This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Knowledge & Support Community

Hello there

I have symptoms of MS, including Lhermitte's sign (the shocks down my body when I bend my neck forward), tingling/numb hands, feet and legs, loss of sensation on other body parts like thighs, stomach and back that comes and goes, muscle spasms, regular headaches, increasing clumsiness, fatigue, back pain, burning sensation in leg, incorrect "reading" of sensory stimuli (e.g. cold water / dog licking my leg feels like excruciating pain), left side of body numb and not registering temperatures, trouble getting up from seated/lying position on floor (required by the nature of my job), etc. Six months of physio did not help. My symptoms have come and gone over the past 18 months. The sensation losses tend to vary, but the tingling in my left hand has been almost constant. Lhermittes sign came in Dec 2012 for the first time, disappeared in Jan 2013, reappeared in May 2013 and is still with me. At the moment both sides of my body are affected by numbness and tingling.

I realise that it could be due to many other things, and that MS is a diagnosis of exclusion, but while I wait for my first neurologist appointment which is only in four weeks' time, I was wondering whether anyone had any advice to offer for the tingling/numbness? At present I have some sensation in my fingers and palms, but it is dulled and it feels tight and cold - even though when I put my fingers on my face I can feel that they are indeed warm. I have tried hot compress, cold water, Deep Heat cream, massage, and even ibuprofen, but nothing has helped. Any suggestions, be it home remedies, herbs, over the counter meds, WHATEVER, will be appreciated, as it feels like my fingers are about to burst (once again my brain getting disrupted signals from my nerves). Also, feel free to say if you think it doesn't sound like MS at all - at present it is hard to be objective.

Thank you so much to anyone who takes the time to respond.

hi and welcome! curious if anyone has sent you for any nutrient testing? do you have any particular dietary habits or preferences?
given that you know dx-ing ms is a process of exclusion, no reason why you couldn't start investigating a few things while you're waiting for the neuro visit (they may touch on a few nutrients but not likely all of the ones that are known to be low on average in ms patients).

Tingling2 wrote:I have symptoms of MS, including Lhermitte's sign (the shocks down my body when I bend my neck forward), tingling/numb hands, feet and legs, loss of sensation on other body parts like thighs, stomach and back that comes and goes, muscle spasms, regular headaches, increasing clumsiness, fatigue, back pain, burning sensation in leg, incorrect "reading" of sensory stimuli (e.g. cold water / dog licking my leg feels like excruciating pain), left side of body numb and not registering temperatures, trouble getting up from seated/lying position on floor (required by the nature of my job), etc. Six months of physio did not help. My symptoms have come and gone over the past 18 months. The sensation losses tend to vary, but the tingling in my left hand has been almost constant. Lhermittes sign came in Dec 2012 for the first time, disappeared in Jan 2013, reappeared in May 2013 and is still with me. At the moment both sides of my body are affected by numbness and tingling.

I realise that it could be due to many other things, and that MS is a diagnosis of exclusion, but while I wait for my first neurologist appointment which is only in four weeks' time, I was wondering whether anyone had any advice to offer for the tingling/numbness? At present I have some sensation in my fingers and palms, but it is dulled and it feels tight and cold - even though when I put my fingers on my face I can feel that they are indeed warm. I have tried hot compress, cold water, Deep Heat cream, massage, and even ibuprofen, but nothing has helped. Any suggestions, be it home remedies, herbs, over the counter meds, WHATEVER, will be appreciated, as it feels like my fingers are about to burst (once again my brain getting disrupted signals from my nerves). Also, feel free to say if you think it doesn't sound like MS at all - at present it is hard to be objective.

Thank you so much to anyone who takes the time to respond.

Welcome to ThisIsMS, Tingling2.

Unfortunately, I do not have the solution for your symptoms. I can only suggest you use the next four weeks to prepare for the neurologist appointment:

#1 Write down a timeline and list of all your symptoms for your first neurologist appointment.
#2 Discuss your list with your doctor.
#3 In planning your strategy to investigate your peripheral neuropathy (The "tingling/numb hands, feet and legs" you described is called peripheral neuropathy.), discuss with him the following suggestions from the University of Chicago:

http://peripheralneuropathycenter.uchic ... ndex.shtml

Hello again, and thank you for the replies, I really appreciate it.

