This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

Hi

This is my first message and would welcome your advice as well as say hello.

I was diagnosed two months ago with CIS after 5 months of various symptoms including numbness and tingling in legs and arms as well as spasms and loss of use at times. Been feeling ok for two months and now symptoms of numbness and tingling have returned. Is this normal ??

Em

Hi Emma,
Welcome to ThisIsMS. I had my first MS attack in 1991 and was symptom free for the next 8 years. I changed nothing about my life. However, looking back after receiving my MS diagnosis after my second attack in 1999, I regret not being aware of the opportunity that was before me. That is, since being diagnosed, I have changed my diet to reduce inflammation. I eliminated trans fats, greatly reduced saturated fats as well as sugar and have shifted my diet to include foods that are more nutritionally dense. In addition, as supported by the medical literature, I have developed a supplement regimen that includes things like omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil, anti-inflammatory antioxidants such as green tea, curcumin from turmeric, r-lipoic acid, along with vitamin D3 and minerals such as zinc and magnesium. It is the position of many neurologists that diet has no affect on MS. However, this is simply ludicrous. It is difficult to imagine that one can consume a highly proinflammatory diet and not affect a disease which has a component of chronic inflammation. So, I encourage you to take this opportunity and evaluate your current diet and make any positive changes in areas you feel you can improve upon. You may wish to read through many of the posts in the Natural Approach and Diet forums. I strongly suspect that if I had made the changes I have following my first attack, that my subsequent diagnosis would have been much delayed. Unfortunately, there was no mention of MS in 1991 and I had no clue what was later in store for me.

NHE

I apologize for forgetting to address your question. Yes, it is normal for symptoms acquired in one MS attack to flare up from time to time. Sometimes this can be due to physical or emotional stress or it can be due to other things such as illness. This doesn't necessarily mean that there is new damage. However, what it could be due to is damage to the nervous system which hasn't healed yet and is under stress for some reason such that your body cannot compensate and work around the damage. Unfortunately, the truth is that some damage that causes symptoms may never go away. For example, I have had neuropathic pain in my right foot ever since my diagnosis in 1999. Some days are better than others and some days or worse. The thing to watch out for is completely new symptoms or dramatic worsening of old symptoms that stick around. This situation could signal that a new attack or relapse is occurring.

NHE