I have found you after tentativly searching the net over the last few weeks wondering if I go to the doc and suggest I may have MS…
I have multi level cervical disc disease,and cervical myelpathy and a lot of nerve damage thanks to bone spurs and a scarred spinal cord amongst other daft spine problems and just put down my symptoms
to the fact I was suffering with this. The other week however I was talking to someone whose family member has MS and the problems she has resemble mine so closely it got me wondering, especially since the last year or so the falling over the problems swallowing and the walking problems have worsened so much. I literally fall over if I stand for more that a minute or two the only thing stopping me suggesting this to the G.P. is that I am 55 years old and I honestly thought that MS rears its head when you are in your 30’s as my friends sister is.
my eyesight has deterioted a lot this last year also and the speed at which things are going at the moment is getting pretty scary, I have suffered with my neck problems for the last 12 years but I also am struggling to remember names of things and getting so stressed out about this and I have also been diagnosed with depression recently as well…sorry the story is a bit vague I just wonder if anyone can give me some pointers for what to ask the G.P…Dont really want him thinking as I am a silly moaning northener who knows nowt bout out…thank you for your time everyone…good luck God bless and happiness to all…
nah your not a silly moaning northener, id just see your doctor, letting his know your concerns and the symptoms that you are worried about and the fact that your worried about it being ms, the dr should take it from there to start finding out whats going on and what it is, theres alot of people here who know more than me that will probably be more help than me, i hope that helps a bit. vix
I would take a visit to your doctor but tell him your symptoms and ask his advice and if things could be investigeted again because of the new signs. I most definately would not suggest to him/her that you may have MS as they like to be the ones to do the dx. I wish you good luck.
I completely agree with Janet. Personally, I would not mention MS at all. In general, doctors are not keen on self-diagnosers, and you may get wrongly labelled as anxious or paranoid, even though your symptoms are real.
I would see the doctor, but just stick to the facts of what you have experienced, and not your suspicions of what it might be. There are over 100 conditions that can produce similar symptoms, so it’s too early to assume MS in any case.
I also have a cervical injury due to an accident 3 years ago when I disclocated my neck, tearing all the ligaments, breaking a few bones and rupturing the discs at C3, 4 and 5 and causing major spinal cord compression. I needed emergency neuro surgery to prevent me from becoming a quadriplegic and since then have had spinal cord problems and symptoms on top of the MS.
Trouble is the symptoms are indistinguishable! So now if I have any neuro symptoms the Drs tend to err on the side of caution and assume it is my neck before assuming it is my MS. Just means I have to have an MRI of my neck done so they tend to do my brain at the same time. Might as well kill two birds with one stone
But spinal cord problems at the levels you are talking about can cause walking problems, weakness in arms and egs, bladder problems, numbness, stumbling etc etc…
Also if you are depressed that can cause problems with concentration and short term memory. And the 50’s are a notorious age for the eyes to start on a rapid decline. As I hit middle age my eyes deteriorated FAST! I was constantly needing my prescription updated as my vision for close work deteriorated.
So it is really hard to know if you have MS or not… BUT you do have very good reason to be paying a visit to your GP. I wouldn’t mention the MS. As others have said, Drs can get very cranky with self-diagnosers but given your history of neck problems I should think that alone combined with the symptoms you describe would warrant a thorough investigation anyway.
To be honest, an unstable cervical injury and spinal cord compression from herniating discs is far more of a medical emergency than MS is. If this is the cause of your symptoms it is not something to be ignoring. Off to the GP ASAP is my recommendation.