Keep Swimming
Lucy Smyth
2025
Pen and paper, Adobe Photoshop
Living with MS has been a journey marked by waves of grief and moments of deep sadness. But it has also been a journey of resilience. Seven years ago, I discovered swimming — and it became a lifeline. Finding a physical activity that I could not only do, but grow stronger at, was a turning point. The routine of swimming has had profound effects on both my physical and mental well-being, far beyond what I could have imagined.
In Keep Swimming, I created an image of myself moving through a pattern inspired by microscopic images of cells and myelin in the body — the very elements MS affects. The act of swimming through this pattern represents how I try to move through life with MS: focusing on what I can do rather than what I can’t, and on what I have, not what I’ve lost.
This mindset helps me stay grounded, present, and as positive as I can be — stroke by stroke, day by day.
