I agree that there could be a link to stress or shock. I had my first major relapse after my dad sold his business where I worked and the new management was horrible so both my husband and myself had to leave at the same time then some 12 years later I was made redundant in bad circumstances and my second relapse followed very shortly. They then carried out MRI and LP and diagnosed it. I also know of another 4 people who can put major relapses down to following stressful situations (I know we all have numbers of relapses but they are major ones usually ending up hospitalised. Hope this helps.
Note that while she suggests that there are three dimensions to stress, there are at leas two more to be found in Jones and Hardy: Stress and Performance in Sport, published by Wiley in 1990/1993 (I have the later edition).
One thing that may relate to the OP is his location in Scotland. Scotland? Up North? Less sunlight? Low Vitamin D?
So while it could be easy to draw a simple conclusion that there is a connection between his stress and his MS (without knowing the direction of the effect; one would also have to factor in the possibility of low Vit-D. There is some evidence that a ligher level of Vit-D leads to a “feel-good” condition which is the opposite of feeling stressed. Look at:
for example. Of course, there is also a view that certain stressors can lead to Vit-D deficiency, and a relationship betweenstress and a reduction in the level of anti-oxyidents.
On the whole, I still think that stress can follow ill-health (more than the other way round).
In the absense of either a cause or a cure for MS - you can say whatever you want? My experience of the ‘onset’ of MS came after a ‘parting of the ways’ from a family business in the motor trade in which I was director of in 1995 - the business had been around for ~50 years! I have not spoken to any of my relations since (1995). I was told that there was no incidence of MS in my family although my grand father (whom I never met) came from Orkney and my grandmother came from Shetland. There is a fairly high incidence in these parts of the country of MS. In the absence of any cause, it was my own guess that it could be ‘self inflicted’ but without any evidence, it may just be ‘rubbish’ who knows. I’m 56 now and will I die with MS? It would be nice to know what ‘cases’ MS - I don’t bl**dy know!
Yes, I definitely think the few episodes I had were induced by stress. I know it isn’t proven or scientific etc etc but I can pinpoint what the stressors were and when I was feeling them. I can remember feeling ‘trapped’ by the stress (one was a too talkative colleague who I literally couldn’t get away from!) and getting numb feet within a day or two.
yeah ive enjoyed reading all your comments on this, its interesting to me, and i feel like i’ll continue to look into this. I just hope that there are other people out there with a medical background looking into this, doin research.
I see that this thread has been started twice! I read one of your own replies in one thread and I hope that you wont internalise what I am going to say! My reply is about me and is an explaination that I can live/cope with. I dont expect anyone else to agree or understand but if it helps someone in any shape or form then so be it…
My life goes something like this-my biological Dad was killed in a road accident when I was 3 months old, the Dad that was my father figure committed suicide when I was 12, 3 weeks later my Grandad dropped down dead in a field (heart attack), my husband beat me, I hit the bottle. I spent many years ‘pretending’ that I was happy with a great job including all the benefits it brought BUT inside I was screaming! I didnt have a clue who or what I was-I just seemed to bounce from one disaster to the next. In the family there is arthritis and high incidence of cancer (on the female side). I think that after x number of years my body just couldnt handle any more stress and something was going to give-it chose MS for me. I believe that I ‘brought it on’ in the sense that very cell in my body was under strain, struggling with my unresolved mental issues and ‘ping’-I woke up incontinent and paralised one November morning. I had 11 attacks-all biggies in under 2 years. Every body part and function seemed to be affected-carers to my home x4 daily to attend to my every need.
Anyway-it all came to a head one evening (details dont matter!) and that moment my life changed. The pretence had to stop-otherwise I didnt know which path I was going to end up on-pressing the self destruct button even harder and quicker I can only guess.
I have been diagnosed 7 years now and it took me approximately 5 to have a good and true look at myself-and what I had become. I didnt like it-and neither did my family-I was the biggest ‘victim’ there had ever been. I decided to take care and to be in control of me and my emotions and not let them be decided by another (as I had done all of my life to date). I did this through looking at one cell and what it needs to operate efficiently (have forgotten now tho LOL!) I changed my diet to healthy-years of shift work and trying to bring up kids etc etc I had become slap dash and convenient. I made time for me. Stopped trying to be Superwoman and learned that life was for living and enjoying-not seeing how much stress one could take!
I now live alone with 3 kids-eldest moved in with her b/f last year and I can honestly say that I am happy. I am poorer, in more physical pain than I have ever been, mentally I laugh cos I dont want to cry ALL the time, doing things to my body to make it work in some sort of way BUT I smile every day. Thats not a cover up job cos my wee cells know the difference! Its a real and true happiness of who I am and what I can share with others.
Its been far from easy-looking at oneself honestly and objectively as poss aint easy! But its not impossible, doesnt happen overnight but I have reaped the benefits no end. For me thats a mental state that I can cope with anything. Perhaps sounds impossible but through regular meditation and teachings I feel and believe this. Because I can see/reflect/undertstand (in my own way) as to how/why I have MS and it has taught mne so much about life and relationships and coping then I am grateful. Of course I would rather be without MS but then would I still be the selfish, confused, horible b*tch that I was 8 years ago?! Who knows but this is the card I have been dealt so I aint wasting my time fighting a battle thats already been won by definition of diagnosis. I will live the rest of my life as fully as I can within the physical restraints that burden me daily.
Gosh-didnt set out to write ALL that but it just flowed!
However, theres no room for guilt or if only’s in my life-waste of emotion-so if this makes sense to you then no internalising and saying ‘its my own fault’. Its NOT as simple as that!
Thank you for your kind words. Everyone has to find their own way in this game of life-the good bit being-we have the power to change the rules! LOL.
Words are just that-and sometimes mean little until the action is done/felt. I suppose even words of comfort from others come into that-the words mean something when u feel the sentiment/caring/love behind them. Too many of us beat ourselves up over stuff that we have no control over, letting them go and getting on with the stuff that we can alter/change is preferable for us. Handing our emotions over to another is another thing that we are ‘good’ (bad!) at. No-one can make us feel anything-we choose our reactions. (I feel that I can say that as have definelty fallen into that category previously!) If it were possible then I would ‘make’ everyone feel happy with what they have! Accept life as it is and dont waste precious energy fighting (that includes oneself as well as others)
Sun is out-going to get myself organised and get train to next town for lunch I think!
Personally I think there’s a psychosomatic element to a lot of illness, and so it wouldn’t surprise me if there was something in about my thoughts or emotions that contributed to me getting ill. ‘Contributed’ is the key word though - I doubt it was solely down to that, and there’s probably all kinds of things that went in to the mix, be it genetic or environmental or whatever. I don’t blame myself though, and I certainly don’t think it’s anyone’s own fault that they’ve got MS. The fact is, there’s so much that we don’t know about this disease, and so much that we don’t know about how the mind works, and how that can affect the body. But I think Western medicine is missing a trick by only focussing on physical symptoms and not seeing the ‘whole’ person.
