1st relapse

Hi everyone I have spoken to my nurse this afternoon and she has told me I am having a relapse. I got off the phone from her and just broke down in tears I was not expecting this to happen so soon. My first symptons started at the beginning of the year and was diagnosed at the back end of July. I am really wondering how soon after diagnosis did everybody else have a relapse and also how long do they last. I feel so weak and so rough and I really want to get off this train ride as I am really not liking it! Thanks for any advice it is much appreciated. xxx

I think it’s different for everyone. I was very lucky and had a very long gap (now known as my pregnancy years) between relapses. For other people there seems to be a greater frequency. Has your nurse offered you any treatment? Steroids can speed up your recovery from a relapse. I find an iron supplement and my vitamins generally keep me virus free - although not at the moment sadly. Hope you start to feel better soon. MS is so unpredictable but you’ve come to the right place for advice and/or support. Take care. xx

hi hopeful

ms is a mean b*tch doing this to you so soon after diagnosis.

i was in a big relapse when i got my diagnosis so all the bad news came at once.

maybe you could call your ms nurse back and ask if theres any treatment she can offer.

steroids do speed up recovery but have their side effects which a lot of people do not like.

i had a course of iv steroids which made me feel invincible but i crashed a few days later and had a nasty attack of roid rage.

be extra kind to yourself, have as many duvet days as needed.

it won’t always be like this

just remember that after a relapse you will get a remission!

carole x

Hiya.

Please try not worry too much. I was diagnosed during my first relapse and it was a complete surpise to me as although I’d had tingly feet on and off for about a year I didn’t think anything of it until that first proper relapse. I was in hospital for 2 weeks (my gp sent me to A&E), home for 2 weeks then back in hospital with another relapse. In the end I had 5 relapses in the first 6 months (and steroids for each one), by the end of the 6 months I’d started on DMD’s. (This was nearly 8 years ago and apart from a blip when I had to change dmd’s, I’ve had 1 or 2 relapses a year).

I’ve learned that everyones experience of MS is very different and trying to compare yourself to someone else, doesn’t do you any good at all.

I consider myself quite lucky as although I had lots of relapses one after another, I got diagnosed quickly and put on DMD’s quickly because of that. Different relapses have lasted longer than others, for some steroids have worked great and others hardly at all.

Sue

x

Thanks guys for your help and advice. When I spoke to my nurse yesterday she mentioned coming to talk to me in the new year about DMD’s. The whole idea is just freaking me out at the mo I just really do not want to have this anymore. I have to admit when I was given my diagnosis it came as a welcome relief and I was really pleased in a wierd sick way as I new what it was rather than “sorry can’t find anything wrong” sort of comment. Now I guess it is really starting to sink in and I just wish it would all just go away, I am fed up of feeling this way. Never mind onwards and upwards! x