Key Points
- Heather Miers can't walk unaided but she is able to swim with a greater purpose.
- The 57-year-old raised the most money in a 24-hour swimathon in Melbourne.
- The swim challenge aims at raising funds for people living with multiple sclerosis.
Heather Miers was 30 years old when her legs began to wobble and she devloped an unusual eye twitch.
After feeling conscious that she looked like a "drunk walking out of a bar", she bought a walking stick.
"I had to get a stick just to show people that this is what it is. I'm not walking [like this] because I'm pissed. I'm walking because I have a neurological issue," she said.
Swimmers swam for 24 hours straight in the annual 2023 Fitzroy MS Mega Swim to raise funds for multiple sclerosis. Source: Supplied / Aaron Smith
While she lost her balance on the ground, she's found control in one place that has become her sanctuary - the swimming pool.
"I've always been sporty ... now, I find, for me, swimming is the only sport that I can do that I can't fall over," she said.
"It's always been a natural sport for me. If I can get there, once I'm in the water, I stick my goggles on and away I go. It's just wonderful."
More than 450 swimmers helped raise $178,216 for MS at the Megaswim. Source: Supplied / Aaron Smith
More than 33,000 Australians live with MS, according to MS Australia - and up to two people are diagnosed every day.
While MS affects each person differently, Heather's balance became uncoordinated and she lost some of her eyesight. She is also sensitive to heat and now relies on a walker or motorised scooter to get around. Other symptoms can include dizziness and fatigue, muscle weakness, and tingling and numbness.
Sleepless splash
Heather was among hundreds of swimmers who dived into the 2023 Fitzroy MS Mega Swim in Melbourne a fortnight ago. Twenty-six teams swam laps for 24 hours straight to raise funds for the incurable condition.
Heather (right) swam within the first hour and the last hour of the challenge as team captain of the Hammerheads. Source: Supplied / Heather Miers
Swimmers ranged from beginners to professionals, strangers to family members — even doctors and nurses came for a dip after their hospital shifts to support their patients.
Some participants living with MS who are blind had a turn in the pool, too.
Australian Paralympian Carole Cook founded the first MS Megaswim in Fitzroy 22 years ago, and it has expanded to NSW — swimmers in Wollongong are gearing up for their own event next weekend — while also taking in
A swimmer from each team needs to be in the pool at all times for 24 hours, according to the challenge's rules. Source: Supplied / Aaron Smith
CEO John Blewonski said focusing their events on sport was no coincidence, as fitness and hydrotherapy help reduce the severity of complex mobility problems.
"It is absolutely proven that exercise and MS go hand in hand to, in fact, delaying the progression of the disease," he said.
The funds go towards scholarships aimed at helping individuals living with MS achieve their dreams. The scholarships are awarded across the categories of personal experience, education, employment and living well.
"We had people who wanted to write a book, or we wanted people who wanted to build a raised garden bed so that they could keep growing vegetables, even though they're in a wheelchair," he said.
As for Heather, she barely had any sleep for the entire 24 hours. How could she? She was left with a "real buzz" the whole night and the week that followed.
"I'm thrilled that it's part of a movement that is one of their highest fundraising events for me at the MS Society, she said.
"We love it. We will be doing it forever."
