(MONEY Magazine) – At 34, life was finally coming together for Gayle Heazlett. She had brought a failing marriage to an amicable end; she was earning more than $38,000 a year in her job at Denver's Water Department; she was staying fit playing volleyball, walking her dogs and practicing martial arts. She was even cutting her spending: ''I had decided to quit living on my credit cards and really start investing,'' she says. Then one morning she awoke feeling a strange numbness in her right leg . . . That was a Wednesday last August. By Saturday, sensation was all but gone in both legs. Trying to snap out of it, she showed up that afternoon to play softball for the office team. ''I figured that once you hit the ball, running is instinctive,'' she says. But when bat and ball connected, Heazlett took a few tentative steps -- and collapsed. On Monday morning, the doctor made a terrifying diagnosis. Aware that Heazlett had previously lost sight temporarily in one eye, he told her she probably suffered from multiple sclerosis. This degenerative nerve condition, which afflicts some 250,000 Americans, usually hits people between the ages of 20 and 40. For mysterious reasons, the body's immune system attacks the protective sheath around the nerve fibers in the brain and spinal cord. Symptoms vary tremendously but include numbness, weakness, visual disturbances, loss of coordination and muscle spasms. Most people continue to lead reasonably normal lives, suffering only from occasional and unpredictable flare-ups that disable them for days or weeks. About 15%, however, eventually become seriously disabled. In Heazlett's case, her legs soon became so weak that doctors gave her massive doses of immunity-suppressing steroids. The treatment succeeded in restoring some sensation and near-normal motor control. But meanwhile, she was out of work about six weeks. Since then, like many MS patients, Heazlett has been largely free of severe effects. ''I think Gayle is doing amazingly well,'' says her sister Eva Spence, 37, who, along with her 40-year-old husband Phil, an Arapahoe County deputy sheriff, have been constant supporters. ''At first, when she could not walk, it was hard to deal with. We're all hoping that she'll be able to do what she used to.''

Yet despite the improvement, nagging problems remain: a slight limp, an annoying numbness in her legs and -- most troublesome -- a faint but persistent tingling sensation throughout her body. ''It's like listening to a faucet drip,'' says an exasperated Heazlett, whose strong will is sometimes belied by her soft voice and ready laugh. ''It drives you crazy.'' And, of course, it serves as a reminder that her condition could worsen at any time. Living with such uncertainty would be hard enough, but the disease struck at a time when Heazlett was deep in debt. She owes $6,614, including a $3,575 credit-card balance at 18%, a $1,687 loan from her parents to help her buy her condo, $800 in back federal taxes and $552 in other bills. Her net worth: $518. This financial state is nothing new. For years, Heazlett has habitually gone into hock and then put in overtime to pull even. ''I would just sort of buy now and figure I would work it out, because I've never been afraid to work hard to earn extra money,'' she says. Last year, for example, overtime pay added $6,940 to her $38,712 base salary. Now, with her future health in question, Heazlett faces the possibility of being out of work. Not that her employers are threatening to ease her out; on the contrary, they make it clear that they value her and would bend over backward to keep her on the payroll. ''She is extremely conscientious,'' says her boss, Jim Garton. Adds Keith Keyser, another supervisor: ''She is as dedicated as ever about getting her job done on time and making sure it's of high quality. She always goes the extra mile.'' It's conceivable, though, that she could become physically unable to work, and were that to happen, she admits, ''I don't have any backup.'' Though the water department's disability insurance would pay 60% of her salary (or $1,935 a month) after a three-month waiting period, getting by would be a squeeze. Among her biggest expenses: $354 a month for a five-year, $17,000 loan at 9.25% for the 1989 Subaru XT6 she bought shortly before being diagnosed. In addition, she must pay $888 a month in mortgage and maintenance on the spacious one-bedroom condominium she bought for $86,000 three years ago in a downtown high-rise. Her variable-rate mortgage is of special concern. The rate, now 8.5%, is scheduled to rise to 9.5% in May, boosting her monthly payment $73 to $961. And because of an uncommon provision that allows the lender not only to raise the rate but also to shorten the 15-year term, in 1997 she might have to begin repaying the balance on a five-year schedule. That would raise the monthly tab to $1,533, even assuming interest remains at 9.5%. With all this to consider, Heazlett is -- for the first time ever -- taking a long, sober look at her future. ''Until I got sick, I never really thought about anything except what I was doing today and what I was going to do tomorrow,'' she says. ''But now I face a serious threat that I could wake up tomorrow and not be able to work, so I really have to build up some savings.'' A native of Cando, N.D., Heazlett learned early the value of honest labor. ''My parents told me if I wanted something, I'd have to get it with my own money -- and I decided I wanted things,'' she says. ''When my friends were playing after school, I'd be working at the family hardware store or in the cornfields, or mowing lawns.'' At age 18, she moved to Denver, where she met -- then married -- carpenter David Wallace. She began clerking in retail shops around town, and she even opened a used-car lot in Cheyenne, Wyo., two hours' drive away, in 1978. But by 1980, she closed the lot to earn an associate degree in management information systems at Arapahoe Community College, which led to a job as computer analyst at the water department in 1984. ''I just thought that everyone should know something about computers,'' she says. ''Only later did I discover that I really loved programming.'' By then, however, her marriage was starting to come apart. Gayle felt that she was more ambitious than David, and she wanted to pour her energy into building a career, not a marriage. Two years ago, the couple divided their possessions and got a divorce -- without alimony or further obligation on either side. ''We remain good friends,'' she says. ''We do all kinds of things except live together.'' Indeed, Wallace, 37, helped Heazlett assemble the exercise bike she bought recently to keep up her strength. ''I don't want the MS to control me,'' she says. For the same reason, she has resisted her father's plea that she move from downtown to a house in the suburbs. ''My father's from a small town and thinks living in a big city is dangerous,'' she says with a shrug. ''But my neighborhood is fine, and to me it would be more dangerous to be in a house. At least here I have 24-hour security guards.'' Lately, she has been debating whether to spend $2,000 to attend a five-day program for people with MS at the Jimmie Heuga Center in Vail. Named after its founder, a 1964 Olympic slalom bronze medalist who was diagnosed with MS in 1970, the center helps patients develop an exercise and nutritional regimen as well as cope with the emotional devastation of the unpredictable symptoms. ''I'll be walking and suddenly my legs will go out, or I'll be holding something and I'll drop it,'' Heazlett says. ''If the disease would just stay in one place, it would be much easier.'' At times, she feels frustrated. ''I've always been happy to grow older because my life has always gotten better,'' she says. ''But last year it wasn't really true.'' Most of the time, however, she remains upbeat, thankful that her symptoms have abated at least temporarily. ''Generally, I feel real lucky. I know this could be a lot worse, and I have a lot of people who are supportive,'' she says. ''I'll be okay.''

