Over 20 years ago, at the age of 22, I was diagnosed with primary progressive MS. My method of coping was DENIAL! Since the doc was wrong, (I actually have relasping-remitting), and since the course of my disease was so mild (although I've had repeated exacerbations and relapses, I've always had nearly complete recovery in a matter of weeks), living in denial has worked well for me for a long-long time.
In Jan '08, I lost the sense of taste across about 2/3 of my tongue.