I have been suffering from vertigo and fatigue for the past two and a bit years, and visiting my GP for this (I’ve had different drugs for the vertigo, but he’s not been able to help with the fatigue). The last spell of vertigo was joined with pins and needles in my hands, feet and face which I mentioned, and it prompted him to order an MRI of my brain.
A couple of weeks ago I had a bit of an “episode” - I woke up one day with no strength in my arms and hands, not able to walk un-aided and slurring my speech. Hubby took me to A&E where they were worried I might have MS and admitted me. After a couple of days I was able to walk again, and they let me home. I’d had a CT scan (normal) and an MRI of my brain. The Dr didn’t wait for the formal report, but said it looked normal so he let me home again and said he’d call me back in as an outpatient for another MRI of my neck.
The pins and needles has now progressed to pain. It’s weird, but when I’m in bed at night my feet hurt, my arms hurt, and last night also my thighs. Not all at once, the pain switches location from time to time (I keep trying to work out if it’s related to the position I’m lying in, but I’ve not been able to spot a pattern yet). It’s disturbing my sleep, as well as being - well - painful!
When I’m up and moving I feel normal. As soon as I sit still or go to bed my hands and feet (particularly) start playing up. Thankfully my face is behaving pretty well, only mild tingles and no pain there.
Hubby wants me to go back to the GP as things have progressed since I was last there. However, he’s been really sympathetic up to this point and I don’t want to push my luck. I’m not really expecting him to be able to do anything, so I wonder if I’d be better just waiting for the promised hospital appointment?
Or is it better to get everything documented as it’s happening?
I’m 11 months in and CIS at the moment. My symptoms started changing pretty rapidly after the first… er… lapse (can’t call it a relapse if I haven’t had it before). Wasn’t exactly welcomed with open arms at my surgery, I got the impression I was a ‘Neurologists’ problem’ very early on. I have permanent l’Hermite’s sign and a tingle from my waist all the way down the back to my tippy toes. Can’t do anything about it, I’ve learnt to live with it. The fatigue is a completely different animal. If I’ve got the insomnia bit, they’ll give me sleeping pills without a second thought. However, my Dr flat-out lied to me and said there’s nothing they can do about the over-sleeping bit. After a little research, I found out that they can give you stimulants to keep you awake. They could be addictive but, jeez, what are sleeping pills? I digress. I felt going to the Dr every time something changed was going to be fool’s errand, so I just keep a daily diary and make notes for when I see my neuro. If something’s causing a particular problem I see the Dr (waterworks, lack of appetite, pain, infections), the basic symptoms they can prescribe for. As for anything remotely neuro? Not a chance! I know more about MS now than any of my GP’s. The first one said I didn’t have the ‘classic symptoms’ for MS. That’s hilarious to me now!
The admittance will/should be documented on your notes for the neuro, but mention it when you see them if they don’t ask about it. The problem with this thing is there’s no definitive test to prove/disprove it, it’s a gathering of symptoms in the end. As a certified control freak, this doesn’t sit well with me. It’s a rather disorganised condition. Ah, the irony!
I think (hope!) that the doctor I saw when I was admitted was the neuro (I know one of them was, because he introduced himself, but I only saw him in A&E, it was a different chap in the ward I was on.
One thing I definitely remember him saying was that if I or anyone else thought my symptoms warranted further investigation then I was welcome to come back to him. I rang the hospital last week and they said I should get a letter calling me back for the follow-up within a month, so I guess perhaps it’s better just to wait for that.
I totally sympathise with the control freak thing! I just want to know a) what’s wrong with me, and b) what to do about it!