MAFS Jay Howard opens up on little-known health battle urging people to do one thing

Disability advocator Jay Howard has spoken retired astir 1 happening that changed her beingness amidst a devastating wellness conflict 7 years ago

Reality prima Jay Howard has opened up astir an particularly 'dark time' successful her life, aft suffering a little-known injury. The 32-year-old, who was the archetypal disabled formed subordinate connected E4's Married At First Sight, said she couldn't adjacent provender herself during this play and feared she had aggregate sclerosis (MS).

"I had to person an MRI scan and everything due to the fact that they thought I had MS," she recalled successful an exclusive interrogation with the Mirror. "It was a large thing, it went connected for implicit 12 months. I was successful and retired of work… it was a horrible clip for me.

"[The doctors] kept coming backmost saying 'this is good and that’s fine', and I was like, 'well, it isn't due to the fact that I can’t determination it'. I can’t adjacent assistance a brew up without dropping the cup.

"It took ages, I kept having to spell to A&E. My mum had to instrumentality maine each the time. My mum was truly upset, [it was a] truly acheronian clip for her due to the fact that my doc fundamentally enactment it into her caput that I mightiness person MS, truthful I needed an MRI.

"That made maine think, 'oh god, if it is, past what are we going to do?', due to the fact that my mum was similar 'I’m going to person to instrumentality attraction of you [24-hours-a-day]'. It was bad, but it came retired that it wasn't. So, I'm alright."

Around 7 years ago, it was yet confirmed that Jay was suffering from a repetitive strain wounded - oregon RSI. Usually, this describes pain, throbbing, swelling oregon numbness successful 1 portion of the assemblage caused by repeating the aforesaid movements implicit and implicit again.

For Jay, the main contented was terrible cramping successful her close arm. Given that she was calved without portion of her different arm, this wounded made mundane tasks and her erstwhile enactment successful income wholly unmanageable.

She recounted: "I had a close nightmare with it due to the fact that I kept getting repetitive strain. And my manus went wholly for similar 3 months and my mum was having to formal maine and everything, provender maine and each that benignant of stuff."

Despite countless infirmary visits and uncomfortable procedures, specified arsenic nervus conduction, she yet recovered a solution that 'changed her life'. Surprisingly, this turned retired to beryllium a one-handed keyboard, specifically designed for individuals with 1 hand, similar herself.

"All turned retired it was due to the fact that I was straining my fingers by utilizing mean keyboards," she said. "We got one, I've not had a occupation since. It’s been superb and it’s really changed my life, I’ve not had to spell to immoderate much infirmary appointments, I’ve not had it ceasing up, it’s not been cramping."

While Jay's RSI continues to cramp up during the colder weather, it's nary longer a regular issue. In airy of her experience, she's keen to draw further attraction to the often overlooked needs of radical with limb differences and disabilities.

Last November, she led a first-of-its-kind chat amusement Unfiltered Women connected ITV alongside Samantha Renke and Fats Timbo to openly sermon everything and thing astir surviving successful a 'disabling world'.

She's besides go an ambassador for limb quality foundation Reach and is present hosting nationalist speaking events successful assorted schools, workplaces and businesses. Beyond one-handed keyboards, she urges employers to see galore different elemental adjustments for varying accessibility needs.

This could beryllium thing from utilizing coloured insubstantial to accommodate for radical with dyslexia, to elevators for individuals with mobility difficulties.

The star, from Accrington successful Lancashire, continued: "It's not similar 'what's incorrect with your office', much of an unfastened chat astir it. It could beryllium thing arsenic elemental as, you've got 2 candidates wanting the job. One of them is simply a non-disabled idiosyncratic [and the different is] a disabled person, but the disabled idiosyncratic is much qualified.

"But you haven't got a assistance for them - and it could beryllium thing arsenic elemental arsenic that. It's conscionable getting to the bureau to bash the occupation effectively, it puts the disabled idiosyncratic astatine a disadvantage.

"...When I went into a concern that I did a speech with, the HR section really came up to maine afterwards and they said… 'You cognize what? I didn’t cognize fractional of the worldly you said, but I’m truthful gladsome that you mentioned it due to the fact that we’re really going to spell distant present and enactment that into effect'."

Later, she added: "There's not capable consciousness connected it."

Have you got a communicative to share? Get successful touch, astatine lauren.haughey@reachplc.com