This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

Hi Everyone,

I'm very concerned with some the symptoms I've been experiencing over the last few months. I've been tested for HIV, been to ENT, had blood done for CBC and thyroid, and so far everything has come back normal, except the ENT said I have inflammation in my throat.

Here's my story...About 3 months ago I started having weird throat pains that I have now progressed into throat inflammation and pain while swallowing also heavy swallowing. I'm also having brain fog, weird vision out of my left eye, nausea, muscle spasms and weakness in my arms, legs, left hand. I am scheduled to see a Neuro on Monday. I'm a 32 year old male who has always been in very good shape, up until the last month i would exercise 5-6 days a week.

Do you my symptoms sound like I have MS? I know you can't diagnose without testing, but I'm wondering your thoughts. Thanks to everyone for the service you provide.

welcome check your pm inbox!

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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

Welcome, Scat. MS symptoms are many and varied; your symptoms could be due to MS or to any of several other possibilities.

Since your problems began only months ago, it is still quite early; you have begun well with testing. There is lots more testing ahead. Find a knowledgeable team of compassionate doctors to work with.

Keep up with exercising as much as possible; eat a healthy, low-carb diet. Hold to an optimistic attitude; you must have blessings you can count – tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day.

Thank you lynda for the advice. I'm just wondering how everyone deals with MS type symptoms? Brain fog, Fatigue, weakness. I've been missing work and not exercising. do you just push thru it? How long does it take for symptoms to go away? Is it ok for me to work out?

Hi Scat,

I'm sorry you've been going through this. I do agree with Lynda's whole post, however. Your symptoms could possibly due to something other than MS, and diet and exercise can help optimize your overall health. Plus, no matter what is wrong with you, your general good health can make it easier to live with. Some symptoms sound MS-y-ish, but others, like the throat inflammation could be something else entirely. Plus, sadly, even if one is diagnosed with MS, it doesn't keep you from another medical condition along with it. I have so many diagnoses I can't pin any symptom on MS.

But...to answer your exercise question, yes, I do push my way through as much as I can. In fact, I credit my years of diet/exercise for keeping fatigue/brain fog/weakness at a minimum with me. Those symptoms actually give me the least problems. I wouldn't feel comfortable advising someone to suddenly plunge into strenuoous exercise without doctor's advice if they've been sedentary for years, but it sounds like you should know your body pretty well.

In fact, if you've been avoiding exercise altogether for a month, that is doubtless contributing to your fatigue, at least a little. I guarantee that's happened to me when I've had to back off for a few days due to colds/stomach viruses, or real sickness. But with other symptoms, I just keep at it - and listen to my body, of course. When I was first diagnosed with MS, I was absolutely stunned to find so much MS advice was to discourage strenuous exercise, when I had been doing the opposite for 20 years and was doing great. Exercise has since been much more accepted as a real MS benefit.

As for length of symptoms, I have weird stuff that lasts for minutes and others that last for years - we're all unique. But I've also found many, many ways to both alleviate and adapt to them all during that time.

But a quick caution - this may not be MS at all, so pay attention to what your own body tells you until you find out. And start back on your routine a little slower than you were used to. Good luck!

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Dx'd with MS & HNPP (hereditary peripheral neuropathy) 7/03 but must have had MS for 30 yrs before that. I've never taken meds for MS or MS symptoms except 1 yr experiment on LDN. (I found diet, exercise, sleep, humor, music help me the most.)

Thanks Euphonia! I actually got a good work out in yesterday, and I did feel better the rest of the day. Now today, I feel like I'm back to square one again, so I'm planning on workout again this afternoon. Hopefully, it will help. I'm really trying to stay optomistic, I see a neuro for the first time on Monday so I'm pretty nervous about it.

Also, I'm wondering your thoughts on the herpes simplex virus triggering MS symptoms? I believe I had a first out break this summer, and about 2 1/2 months later I started noticing these strange symptoms.

Thank you!

So I saw my neurologist for the first time yesterday. He did a physical exam (he said looked great), blood work, and I'm scheduled for an MRI and EMG next Tuesday. Due to insurance reasons I have to wait a week for the MRI and EMG, but I should hear back about my blood work later this week. Hopefully, I can get a quick diagnosis and start to deal with this.

How long did it take some of you to get a diagnosis? Does it typically take a while? Also, does anyone have any thoughts about the herpes simplex virus triggering symptoms? Thank you all!

Oops, sorry Scat! I apologize for seeming to ignore you, but I was summarily banned from the forum on Sun-Mon for being naughty and i was completely locked out for about 24 hours.

