| "My mind went back to that awful day when I sat in the Consulting Room and was told that I had got Multiple Sclerosis. I was the person who never sat still, always had something to do and was full of life..." Barbara lives in Meir Park in Stoke-on-Trent with her two daughters. In her spare time Barbara enjoys reading, gardening and vacations in her static caravan.
My story is about how, as part of the crew of the 'Multiple Challenge Yacht,' I sailed from England to France to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis. I wanted to tell my story because, as I have MS myself, this was a great experience for me that I will remember forever.
Inside Lives has been brilliant! I have learnt new skills and met lots of great people. It makes you want to work in local radio!
We set sail on a sunny morning from Portsmouth Harbour. The last few weeks had been, getting your kit together and trying to tie impossible knots. I was crewing the Multiple Challenge Yacht and about to set sail for France to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis. Never in my wildest dreams had I imagined that I would do this. My mind went back to that awful day when I sat in the Consulting Room and was told that I had got Multiple Sclerosis. I was the person who never sat still, always had something to do and was full of life, and now here I was sailing to France. Life had become more interesting and I was about to embark on a great adventure. There were 7 of us. The skipper, his mate and 5 people with MS, all facing the challenge of sailing the yacht to France. Our aim was to do it without stopping anywhere. We had all taken our seasickness tablets, but to no avail and a few hours later, with his crew sharing a bucket our Skipper despaired and we sailed into Alderney for an overnight stay and a shower. The next morning we seemed to have gained our sea legs and resumed sailing to France, stormy seas followed us and we never thought we we would reach our goal. Later that night as we sat outside a restaurant enjoying a delicious meal and a few bottles' of wine, amazed that we had been the crew of a yacht that had sailed the channel and had learned new skills on the way. Lots of laughter and all of us including the Skipper proud of out achievement. And then the realisation hit me in 4 days time we had to sail back. But that's another story. | 
