is this the beginning of a relapse.....

Please help, I am not sure if a relapse can start so slowly you are not sure its a relapse? Last time I had one earlier this year, my toes went numb, then the next morning, the numbness had spread up to my shins, the next morning it was up to my knees, and so on. Every morning it had travelled up my body by a few inches.

For the last week my toes went numb, and its taken a week but now my soles of my feet are numb. Its definatly progressed but I just dont know if its going to end up as a full on relapse.

Can anyone relate? I went swimming today and the water felt horrible against my skin and I felt quite ill getting out, all dizzy and weak and I was thinking of calling the ms nurse, but I know she would say leave it a few days and call back if it changes, so I thought I would ask you clever folk so I can get some more instant answers.

Thanks for any comments x

Hello. Sorry I can’t help, newly diagnosed myself so not sure. What I will say though, is call your MS nurse. Don’t waste your time trying to out think how she/he might respond to your call. You have every right to ring if your worried. All ther best to you.

Hi,I would give your MS nurse a call and let her kow you are experiencing this numbness so she can make a record of it. My first relapse started with my feet becoming numb and for me it lasted about 3 weeks. I had a course of oral steroids which really helped me. Don’t worry about wasting her time-it is her job to advise and help you. Take care Cathy

I can’t help with your question about a relapse but I can totally relate to the horrible feeling of water against your skin. It was one of the more distressing symptoms for me when I was at my worst as it was difficult to wash. I have been diagnosed with CIS and am still recovering. Good luck with the MS nurse.

Thanks for your replies. I have been diagnosed 10 years but not had many relapses, mainly because I have been pregnant or breast feeding for about 5 years, and before that I didnt get particularly severe relapses. The one earlier this year really knocked me and I ended up in hospital for a few days, and I can feel some neuro changes happening in my body and its worrying me.

Its not that I dont want to bother the ms nurse, more like its such hard work getting to speak to anyone, and they dont call me back or they try once and I miss the call because I am driving so I call them back, it goes straight to answer phone, so I leave a message and they call me back in about 3 days (once) and I might miss the call again, and so it goes on and on. And on. I will probably call tomorrow and start the frustrating cycle of leaving messages and missing calls again, but to be honest it upsets me and makes me feel worse than I did

So really I wanted to ask if anyones had a slow onset of symptoms that have turned out to be a relapse?

Hi. I had a relapse earlier this year which took a long time to peak - it started in my fingers & the went from my toes up to my waist, turning them numb. It took about 3/4 weeks to set in & has taken 6 months to fade and is still doing so. I hope your relapse, if it is that, is a mild one and passes quickly. Best wishes Jane xx

Thank you Jane. Thats interesting to know. I need to take this more seriously instead of waiting and waiting

It does sound like a relapse. My first come on over 24 hours, another took 3 weeks to reach its ‘peak’. You need your MS nurse’s or GP’s advice really. When you leave a message for the nurse can you try to be very specific about when’s best to call you back? I teach so I always say ‘between 12 and 1 or after half 3 please’. Does seem to work; just a thought. xx

Same as some others. I have had some that happen over a week, with progression each day. The first one this year started in February as I discussed it with my nurse at my check-up then. It wasn’t until March that I had to ring to say it was a full-on relapse and I needed the steroids. It was a definite slow-burner. It took me a while to realise that it was a relapse until the symptoms became very severe and impossible to ignore any longer.

Apparently I’ve had two this year although when I had the second one, although the symptoms were much the same as the other leg, I convinced myself (and tried to persuade the GP) that my leg was compensating for the relapsing one and this was causing the problem. Even so, I did at least go and seek medical advice promptly.

Tracey x