I was in the process of searching for good info for you at the time, but there is sooooo much research investigating the possible links between the many herpes viruses (especially Epstein-Barr virus or EBV) and MS that I haven't found the definitive answer for you. If no one else helps us out, you can try the "search" function at the top of the page for herpes or EBV, etc. You'll get hundreds of hits. Hope someone else comes in with the best links for us.

I don't seem to recall any specific trigger either originally (38 yrs ago) or currently for my symptoms, but maybe others do. I hope they stop in to give their thoughts for you.

Keep smiling anyway - that helps the most.

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Dx'd with MS & HNPP (hereditary peripheral neuropathy) 7/03 but must have had MS for 30 yrs before that. I've never taken meds for MS or MS symptoms except 1 yr experiment on LDN. (I found diet, exercise, sleep, humor, music help me the most.)

Thanks! I do my best to keep smiling.

How long did it take some of you to get a diagnosis? Does it typically take a while?

Hi again, Scat,

Yes, the diagnostic process is often lengthy - months and even years. Or, some are like me and got an overnight diagnosis the day after my first MRI. Here's a link to my own long, detailed story - the story takes longer to read than it took my doc to diagnose me from my MRIs. But you can always just skim down through the pictures if you want.

general-discussion-f1/topic16335.html

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Dx'd with MS & HNPP (hereditary peripheral neuropathy) 7/03 but must have had MS for 30 yrs before that. I've never taken meds for MS or MS symptoms except 1 yr experiment on LDN. (I found diet, exercise, sleep, humor, music help me the most.)

Dear Scat89:

I got an optical neuritis (OS) when I was 19 in 1999. Urgent therapy and few days spent in a hospital helped to get away my symptoms and I gained about 90% of the vision back on my left eye. That was really cool given the fact that I could identify the 20 lbs watermelon laying on a kitchen table with my right eye closed and standing some 3 feet away from that table. It was freaking scary.

In 5 years, in 2004, I got numbness on my left side of my whole body. (I remember if somebody would want to shake my left hand and would point his/her hand in my left hand's direction - I wouldn't be able to reach it due to the "blindness" in my left hand). This is when I was sent see my first neurologist. My diagnosis came after the results of MRI scans and blood test were revealed.

Ever since Dec 2004 on Avonex. Doing ok, I guess. Appreciate where I am now and consider myself lucky.

Good luck,

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Contra spem spero

Can you describe this weakness you feel in your arms and legs?

Hi Merch,

The weakness is like a heaviness or like a "jello" feeling around my elbows and knees...it almost feels like I over did it on a work out. It actually seems to be feeling better the last couple of days. Are you experiencing weakness as well?

Hi Ute,

Thanks for the reply! I did a bunch of blood work the other day. What did your blood work reveal when they Dx'd you? This is definitely a scary time not knowing what's going on with my body...I've never experienced anything like this before.

I don't think I have MS but I came to the board originally because of my legs (was worried it was related). But my legs do not feel "weak" they are just sore alot in the morning....although I think this may be due to the fact I sit 8-9 hours a day at my job. (Think of a slight soreness cramp in the morning). Thats my only symptom to speak of though.

Scat89,

it was in 2004 in Ukraine and blood test was done primarily to supplement the MRI scans results. I remember looking at one sheet of paper that came back from the lab and if it say had 40 positions measured against, than probably at least one third of them was off the limits. Which probably gave them more confidence in diagnosis. As far as I remember the glucose level was way far off and many other positions less so.

I was told back then that I was fortunate to be the third patient being scanned in the new MRI unit in a city of more than 750,000 people - Hillary Clinton's fundraising campaign made it possible for the unit to appear in one of the biggest metropolitan city in western Ukraine back then. I remember seeing the unit still in some packaging and bubbles while I was inside the room. I heard it took 6 months for radiologists to figure out how it was supposed to work.

In few months I decided to reconfirm the diagnosis, so I came to the US where new MRI's, blood work, neuro exam and LP were done. Taking into consideration the results from all of them - my diagnosis was reaffirmed then. Here are some of the offs on my LP performed back then:

WBC,CFS -> result 13 H cells/uL, limit 0-5
Lymphs, CSF -> result 94 H %, limit 40-80
Monocytes, CSF -> result 4 L %, limit 15-45
INR -> result 1.0 L , limit 2.0-3.5

Unfortunately I couldn't find my offs of my first blood work.
I hope this answers your question a bit.

Take care,
stay positive

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Contra spem spero