This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

Just one more thing I forgot to mention, tt89: you sound as if you're really unwell, and once you get diagnosed with MS doctors tend to put on a pair of blinkers… they simply can't see anything else. But of course you're just as prone to other illnesses as anybody else, (in fact maybe more so, since you're a nurse), so I wondered if you'd been checked over and tested for anything else.

And I've never met any of them who really understand the fear. The person you thought you were; the life you thought you had; the life you thought you were going to have, they've all been torn up and thrown away and, okay, maybe you could deal with that if somebody could tell you what they were going to be replaced with – but they can't, and even the treatment options are full of ifs and maybes and don't knows.

But never feel alone. We all know exactly how you feel and, even when your closest friend doesn't quite get it, there'll be somebody here who's been through precisely the same thing. It may not be an answer, but at least it makes living with that great big question mark a little bit less frightening,

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Dom

hi dom, i was treating my lesion with a pharma ointment for literally years and it was not going ANYWHERE. very stubborn. if you think zinc could be involved in your skin problems, do get your level tested before throwing higher doses of zinc into the mix.
have you checked out that ms zinc boys girls controls thread? once you have some numbers from bloodwork, that study can help you establish where you're at, and a target serum value. i mean, we're all in the "normal range" but the ms patients have less zinc.
i would see where you're at before taking any therapeutic doses of zinc. how much is in your multi? depending on the level you start at, 50mg per day for one month, then some followup bloodwork, might be the right idea. i took a 100mg daily (albeit sporadically) over three months and overdid it, ended up with zinc excess (no symptoms unless the jump in sex drive is somehow related), so i stopped and have to go for new bloodwork to see if i've settled down in the middle now :S hehe

Increased sex drive ? … Sounds awful !

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Dom

it is shocking.

tt...
so glad jimmy and Dom were fast to the rescue. They helped me out when I came here, pretty desperate for my husband. Jimmy helped me put together the supplements. Over a year and a half later, my husband's still going strong, thank G-d. You can do SO much with diet and nutrition and lifestyle changes.

I think because we live in the US, the docs push the pharmas a bit harder(jimmy's in Canada). We decided to stick to copaxone, since his 2nd MRI showed no new lesions and none enhancing. But the magnesium at bedtime (natural calm) along with zinc and calcium, and all the combined supplements have added to his quality of life, and have kept him relapse free. He's also not had any colds or flus in this time, and is sleeping so much better.
here's Jeff's program-
http://www.thisisms.com/ftopict-4975.html

The MS dx is so overwhelming. And there's alot to learn. But take it a day at a time, trust in your ability to handle this, and keep learning.
AC

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Husband dx RRMS 3/07
dx dual jugular vein stenosis (CCSVI) 4/09
dual stents placed 5/09
CCSVI in MS

dom i really like your post at the top of this page. had somehow missed it previously.
cheer, has it already been that long? so glad jeff is helped by your hard work on his behalf.

TT,

You definitely were meant to come to this forum. Like I've always said (and thanks to Dom for actually explaining it), ThisIsMS is like AA for us. Shrinks and Docs see plenty of this stuff, but only someone who has 'been in our skin' to understand how truly hard it is to redefine your sense of self, and how truly important that is to overall well being, can really, truly understand. People try to relate some of the symptoms they are having with an illness or something to my MS stuff. I usually just say "yeah", but even if the physical traits are the same, there is something completely different about feeling a certain way until you are over the virus or whatever it is, as oppossed to the unrelenting feeling of knowing you may feel that way forever. I'm not trying to be 'down', but just want to point out that advice will come from everywhere, but you really do have a leg up when you get it here because there will always be someone in this community who has not just seen it, but lived it.

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http://myhopefuljourneyintoactualmsreco ... ogspot.com