This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Knowledge & Support Community

My mother gets very painful migraines and I thought I was experiencing migraine symptoms. However, I RARELY experience pain when the following symptoms turn up, and they don't have triggers like most people who have migraines get?
- partial vision loss (ie one eye total temporary blindness, staticy/snowy vision, loss of peripheral vision.. Or, alarmingly, today.. I could see but it's like the pictures weren't connecting with my head, my depth perception was off, I had trouble focusing and therefore reading, walking, I had to lay down and shut my eyes because I was getting dizzy)
- dizziness.. Often when I lay down to sleep, I feel dizzy, whether my eyes are open or closed and the feeling lasts for some time
- fatigue (I thought I was lazy or had poor sleep habits but I have really been getting 8-10 hours per night on average lately and on Monday I still fell asleep in the afternoon and was late to something very important). I'm not anemic either.
- numbness, again today I had numbness from about the elbow down and in my foot
- speech problems.. Several months ago I had what I thought was a migraine or a stroke, but it passed after a few hours- again no pain. I was thinking the right words but my speech was slurred and the wrong words were coming out.

I was in a car accident last year where I got hurt and I have a 4 year old child. Some of my fatigue could be explained away by those things. I don't feel depressed (I did last year when I was hurt but I'm doing much better now), sometimes I think maybe I am just lazy or maybe my brain is not kept busy enough and I'm getting "dumber"..

Just interested in someone else's thoughts. I really don't want to go to the doctor if I don't have to, I spent a lot of time in the hospital and at fracture clinic, physio, etc after my accident and I also don't want to have anything wrong with me, or have my concerns shrugged off.. Or come off as attention seeking.

I do have a relative but not close relation (great aunt) with MS. As I stated above, my mom gets severe migraines and takes daily medication for them. My sister has juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. I have no underlying health issues, aside from my "bad arm" (2 surgeries to fix break and dislocation over 8 months, I do have numbness and osteoarthritis in the affected arm related to my injury, but I experience symptoms on my undamaged side). I've had a field of vision test but I have to repeat it, I was sent for it because I was experiencing "auras", eye exam was fine though. I usually have 20/20 vision or better, but have noticed over the last year that there's something different about my sight. I am 24 and I did not have any symptoms until I was about 21. I have felt like something was wrong but ignored it until it started to affect important things (this Monday, it was traumatic, I still feel guilty and anxious and upset).

I am also frustrated because I will feel fine all day but then just HAVE to sleep in the afternoon. I slept fine at night, even overslept, and then it's like I don't even notice I'm drifting off.

hey there keep a daily journal of how you feel for a while, then if you do go to the doc you can extract a short list of dates and key symptoms, something the doc can read at a glance to get a handle on the variety of things you are dealing with over time.
docs don't live with you 24/7 and you have a short window at the appt to get the point across - trying to remember everything you want to say when they are cutting in with clarification questions is tough.
if you do go and you're having trouble staying focused in general, make a short list so that you don't forget anything you wanted to cover in the appointment.
if you want to consider the possibility that nutrient status could be contributing to your symptoms, let me know. I can help in that department, not just in terms of ruling out the nutrition issues that are seen in ms patients, but in optimizing for health to protect against whatever life wants to throw your way.
feel free to ask any questions

Concern about temporary blindness that resolved should not seem like attention seeking. You have a relative with ms. There are genetic risk factors. Ask them to rule it out. With the blindness issue, dizzyness and fatigue, someone should start testing for you. If the doctors don't help, approach an opthalmologist.

SugarKitty wrote:My mother gets very painful migraines and I thought I was experiencing migraine symptoms. However, I RARELY experience pain when the following symptoms turn up, and they don't have triggers like most people who have migraines get?
- partial vision loss (ie one eye total temporary blindness, staticy/snowy vision, loss of peripheral vision.. Or, alarmingly, today.. I could see but it's like the pictures weren't connecting with my head, my depth perception was off, I had trouble focusing and therefore reading, walking, I had to lay down and shut my eyes because I was getting dizzy)
- dizziness.. Often when I lay down to sleep, I feel dizzy, whether my eyes are open or closed and the feeling lasts for some time
- fatigue (I thought I was lazy or had poor sleep habits but I have really been getting 8-10 hours per night on average lately and on Monday I still fell asleep in the afternoon and was late to something very important). I'm not anemic either.
- numbness, again today I had numbness from about the elbow down and in my foot
- speech problems.. Several months ago I had what I thought was a migraine or a stroke, but it passed after a few hours- again no pain. I was thinking the right words but my speech was slurred and the wrong words were coming out.

