scared I have it (after "Bell's palsy")

[question2452]

thanks in advance to anyone who can offer advice.

I'm a 22 year-old male

On 12/9 i was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy (paraylsis on one side of face). I took meds for a week and it went away. On 12/27, I started feeling mental discomfort (hard to describe), and an off-balance feeling, though I have been moving around just fine, fatigued, and eye discomfort. Yesterday I went to a PA. He gave me some physical tests which I passed. He speculated that I was having complications from whatever caused the Bell's Palsy, but they took my blood to test for other things (still waiting on results).

He said if I don't get better in 10 days, they'd send me to a neurologist, as I'd be a good candidate for MS. However, he thought the odds of that happening were 1 in a 100.

I looked up the MS symptoms. Since then (past 18 hours), I've been feeling a bunch of them. I'm numb and tingly, throughout my face and especially on my left side (lower leg, arm). I also think I'm having some twitches in my leg. Still enduring is this very strange mental discomfort, which is like a weight. Incredibly hard to describe. Also, I might be having bowel/bladder problems (not sure).

My question is how can this possibly be anything other than MS? All symptoms seem neurological. I'm not nauseous. I don't have a fever. This strange mental discomfort is not a symptom of Bell's Palsy. My suspicion is that I never had Bells Palsy, it was facial numbness from the MS.

My inclination is to run into a neurologist asap, but I'm not sure I can get an appointment. Maybe I should call that doctor and beg for him to fastrack me into a neurologists?

I would tremendously appreciate insights of any sort. Thank you very much in advance.


PS
On the bright side, speech is normal, and no painful muscle spasms yet.

I have one hope. In the past 2 years, I've been the ER twice for physical symptoms that were induced by anxiety. I doubt that's what this is given this strange mental discomfort (is this what is meant by brain fog? how do people describe this?) and that the PA didn't think that was a factor. But just putting it out there.

PSS
Can anyone help me describe the mental discomfort. is this what is meant by "fog"?

[lyndacarol]

thanks in advance to anyone who can offer advice.

I'm a 22 year-old male

On 12/9 i was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy (paraylsis on one side of face). I took meds for a week and it went away. On 12/27, I started feeling mental discomfort (hard to describe), and an off-balance feeling, though I have been moving around just fine, fatigued, and eye discomfort. Yesterday I went to a PA. He gave me some physical tests which I passed. He speculated that I was having complications from whatever caused the Bell's Palsy, but they took my blood to test for other things (still waiting on results).

He said if I don't get better in 10 days, they'd send me to a neurologist, as I'd be a good candidate for MS. However, he thought the odds of that happening were 1 in a 100.

I looked up the MS symptoms. Since then (past 18 hours), I've been feeling a bunch of them. I'm numb and tingly, throughout my face and especially on my left side (lower leg, arm). I also think I'm having some twitches in my leg. Still enduring is this very strange mental discomfort, which is like a weight. Incredibly hard to describe. Also, I might be having bowel/bladder problems (not sure).

My question is how can this possibly be anything other than MS? All symptoms seem neurological. I'm not nauseous. I don't have a fever. This strange mental discomfort is not a symptom of Bell's Palsy. My suspicion is that I never had Bells Palsy, it was facial numbness from the MS.

My inclination is to run into a neurologist asap, but I'm not sure I can get an appointment. Maybe I should call that doctor and beg for him to fastrack me into a neurologists?

I would tremendously appreciate insights of any sort. Thank you very much in advance.


PS
On the bright side, speech is normal, and no painful muscle spasms yet.

I have one hope. In the past 2 years, I've been the ER twice for physical symptoms that were induced by anxiety. I doubt that's what this is given this strange mental discomfort (is this what is meant by brain fog? how do people describe this?) and that the PA didn't think that was a factor. But just putting it out there.

PSS
Can anyone help me describe the mental discomfort. is this what is meant by "fog"?

Welcome to ThisIsMS, question2452.

