A University of Aberdeen student has found a creative way to educate the public about the ‘invisible symptoms’ of multiple sclerosis (MS) – a condition that affects a disproportionate number of Scots.

Claire Robertson, a postgraduate student, worked with a team of health professionals and comic artists to design a comic to raise awareness about MS, which is estimated to affect more than 17,000 people in Scotland. 

Inspired by her father’s experience of living with the condition, Claire used the popular medium to describe the everyday struggles facing people with MS.

Titled ‘Through the MS Looking Glass: Navigating the Unseen’, the comic highlights the ‘invisible’ or hidden symptoms of MS. It uses an Alice in Wonderland-style narrative, with familiar characters representing different symptoms.

Her father was an inspirational figure

‘I wanted to create a health comic on multiple sclerosis because my dad has MS and was diagnosed in 2011,’ said Claire, a third year PhD student at the School of Psychology.

‘As my PhD project is all about how to make effective and engaging health information through the use of comics, I really wanted to be able to make my own health comic during the project process that can have a dual purpose – [to] be used as an experimental material in my research but also can get people engaged with health information.’

Determined to support other families, children and loved ones of those with MS, Claire wanted to tell a story that would inform others about the hidden aspects of the condition.

‘Throughout the comic, I have tried to use accessible language and avoid unnecessary jargon. I hope this will make it a bit easier for the reader to understand’ [Claire Robertson]

Raising awareness

‘I was conscious that I didn’t just want to make the comic about my family’s experience with MS, so I reached out to MS charities to ask them which health topics they felt were either underrepresented or poorly communicated.

‘One of the topics on the shortlist was “invisible” symptoms of MS, and I felt as though a comic could do a really nice job of making these invisible symptoms concrete and visible through visual metaphors and raising awareness of the impact that these symptoms can have on daily life for people with MS.’

Invisible symptoms of MS are ones that people struggle with but aren’t immediately apparent to others. They include pain, fatigue, brain fog, bladder and bowel difficulties, dizziness and mental health challenges.

Following the Alice in Wonderland narrative, the invisible symptoms are embodied by characters akin to the ones from the world famous books by Lewis Carroll [Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass (1871)]. ‘The reasoning for this is embedding unfamiliar concepts in a story that is likely familiar to the majority will hopefully make it slightly less daunting and “new”, ’ Claire continued.

‘Everyone’s MS journey is unique’

Claire added: ‘I am very aware that if someone hasn’t heard of MS before, the health information may seem quite abstract and confusing – like if you were picking up a leaflet about a health condition you didn’t really know about.

‘So, throughout the comic, I have tried to use accessible language and avoid unnecessary jargon. I hope this will make it a bit easier for the reader to understand and enhance their engagement through storytelling and impactful visuals.’

‘The comic’s main message is that everyone’s MS journey is unique and it is important to be supportive and understanding of the struggles people are going through.

‘Even if you can’t visually see what symptoms someone is dealing with, it doesn’t mean they aren’t there and having a big impact on daily life.’

Claire’s PhD is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council.

The comic is supported by the universities of Aberdeen and Dundee, the MS Trust, and the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic at the University of Edinburgh. The artwork was created by Cat Laird and Ashling Larkin from CHIP Collective.

 Copies of ‘Through the MS Looking Glass: Navigating the Unseen’ can be downloaded via this link: https://aberdeenuni-newsroom.prgloo.com/resources/oemu5-gm78n-8xi94-u7ucv-aazai