![\"Diana](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0_AD_BL_31-03-2025_dianakeys_02.jpg\")
Diana Keys with her two children Alasdair and Megan.(Image: Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\nShe knew that her symptoms were more serious than stressDiana Keys with her two children Alasdair and Megan.(Image: Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n
A mum who lives near Bristol, whose motor neurone disease (MND) symptoms<\/a> were initially mistaken for stress<\/a> from her divorce has been given just five years to live but said \u201cit\u2019s not the end\u201d.<\/p>\n Diana Keys, 65, who lives in Clevedon<\/a>, in north Somerset<\/a>, said her 35-year marriage ended in 2019 and a year later she started \u201cfalling over for no reason\u201d and her speech began to deteriorate.<\/p>\n Diana, who is now retired, sought medical advice and testing, with a consultant believing her symptoms were \u201cfunctional due to stress from (her) divorce\u201d but she was \u201cadamant\u201d this was not the case.<\/p>\n In May 2023, three years after her symptoms started, Diana was diagnosed with MND, which is incurable and causes progressive muscle weakness, and was told her prognosis was between two and five years.<\/p>\n She said her condition affects her mobility and speech and leaves her \u201cstruggling\u201d to complete simple tasks such as cooking, carrying a cup of tea and taking her credit card out of her purse.<\/p>\n Diana is \u201cpassionate\u201d about raising awareness of the disease, particularly among women, and hopes her story will encourage others to advocate for their health.<\/p>\n ‘I’ve got a lot to live for’ \u201cI keep looking for a sell-by date code on me, but there isn\u2019t one, so I just keep going,\u201d Diana told PA Real Life.<\/p>\n \u201cI can be a glass half empty person sometimes but, since my diagnosis, I\u2019ve tried not to bring other people down \u2013 I try to be stoic.<\/p>\n \u201cI try to keep a sense of humour and count my blessings, so I\u2019ve got a lot to live for.\u201d<\/p>\n MND is a rare condition which progressively damages parts of the nervous system and leads to muscle weakness.<\/p>\n It is usually life-shortening and there is no cure, but treatment can manage the symptoms, which can include stiff or weak hands, weak legs and feet, and twitches, spasms or muscle cramps.<\/p>\n After Diana and her husband \u201cdrifted apart\u201d and divorced in 2019, she started falling over, which was \u201cconfusing and frightening\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cI fell over in the bathroom and hit my head in the shower and, after that happened two or three times, I contacted the GP,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Diagnosis came as a ‘huge shock’<\/p>\n Diana\u2019s GP referred her to a consultant neurologist at the local hospital, where she underwent electromyography (EMG), which measures the electrical activity in the muscles.<\/p>\n She said the consultant thought her symptoms were just stress after her divorce, but she \u201cknew that wasn\u2019t the case\u201d.<\/p>\n After then experiencing fasciculation (muscle twitching) and noticing her voice was deteriorating, she pushed for further testing.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve always been a very positive person. I\u2019ve suffered from depression, so I know how that feels, and the issues I was having were physical,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n In May 2023, three years after her symptoms started, Diana was told she had MND, which was a \u201chuge shock\u201d.<\/p>\n She said she was \u201chysterical\u201d and found her diagnosis difficult to accept, particularly as the condition is incurable and invariably fatal.<\/p>\n \u201cI remember the consultant just saying, \u2018There is no cure, and the prognosis is between two and five years\u2019.<\/p>\n \u201cI just thought, \u2018Oh my God, that\u2019s awful\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n Reflecting on her divorce, she added: \u201cTo be honest, I\u2019m glad that he hasn\u2019t got to deal with me, with this awful disease, so I\u2019m relieved that he can find happiness somewhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n Diana said she was given information pointing to the \u201camazing\u201d MND Association (MNDA) charity and, as she drove home, she questioned how she would tell her family and friends \u201cwithout frightening everybody\u201d.<\/p>\n ‘I have to eat alone now’<\/p>\n She said she went into \u201cadmin mode\u201d and carried on working as a primary school administrator until November 2024, as she \u201cneeded to feel in control of something\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cBecoming the cared-for as opposed to the carer is incredibly hard\u2026 and I still wake up every day and think, \u2018Come on Di, you can walk properly today\u2019, and then I can\u2019t,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cI know that I will have to accept this at some point.\u201d<\/p>\n Fortunately, having moved into a bungalow soon after the divorce, Diana has not had to make too many alterations to her home.<\/p>\n Her garden has been landscaped for accessibility and safety, with help from the MNDA, and she is looking to widen her door frames to accommodate a wheelchair in future.<\/p>\n She said the \u201cfatigue is huge\u201d, her voice is slurred and her mobility is \u201cwobbly\u201d, and a simple task such as \u201ccarrying a cup of tea into the lounge from the kitchen is hard\u201d.<\/p>\n She said: \u201cI love cooking for family and having friends around for meals \u2013 I can\u2019t do that now.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t cut food properly and, when I eat socially, I tend to get things stuck in my throat, which is embarrassing, so I have to eat alone now.<\/p>\n ‘I’ll get along as long as I can’ \u201cSocially, it\u2019s been hard because it takes a lot of effort to speak and walk \u2013 all the normal things \u2013 and I had to have my hair cut because I couldn\u2019t manage to style it properly.\u201d<\/p>\n To help cope with her diagnosis, Diana said she went \u201con a mission with raising awareness\u201d and joined several support groups.<\/p>\n She said she had \u201ceverything to look forward to\u201d before her diagnosis, including \u201cadventures\u201d in her caravan, but now she is adjusting to a new way of life and wants to help others with MND feel less alone.<\/p>\n \u201cMy progression is relatively slow, so I\u2019m hoping that I\u2019ll get as long as I can,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce you\u2019ve got a diagnosis, something as traumatic as motor neurone disease, it\u2019s not the end, it\u2019s the beginning of a new journey.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Diana](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0_AD_BL_31-03-2025_dianakeys_03.jpg\")
Diana Keys, 65, has been given just five years to live after her initial symptoms were put down to stress.(Image: Collect\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n![\"Diana](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0_Motor-Neurone-Disease.jpg\")
Diana has vowed to keep on going.(Image: Ben Birchall\/PA Real Life)<\/p>\n