This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

Hi everyone.
I was just diagnosed with MS. I'm 24, married, and have a 16 month old daughter. My entire torso pretty much and left arm are stone numb. I finished 3 days of IV steroids on friday but am on no other meds. I'm still in shock from the whole situation and am praying for the feeling to come back in my body so that I can feel again, and go back to work, care for my daughter, etc... I guess I'm looking for others who have had this numbness and it went away for hope that mine will too. Can anyone give me some ray of hope? I'm trying to be optimistic but I'm also so scared...

Hi, It will go. I have found with me it is quite severe then eases off.
If I were you I would start taking steps to help your body heal.
Take omega 3 oils (fish oils/flaxseed) and EPO (omega 6) take B12 and vitamin D, C and inositol. I have found these have helped me so much. I also don't eat wheat/dairy and keep my consumption of red meat to a minimum. Read about some of the other theories on this board such as CCSVI and Revimmune, Campath, LDN and the natural sections.

There is hope so don't feel that you won't come out of this current flair, things should improve

L x

LR offers good advice, we also have a "resident" supplement expert you may want to PM Jimmylegs....

hi just found this - and just to throw in my two cents, when taking d3 do also take a calcium magnesium and zinc blend - ideally 1200 ca, 600 mg, and 50 zn.
add a good b50 complex to work with the b12.
a natural e8 complex, 400IU per day may have some benefit. or you can eat a lot of raw sunflower seeds! 1/4 to 1/2 c per day.
and finally a good quality multivitamin/multimineral for a foundation to all the rest.

for more info see links in the signature below

_________________
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

My husband, who has MS, has had numbness/tingling like that. It was a severe attack like that that led him to be diagnosed with MS in the first place. His feet "fell asleep." And then it traveled up his body to about mid torso, and stayed that way. Constant needles day and night, and he couldn't feel anything else besides the pins and needles. He was panicked and freaked out. He didn't feel himself emotionally/intellectually, either.

It got better, but it was pretty slow. After about 6 months, the numbness was back down to just his feet. And it took about a year for the numbness to go away completely. It still comes back now and then, especially when he's feeling stress. But it hasn't come back as severely as that first time.

I hope you're feeling better already, but even if you're not...there is hope, lots of hope.

Hi hlm, You'll find everyone's stories are different, yet so much the same. My diagnosis came totally out of the blue 3+ years ago. I woke up one day with my legs feeling "funny." Less than a week later, I could barely walk. I had the three days of IV steroids, and for me they had an immediate impact. By the week after the steroids were done, I was able to walk again without using my husband's golf clubs as canes. I was slow and unsteady, and I still am to some degree, but it took a month or so to get back to what is my new normal (tired, pins & needles, spasticity to name a few), but it's tolerable. Knock on wood, I haven't had a noticeable relapse since. Things should settle down and you'll find a way to deal with whatever's on your plate. We all have, and we all understand what you're going through now. It's a scary time, but truly not without hope.
Here's to a quick end to your current symptons. You found a really good place at TIMS for help and resources.

hlm, we talked previously about pregnancy, but I didn't see this post.

My first 'official' symptom of MS was numbness on one side. I thought I had pinched a nerve, but then it started to spread and wouldn't go away.

I did not take any steroids or go on treatment as I wasn't diagnosed until a couple of months after.

The numbness lasted about 6 weeks for me. Actually, it probably really lasted closer to 6 months but I adapted to it so much that I didn't even realize it was there, after a while.

As far as MS symptoms go, I think this is by far the best one to have.
I was quite disappointed that my next relapses presented as something else - it would have been nice to limit the disease to a bit of numbness now and then!

It is scary when it's new though, and I hope you are back to feeling yourself again.