Could this be MS

New diagnosis and before diagnosis
1

Hi there,

It is very scary coming on here reading through the causes and symptoms of MS. I am also part of an ALS forum where is a reassured it was highly unlikely it was ALS.

My symptoms are as follows and began in September. All of sudden I had this onset of what only felt like left leg muscle weakness (Which can only be described as tingling) but I’m really not sure. Over the next few days this spread to my left arm. I had these symptoms for about 1 week and a half until they subsided around the middle of October. Some times I would feel very numb getting out of bed but that symptoms seems have gone away. So for about 2 weeks the symptoms stayed away until the end of October where (yay) they returned. This time it was left leg, left arm and right arm (some times). There was no numbness and again the tingling sensation was there. It can again only be described as a perceived weakness but with no struggle to lift or conduct daily activities. This time I also had eye pain when I moved my eyes from left to right which disappeared after a few days. It also seems I have a short attention span (Which I never used to have) and I am easily distracted. I just find these symptoms really strange. So in the middle of November these symptoms subsided again. Only to return at the end of November (Symptoms which I am currently struggling with). These include left arm weakness or tingling and leg tingling. My arm tends to be worse when sitting down and my left tends to be worse when standing up. I can walk perfectly normal and again I can lift and conduct daily activities with no struggle. I some times get brain fog and still have a short attention span. Even when writing this I seem to zone out occasionally. My arm feels like it tingles and my leg feels the same when standing up. Doesn’t seem to be any muscle atrophy anywhere. I was worried this could also be ALS but every person suggested it didn’t sound like it was.

I have no speech problems, no bladder problems etc… I have a neurologist appointment on the 11th of this month. So my main symptoms are weakness, tingling, attention span problems and a month ago I also had eye pain and my right arm was affected (Weakness in my right arm seems to have gone away). In the first month I also felt very numb when getting out of bed. My symptoms seem to come and go where I’ve been told with ALS they do not. What do you guys think about my symptoms? A lot of them correlate to MS? It is really scary being in limbo not knowing what is wrong. I’ve had these symptoms for 3 months now. They don’t seem to be any worse than when they started, just different symptoms some times, quickly spreading from my leg to arm.

2

Just to add I am 22, male and the burning sensations (quite painful) happens when I exercise.

3

good luck for the 10th of this month.

whatever the outcome you are among friends on here.

4

Hello Danny

First of all, you should be aware that MS shares a lot of symptoms with other diagnoses, so no one on this site can say, ‘oh, yes, that sounds like MS’, or of course that it doesn’t.

At least you only have a few days now until your neurologist appointment.

What I suggest you do to prepare for that appointment is write out a timeline, with what has happened to you and when. Include any symptoms that have been fleeting, any that have come, stayed a while, then got better and any that are constant.

Try to take someone with you to the appointment. It’s very common to sit there in front of a neurologist, talk reasonably with him/her, think you’ll remember everything that’s said, then leave the room and have no idea what was said. It’s a stress reaction. The other person with you should be able to remind you if you forget to say anything to the neurologist, and very importantly, remember what is said to you.

If the neurologist says something that you don’t understand, ask what they mean. If they recommend tests, ask what happens in those tests and what they will be looking for.

Don’t expect to walk out of the appointment with a diagnosis (of anything). The neurologist will probably do a physical exam as well as ask you what has brought you there, but they won’t make a diagnosis without clinical evidence (eg MRI scan).

Best of luck.

Sue