This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

Hi
I asked on my last post about pressure headaches but more generally I would like to know how you deal with nerve pain... My nerves are so inflammed, all my body hurts... I still do not understand what exactly causes nerve pain asmine certainely doesn't seem related to my brain lesions...
Anyway it feels like sciatica but all over the body...
Thanks for your help!!

fm, are you taking anything to address common nutritional issues found in ms patients? i'm not sure but for pain, if i were you i would probably try magnesium to start. and b-complex. those two work together nicely too. do you take any particular form/dose of these at present?

info:

vitamin B6 increases the amount of magnesium that can get into your cells "by facilitating active transport across cell membranes" (source: Herb, nutrient, and drug interactions...).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnesium_in_biology
[magnesium] is an essential mineral nutrient for life and is present in every cell type in every organism. For example, ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the main source of energy in cells, must be bound to a magnesium ion in order to be biologically active. What is called ATP is often actually Mg-ATP. Similarly, magnesium plays a role in the stability of all polyphosphate compounds in the cells, including those associated with DNA and RNA synthesis.

Over 300 enzymes require the presence of magnesium ions for their catalytic action, including all enzymes utilizing or synthesizing ATP, or those that use other nucleotides to synthesize DNA and RNA.

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my approach: no meds so far - just balanced whole foods (partial 'paleo', much less outright elimination), science, supplements, & bloodwork
my regimen - www.thisisms.com/ftopict-2489.html
www.whfoods.com, www.nutritiondata.com

Hi jimmylegs
Yes I take a B complex, tons of sublingual B12, high doses of vitamin D and magnesium everyday... I don't know if this helps, maybe I'd be worse without them but it's certainely not enough to calm this unbearable nerve pain thta i have on my whole body...
The weird thing is that my MS is only nerve pain, no physical limitation , I still do not undertsand this disease, but who does huh?...

hey there FM, do you take the magnesium at the same time as d3? or separate?

what are the daily doses of your various supplements, IIMA? are you taking other things too?

that *is* weird that it's pain only. sounds pretty sucky.

_________________
my approach: no meds so far - just balanced whole foods (partial 'paleo', much less outright elimination), science, supplements, & bloodwork
my regimen - www.thisisms.com/ftopict-2489.html
www.whfoods.com, www.nutritiondata.com

I take my d3 ( 5000iu) in the morning after breakfast, then 200mg after breakfast too... and swallow sublingual B12 all day long:-) around 3000ug everyday... Other thank that I supplement also with collagen (Type I, II and III) and hyaluronic acid... that's about it, I sometimes add some vitamin E here and there but only when i think of it...
Oh pain really sucks... I feel like my nerves are unable to relax and my muscles are so tight....

sorry so are you saying you take 5000 IU d3 and 200mg magnesium at breakfast? what form magnesium is it?

if that is correct, then try taking another 200mg magnesium at bed time. and if you can handle it, another 200mg magnesium with lunch. if your mag supplement is magnesium oxide form, 600mg per day might send you running to the loo a bit often for your liking but if you have mag glycinate you should be able to tolerate 600mg/d.

you're taking some non-nutrients which is not my home turf, so, questions:

what are you taking hyaluronic acid for, is it related to the collagen, and is there a retinol or vit C connection? or manganese connection? i don't pay a lot of attention to manganese but studies have found it's low in the CSF of ms patients and i saw another study (guinea pigs) linking manganese status and low hyaluronic acid (also heparin actually...)

whatever your goal with HA and collagen, i'd say if you are worried about HA levels, that investigating your retinol, vit C, and mn status and correcting if low would likely kill more biochemical birds... but i don't know until i hear back more info about the reasons for this regimen

sorry about the pain. from what you've told me i think the d3 is sucking up all the magnesium and there's none left to make your other 300+ enzymatic reactions happen properly.

this high d3 same time as magnesium combo happened to me too, initially, and it reaaallly suuccckkkkeed. didn't affect my skin it got my throat but it can hit different folks in different ways. i thought i was going to die. it took two days taking magnesium at a different time for my throat to get better. kudos to one smart kitchener pharmacist. i went back later to make a point of thanking him.

_________________
my approach: no meds so far - just balanced whole foods (partial 'paleo', much less outright elimination), science, supplements, & bloodwork
my regimen - www.thisisms.com/ftopict-2489.html
www.whfoods.com, www.nutritiondata.com

Hum, it says magnesium citrate...
Yes I take hyaluronic acid to help collagen production: my explanation of MS is that this disease literally eats our brain collagen (just llike RA eats bones collagen) so I try to help my body produce as much as possible. ALso I do not trust any test for levels of HA opr collagen as it is actaully our tissues that are affected and tissues take 3 to 4 months to be renewed so the only test would be some biopsy and then another one in four months and compare levels of collagen in both... I do not think they do that kind of tests to our brain and I would not even want to try it... I speculate that this is the reason why it alwauys takes 3 to 4 months for any of our supplement to start to be effcient (we actually start feeling its effect once our tissues get stronger..). By the way MS or Celiac disease or any of those "auto immune disroders) are the same to me, they just affect different organs...
That said, I also feel that my nerve pain is kind of related to my hormones...It is ALWAYS there but it's even worse the first days of my menstruations... I wonder what can cause that... I have been tested for everything very thouroghly (oestrogen, thyroid, cortisol...) but everything comes back fine....
All my observations lead me to think there must be different types of MS (and maybe a more specific feminine type of MS, similar to endometriosis or sth..). I am getting crazy tryng to understand this damn disease and coping with the pain...

mag citrate is a little better than oxide, in terms of solubility, but not as soluble as glycinate.

retinol (vit A), vit C and manganese are supposed to support hyaluronic acid status so looks like collagen would come along for the ride
tests for nutrients would be far easier than doing biopsy on tissue for other things.

as for estrogen, thyroid, coritsol, to me there's a common thread nutrient there (zinc). when things come back 'fine' i get very suspicious. many of my 'low' levels of nutrients are actually inside the 'normal' range, but are not as good as 'healthy' levels seen in the research.

i agree there must be different sub-types of ms above and beyond RR, PP, SP, etc.

anyway easy take home action item: in addition to your morning magnesium with vit d3, you could try taking an extra 200mg magnesium citrate at bedtime with no vit d3.

hope that helps!

_________________
my approach: no meds so far - just balanced whole foods (partial 'paleo', much less outright elimination), science, supplements, & bloodwork
my regimen - www.thisisms.com/ftopict-2489.html
www.whfoods.com, www.nutritiondata.com

Thank you for the advice Jimmylegs, I will try that!

you're welcome, if an additional 200mg mag citrate is all that's needed, great. if no improvement in a week, might need to look at dose or co-factors or something.

_________________
my approach: no meds so far - just balanced whole foods (partial 'paleo', much less outright elimination), science, supplements, & bloodwork
my regimen - www.thisisms.com/ftopict-2489.html
www.whfoods.com, www.nutritiondata.com

Filmmaker,

I do not have an MS diagnosis (limboland) however I did have a period of about 6 - 8 months where I was dealing with widespread nerve pain, it was everywhere and it was awful so I feel for you.

2 things I found that work (separately, not used together):

- Elavil amytriptaline) - very low dose did the trick for me
-estrogen cream (low dose)

Good luck, if it's of any consolation my nerve pain eventually subsided on its own, I don't take anything for it anymore. No idea where it went and I don't care as long as it stays away.