MEATH GAA star Cillian O’Sullivan went from being on his honeymoon to being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis within two whirlwind days.

The 30-year-old was travelling South America with his wife Caoimhe last November when he started experiencing numbness in his left arm.

The clinical psychologist initially put it down to a pinched nerve, but quickly realised it was more serious when the symptoms worsened.

O’Sullivan, who made his senior Meath debut in 2014 and captained the team in 2022, opened up on his experience on the GPA’s Player’s Voice podcast.

And he said: “I had this pins and needles in my left hand. It had started before I left but I kind of ignored it.

“[I was] totally numb from my chest down to my waist. My left arm was really numb as well. Still some motor function in it.

“There had been a few signs where I would go to do basic tasks during the day,

“Tying my laces when going for a run or using the hand to turn the light switch on or turn the light switch off. Using a knife and fork.

“I was asking Caoimhe, ‘could you cut that steak up for me because I can’t do it anymore.'”

O’Sullivan had remained in touch with the Meath medical team about his condition, thinking it was a pinched nerve.

He went to get scans in Argentina and sent those back to Ireland, where Meath GAA referred them to a neurologist in St Vincent’s

He added: “I thought maybe at worst I could finish out the trip and go home and I might have to get a bit of surgery to release a nerve.

“We went to bed that night after sending the scans over and the phone went off a couple of hours later at like three or four in the morning.

“[The doctor] said to me on the phone, ‘look, you need to come home. There are indications on the scan. There are white spots, there’s white legions on your spine..’

“I just asked him what would be the cause of the legions and he said, ‘we can’t know for certain but the highest possibility would be MS.'”

‘FIGHT OR FLIGHT’

O’Sullivan flew out from Argentina that night – a Tuesday – and upon landing back to Ireland on the Thursday, was taken to St Vincent’s.

He was there for five days undergoing scans, blood tests, and treatment, and was eventually diagnosed with MS.

The Moynalvey man continued: “It is that fight or flight response in terms of your brain switches to, ‘okay, get home’.

“It is very process-focused which was helpful in that time looking back.

“I was focused on booking flights. All the process stuff. You’re not thinking about the lifelong diagnosis.

“Getting back and getting the diagnosis then, a lot shock, sadness, worry, fear, all those kind of emotions.

“That was probably, again, one of the toughest times I had in terms of processing all of that.

“You can look at these emotions as a river. You can either go through the river or you build a bridge and get over the river.

“Both can be helpful in various different scenarios but I was very much in the river at the time, experiencing them, meeting with them, talking with them, getting to know them and what they are telling me.”

WARNING SIGNS

The physical symptoms came to the fore on his honeymoon, but there had been vision and balance problems beforehand.

Remembering one game against Kildare in 2023, he explained: “It happened two or three times. The easiest ball, there is no one on me.

“It is that lovely bounce pass that you want, not that much pace on it. I wasn’t even moving that quick.

“Next thing, I was saying to myself I have no idea how I am going to get this ball into my hands. I don’t really know where the ball is and next thing the ball is over the line.

“My sleep had been really bad. I hadn’t been sleeping. It was that vicious cycle in terms of I wasn’t sleeping and then I was getting worried about sleep.

“I was incredibly anxious at the time. Just because all the stuff was going on. I was very busy in work.

“My performances weren’t going well on the pitch so I was worried about that. There was a perfect storm that all fed into each other.

“It was nice to explain the last year but then you have to look, ‘okay. I am 30, there are another 50 years you have to face.'”

INSPIRING COMEBACK

In spite of his condition, Cillian returned to training with Meath; initially focusing on cardio before being able to work up to technical drills.

In April 2024, just four months after diagnosis, he was on the bench as Colm O’Rourke’s men lost 3-19 to 0-12 to Dublin in the Leinster SFC quarter-finals at Croke Park.

While he did not take the field, O’Sullivan considered it a landmark and, a month later, he was starting for the Royals against Louth in their All-Ireland SFC opener.

He said: “I had been training ok but knew I wasn’t anywhere near a starting panel.

“Someone got injured and I was asked, ‘do you mind replacing them on the panel?’ and that was the Dublin game in the Leinster quarter-final.

“I was never more happy to be sitting on the bench in Croke Park and I know we got quite well beaten that day.

“I was saying, ‘If I never get picked again, at least I’ve made it back here, this is just wonderful’.

“I said that to my family after. I could never have been more proud of myself for being there.

“I didn’t place so much value anymore on getting picked to start a Championship match for Meath.

“It was just like, ‘Oh my God, I get to play with my friends at the weekend, I get to actually get out onto the pitch and do it.

“‘I don’t have to watch, it’s not just watching anymore on the sideline, I get to go out and do it, play this game that I’ve loved playing that give me all these wonderful experiences.’

“That’s actually a much healthier position for me to play football from.”