I was in a car accident last year where I got hurt and I have a 4 year old child. Some of my fatigue could be explained away by those things. I don't feel depressed (I did last year when I was hurt but I'm doing much better now), sometimes I think maybe I am just lazy or maybe my brain is not kept busy enough and I'm getting "dumber"..

Just interested in someone else's thoughts. I really don't want to go to the doctor if I don't have to, I spent a lot of time in the hospital and at fracture clinic, physio, etc after my accident and I also don't want to have anything wrong with me, or have my concerns shrugged off.. Or come off as attention seeking.

I do have a relative but not close relation (great aunt) with MS. As I stated above, my mom gets severe migraines and takes daily medication for them. My sister has juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. I have no underlying health issues, aside from my "bad arm" (2 surgeries to fix break and dislocation over 8 months, I do have numbness and osteoarthritis in the affected arm related to my injury, but I experience symptoms on my undamaged side). I've had a field of vision test but I have to repeat it, I was sent for it because I was experiencing "auras", eye exam was fine though. I usually have 20/20 vision or better, but have noticed over the last year that there's something different about my sight. I am 24 and I did not have any symptoms until I was about 21. I have felt like something was wrong but ignored it until it started to affect important things (this Monday, it was traumatic, I still feel guilty and anxious and upset).

Welcome to ThisIsMS, SugarKitty. We are glad to offer our thoughts, since you asked.

Jimmylegs has offered you her usual great suggestions and CaliReader, too. Please let me add a couple more of my ideas:

I have read that headaches/migraines can be due to magnesium deficiency (which is common in about 80% of the adult population). Perhaps this possibility should be discussed with your GP. I am uncertain of the best way to determine if you have a magnesium deficiency.

Lately, my focus is on wheat/gluten sensitivity. I know there is an atypical form of celiac disease (CD is the extreme case of gluten sensitivity.), in which symptoms are neurological, rather than intestinal. If an optometrist or ophthalmologist cannot identify a reason for your vision loss, perhaps these should be considered neurological.

The numbness you described ("from about the elbow down and in the foot") is also known as peripheral neuropathy. The University of Chicago suggests the following: http://peripheralneuropathycenter.uchic ... #bloodtest

I think this section on blood tests is especially useful:

Blood tests

Blood tests are commonly employed to check for vitamin deficiencies, toxic elements and evidence of an abnormal immune response.

Depending on your individual situation, your doctor may request certain laboratory tests to identify potentially treatable causes for neuropathy. These include tests for:

Vitamin B12 and folate levels (Zinc, magnesium, vitamin D, and copper are also recommended by jimmylegs.)
Thyroid, liver and kidney functions (especially thyroid hormones testing is recommended by Kathryn Simpkins in her book, The MS Solution)
Vasculitis evaluation
Oral glucose tolerance test (I also suggest a "fasting blood insulin test" – NOT to be confused with the blood sugar/glucose test.)
Antibodies to nerve components (e.g., anti-MAG antibody)
Antibodies related to celiac disease (I think a mannitol-lactulose test for Intestinal Permeability might be useful.)
Lyme disease
HIV/AIDS
Hepatitis C and B



And finally, since you say that you are 24 now, that your symptoms begin at age 21, and that you have a 4-year-old child, I wonder if your symptoms could be due to excess insulin secretion. A pregnant woman produces increased insulin so that her fetus can grow and put on weight. After delivery, her body may continue to produce this excess, but it is no longer used by a developing baby. If your body did not immediately return to normal, your pancreas continued to produce more than you needed. Excess insulin damages the interior of the blood vessels, and thickens and stiffens smooth muscles, and leads to insulin resistance. Your GP can order a blood test ("fasting blood insulin test") to check the insulin level. The optimal level should be 3 UU/ML or lower.

No one likes to see a doctor, but, if you have concerns, it may be time to see your GP. All the best to you.

When you use the word Sugar in your name sounds like you could be eating sugar. Not a good thing to eat. If you do not want to see a doctor give Dr. Bergman's approach a chance for couple months. That may be all it takes to make your feel better. If it doesn't work you can always see a doctor. Give your body a chance to heal and you may not need a doctor. You for sure do not need the drugs.