You say that" they took my blood to test for other things," I hope that your blood tests include the following which are suggested by the University of Chicago. (By the way, the numbness and tingling in your left lower leg and arm are called peripheral neuropathy.)

http://peripheralneuropathycenter.uchic ... #bloodtest

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
• Thyroid, liver and kidney functions
• Vasculitis evaluation
• Oral glucose tolerance test
• Antibodies to nerve components (e.g., anti-MAG antibody)
• Antibodies related to celiac disease
• Lyme disease
• HIV/AIDS
• Hepatitis C and B

Welcome to ThisIsMS, .
The diagnosis of MS made by ruling out other conditions that have similar symptoms. Your first sentence seeks "advice;" here is mine:
#1 Take a deep breath.
#2 Before your next medical appointment, compose a timeline and list of your symptoms to present to the doctor.
#3 Ask for copies of all your blood test results and keep them in your own file.

As for your "inclination to run to a neurologist ASAP," I tend to believe that if you see a surgeon about a problem, he will find a solution in surgery; if you see a neuro, he will only see the problem/solution in neurology. I read an article that summed this up well: "doctors are experts in, and only test for, those parts of the body in which they specialize." I think your GP is a good place to start your investigation.

As for the description of "brain fog," you may find different people have different definitions. I have not experienced this; I consider difficulty with memory – remembering names, people, words – to be brain fog. It may also include mental abilities that were previously no problem – math calculations, recalling the right word for a particular situation, logical thinking. People with "brain fog" experience will have a better definition, I'm sure.

[question2452]

I cannot thank you enough

[want2bike]

You should understand whatever the name they give your disease the cure is within you. It is all about what we put in our bodies and what we keep out. Let Dr. Bergman explain the treatment for all disease.

[jimmylegs]

hi question, welcome to the forum
I am curious about your background, health-wise.
what can you tell us about your diet and lifestyle?
would you have described yourself as healthy/fit prior to the bell's palsy dx?

[jimmylegs]

question for you question

did your docs determine if your case of palsy was secondary to (caused by) anything in particular? (I am guessing not, since your doc used the phrase 'whatever caused' it..)

do you know if all of these possible causes were ruled out?:

Management of peripheral facial nerve palsy
http://link.springer.com/article/10.100 ... 008-0646-4
"Three quarters of peripheral FNP are primary and one quarter secondary. The most prevalent causes of secondary FNP are systemic viral infections, trauma, surgery, diabetes, local infections, tumor, immunological disorders, or drugs."

I'm quite curious now about primary palsy cases, and what has or has not been ruled out as possible contributing factors.

[question2452]

I'm very fit, but drink a lot of diet soda. I'm not sure I understand your second question. The doctor said that the cause of Bells palsy is not well known, but guessed that it might be viral. thank you very much.


My most disturbing symptom is this very strange mental discomfort sensation. I don't know any other way to describe it. I'm sharp, at the moment (can talk to people and write clearly), but something feels very wrong.

[jimmylegs]

ok. talk to me about dietary habits. what does a typical day's intake of food and fluids (other than diet soda) look like?

sounds like the doc was leaning towards your case having a cause (secondary facial nerve palsy).. but didn't know what it was! (primary/idiopathic facial nerve palsy!)

if the doc guessed viral, then it looks like he guessed your case was 'secondary' ie caused by something, rather than idiopathic (without known cause).

what is your history of viral infection that had your doctor thinking that might be related?

luckily there's lots you can do to support your immune system against viral infection if you are interested.

question about the diet soda - would you say you drink dark coloured ones more, or light coloured sodas?

as for the mental discomfort. my most noticeable improvements to cognitive function involved improved blood flow, and correction of some nutrient problems. do you think your doctor would agree to run a couple serum nutrient tests?

[jimmylegs]

fyi zinc levels can be (are) low in athletes, ms patients, and people who are susceptible to infection. in this study, 23.3 of the male athletes were not just low in zinc, but outright deficient:

Serum zinc in athletes in training
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6174470
Serum zinc was determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometry in 160 training athletes (57 females) in the morning at rest. In 23.3% of the male and 43% of the female athletes, serum Zn was lower than the limit accepted for the normal range (75 microgram/dl or 11.5 mumol/l).

you want your serum zinc level to be right up at the top end of the 'normal' range - that would be more like 120 microgram/dl or 18.5 mumol/l. zinc is great for male reproductive health too by the way! that's why they say oysters are aphrodesiacs - they are full of zinc