Not sure if i have MS or not

New diagnosis and before diagnosis
1

Hi I really need help because I don’t know what is going on with me. This will be the third time now this year these symptoms have flared up and my doctor is no help, the only thing they have done is said im depressed and need happy pills! until this year I hadn’t been to a doctors in over 5 years I’m not a fan anyway which isn’t helping.

Right how I have been feeling is extreme fatigue and tried to the point where I was needing naps in the day, aching all over, head aches that come and go and some times short sharp pains, i don’t feel like I’m in my body some times im floating and shaky, tinglingly. I feel sick so I cant eat, mixed with constipation and some times having to pee constantly (like 5 times one night!) i have felt a tight ness in my upper chest a few times like im being squished, its not painful just very odd and uncomfortable. I get so confused and struggle to know what I’m doing, have been getting blurry vision too (had a eye test the first time this happed and got glasses). I am also so cold that i will wear two jumpers indoors and have 0 sex drive.

When I’m at full health I’m very active I have lot’s of hobbies I enjoy I love my job and work is very rewarding for me and I’m always busy doing something, when I’m like this i can barely function.

I need advice on what to say or ask at the doctors all the times I have been so far I have been fobbed off but from reading up on this I’m worried that I could have MS.

Please any help or advice would be great!

2

Hi,

It would be irresponsible and dangerous for anyone to try to diagnose you here. Only a neurologist is qualified to do that, and only then after exhaustive examinations and tests.

The only advice I would give you is to keep a diary of your symptoms. Note the times and dates of everything you experience so that you don’t have to rely on your memory when you see your GP.

Remember that doctors are very highly trained and get rubbed up the wrong way when patients diagnose themselves. It’s better to stick to the facts which is why GPs like a diary so they can decide for themselves what’s going on.

Let us know how you get on.

Best wishes,

Anthony

3

I wasn’t asking for a diagnosis I was asking for help on how to deal with the doctors and things to ask or tell them.

I don’t do sick or doctors and this situation is freaking me out. And only being offered Antidepressants isn’t helping!

4

Hello

As Anthony said, we can’t tell whether you do or don’t have MS. Only after you’ve seen a neurologist and had a few tests, will you get an answer to your question.

Do start a diary, so you have a timeline to discuss with your GP. Ask for a referral to a neurologist. The diary will help there too.

Try not to Google your symptoms. Doctors don’t start with a diagnosis and try to fit your symptoms into it. They look at symptoms and then consider what diagnoses might fit. They then do appropriate tests and only then make a decision about what might be causing your symptoms.

And try not to worry. It won’t help and will probably make you feel worse.

Sue

5

Hi Funkymunky,

Not related directly to MS, but related to your situation with the Drs …

Two years ago I had a similar situation - I had what turned out to be pneumonia and wasn’t being listened to by my doctor. My usual Dr (who up to that point had been really good) decided that I wasn’t sick, didn’t require antibiotics, and instead referred me to the asthma nurse (with a two week wait to see her).

At that point, phenomenally low on energy from my body fighting the infection, high heart rate, temperature etc. it was clear to me that I didn’t have asthma. I changed to a GP surgery in a nearby town. Being in control of whose advice I chose to seek helped reduce my feeling of powerlessness.

As it turned out, I had three bouts of pneumonia within 6 months, and now have permanently damaged lungs (bronchiectasis). I wrote to the original doctor, explained my situation and reasons for changing surgery, and shared my subsequent diagnosis. I also shared what I wished she had done in that situation, and acknowledged that it’s a difficult job and no one can get it right all the time. She sent a nice reply, and it felt good to have been able to provide feedback that will hopefully be taken into account if she meets future patients presenting in the same way.

It’s horrible feeling not listened to - you start to think that it’s all in your head, the Dr says you’re ok, therefore you “must be ok” because they’re the expert. I also found that the expectation of not being listened to, made me more anxious about future appointments. I found it really helpful to take a small amount of control back, by not accepting the Dr’s diagnosis when I knew it didn’t sit right with me, and seeking a second opinion.

I would encourage you to keep paying attention to your body, look after it (eat well, get outside, even if it’s for a slow walk) keep a symptom diary as Ssssue & Albrecht suggest, and remember that ultimately it’s your body and only you know what you’re experiencing. Take your symptom diary along with you to your appointment, and if you feel like it would help, take a support person with you to give you confidence to push your doctor to develop a plan to improve your symptoms. Yes, it might be a tricky one, not an “easy fix” and possibly there’s more than one thing going on that’s causing your symptoms.

If you’re feeling rushed in the Dr’s appointments, you could try asking for a double appointment - treat the fatigue as one complaint, and the headaches and blurry vision as a separate thing. That way the appointment will be less rushed which benefits both you and the doctor, and it’s up to the Dr to work out whether the symptoms are actually linked or not.

Good luck, you can get through this :slight_smile: