for 18 years. Their relationships within the Boston community have opened countless doors for me to get the help I need to slow down my progression.
Now it’s my turn to help. I’ve joined MS4MS to leverage my network to help raise funds and use my scouting instincts to find other MS patients who lack the resources to fight their battle. I’m honored to serve as an ambassador for years to come.
Keep moving,
Gus Quattlebaum
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