Lyndacarol - I have read quite a bit on what to expect from the neurologist visit, as I had an appointment booked last year, which had to be postponed for various reasons, one of which was that the symptoms went away. I kept a timeline during my physio treatments, but have since stopped - thanks for that tip, I will be sure to start up again. I got kind of fed up with some of it, like writing down how many times a day I dropped stuff - it's bad enough that I have to sometimes pick up my keys three times in a row from the floor, without reliving the experience by writing it down

Jimmylegs - no nutritional testing done yet. I eat a pretty balanced diet, although when I get really busy at work I tend to slack off. Have noticed no correlation between diet and symptoms. Am taking a magnesium supplement as, interestingly enough, my optometrist mentioned a deficiency when I went for my contact lens fitting, apparently this can be seen in the eye. Also take Omega 3, and had a B12 shot which did exactly nothing to alleviate the symptoms. Thanks for the link on all the nutritional info - it will take some time to wrap my head around all that, I haven't looked into all of that as of yet. I would be happy to learn that all of this is due to a nutritional deficiency; however there is a part of me that suspects MS is a real possibility - I couldn't help but notice that neither you nor Lyndacarol said "that doesn't sound like MS", a response that I have seen to many others' lists of symptoms all over the web.

Having said that, I don't think that a diagnosis isn't going to change my life, I'm already living with the symptoms of whatever it is; putting words to it may improve the outcomes and provide avenues to alleviate the symptoms, but will certainly not make it worse (yet) (That may be an extremely naive thing to say!!)

It has been a relief to get this all out there, even if it is in cyberspace, as my friends and family seem to think I exaggerate, or that it's not that bad - which I can understand because the sensations are absolutely indescribable and I wouldn't have understood it either. Only someone who's never felt like their finger got stuck in a plug everytime they dare to look down, would dare call Lhermitte's sign "benign"!

that is fascinating what you said about the optometrist recommending magnesium. what supplement form/dose are you taking?
wait someone gave you a b12 shot but no test? weird.
with nutrition and ms, it is not an either or situation. it's more like, if it is ms (or diabetes, or cancer, or whatever) deal with the nutrition aspects first. see if the symptom list thins out. give the docs a clearer picture going forward, knowing there are no remaining nutrition issues clouding the issue. it's sort of involved given the problems with standard normal ranges etc, but not unmanageable

Not sure about the magnesium as I seem to have tossed the box and the inner sachet doesn't have the details... It's a white tablet Started doubling the recommended dose as of today. Also found it very interesting that the optometrist could see it, I never knew that.

I went to the doctor for a sinus infection last year, and mentioned the tingling, which at that stage was not severe and only in my left hand and sometime in back, and said that I had read it could be a symptom of B12 deficiency (however, the info I got also said that it was very rare), so she just gave me a shot to see if it would help. It didn't. She did recommend taking a supplement as well, which I haven't done as of yet, but will get some tomorrow.

Guess I could start getting some nutritional levels tested and take that along to neuro. Fingers feel ready to explode, so am getting desperate, plus my WHOLE body with the exception of my chest and arms are numb today. Sleep is the only thing that helps as I can then forget about the excruciating weirdness. It's a good thing I like naps

hey there, do you still have the name of the magnesium supplement manufacturer? watch it with doubling - could be trouble if it's an insoluble form like mag oxide. depending on the size of each dose.

I'd be looking harder at serum zinc than serum b12, when it comes to infection rates.

consider asking for requisitions for:
serum b12,
serum 25-hydroxyvitaminD3,
serum ferritin,
serum zinc,
serum magnesium,
serum copper.

they're all likely to be 'normal' but you still want your own copy of results to see where exactly your levels sit within those normal ranges.
for many nutrients, ms patient levels (and patients in general for that matter) tend to be low to mid normal, while healthy controls are more likely to be high normal.

at the same time, you don't want to be too high in anything. ferritin and copper are specific ones to watch for.

it's tough trying to make blanket recommendations about food or supplements, because each person's genetic package and daily habits re food/fluids/meds/supplements can result in different combinations of levels and symptoms. that's why tests can be really helpful!