THE ADVICE

-- THE PROBLEMS: Paying debt, building cash reserves and deciding whether to move -- THE SOLUTIONS: Cut spending and save regularly, even before debt is repaid; stay put, but prepare for the worst. MONEY asked three Denver experts to advise Heazlett -- certified financial planner Eileen M. Sharkey, mortgage broker and certified financial planner Phillip Storms and Michael L. Van Abel, services program consultant for the Western Area of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The main points: Real estate. Both Storms and Sharkey urged Heazlett to keep her condominium. Because of stagnation in Denver's real estate market, only four units in her 224-unit building have changed hands in the past year and 17 more are still on the block. If she sold, she would probably get only about $83,000 -- $3,000 less than her purchase price -- and might have to wait six to 10 months for a buyer. Moreover, she would sacrifice potential gains when the market revives. Savings. Sharkey warned Heazlett that despite the temptation to put all available cash toward her debt, she must get into the saving habit now. She recommended that Heazlett open a money-market account, put in regular $50 deposits from each biweekly paycheck and then raise the amount to $100 next year. To make saving more palatable, she could divide her money into accounts for specific purposes -- a fund for a new car, say, or a vacation -- so she could build toward a goal. Other financial concerns. Sharkey also suggested that Heazlett hire a lawyer to draft three essential documents: a will, a durable power of attorney naming someone to manage her affairs if needed, and a living will setting forth her wishes regarding medical life support. The cost for all three: about $150. To protect Heazlett's health and disability coverage, Van Abel recommended that she remain at her present job. If she were to become disabled, her disability insurance would cover her until age 65, at which point she could retire with a pension of $940 a month (based on her current salary). Meanwhile, she would continue to be covered by her employer's medical insurance. If she left her job, however, she would lose the pension, since she is not yet vested. In addition, a new employer's health and disability policies might not be as good as the ones she has now. Also, a new employer probably would impose a six-month to two-year waiting period before covering any MS-related claims, although Heazlett could keep her present insurance for 18 months by paying all of the premiums herself. If she were unemployed, insurance would become extremely expensive -- $3,935 a year for a special high-risk Blue Cross/Blue Shield policy, for example. Van Abel also suggested that Heazlett start building reserves to pay for expenses that would not be covered by her health insurance. These include so- called durable medical equipment: grab bars in her bath and bedroom (estimated cost: $200 to $500), a wheelchair ($400 to $1,500) or an electric cart (as much as $5,000), or hand controls on her car ($400 to $700). Also not covered is long-term home care, such as the home health aid ($3,000 a month) that she would need if she became temporarily incapacitated. Heazlett was delighted by the recommendation that she stay in her condo. ''To be honest,'' she says, ''I really don't want to sell it.'' She was impressed by Sharkey's advice that she begin saving but worried whether she could afford it. ''The way I see it, I'm lucky to buy groceries this month,'' she says. Still, Heazlett feels she will eventually succeed in getting her finances under control. ''I have a commitment to do it,'' she says. ''And once I commit to something, I do it.''

BOX: BOTTOM LINE

A mortgage and auto loan, plus back taxes caused by taking too many deductions on her W-4 in 1988, left Gayle Heazlett with a net worth of only $518. Now she must rein in her spending.

INCOME Salary $38,712 Overtime 6,940 Savings withdrawal 1,500 Insurance payout 750 Interest 7 TOTAL: $47,909

OUTGO Mortgage and condo fees $10,667 Loan repayments 7,856 Taxes 8,677 Miscellaneous 4,181 Food 2,100 Entertainment 2,000 Vacation 1,700 Car expenses 1,555 Contributions 1,500 Savings 1,500 Utilities 1,500 Gifts 1,200 Health club 891 Retirement plan 840 Medical expenses 650 Clothes 600 Household maintenance 400 Homeowners insurance 92 Total $47,909

ASSETS Condominium $83,000 1989 Subaru XT6 14,000 Personal property 5,000 Retirement savings 1,949 Credit union account 100 Total $104,049

LIABILITIES Mortgage $80,259 Car loan 16,658 Credit-card balances 3,575 Loan from parents 1,687 Overdue taxes 800 Bills 552 Total $103,531

NET WORTH $518