Symptoms and Advice before diagnosis

Hi all. I am hoping for some advice around some symptoms I have been experiencing. Not sure where to start so I will list the things I have experienced over the past few years. Decline in vision which seems to come and go. I sometimes look at the tv and cannot make out words for blurring, yet othertimes my sight seems ok. I frequently have floaters and shapes that cloud my vision. Ringing in my ears. This happens a lot and is quite annoying. I often feel light headed or dizzy and occasionally will trip over my own feet especially if trying to step side ways. I woke this morning and felt extremelly dizzy and felt as if somone was squeazing my head and had to take the day off work. I also feel nauseous. I am hypersensitive to smells and often smell things that noone else can. I am very tired alot of the time even after a good nights seep. My right knee gives way and athough I don’t fall I feel as if I am going to. I get pins and needles in my hands and odd electric shock symptoms in my chest. I sometimes feel as if my liver is double the size and pressing on my ribs (I don’t have a drink problem). I also experince sporadic throat symptoms where I feel as if I have alump in my throat and find swallowing difficult. Sometimes this is fin and other times I notice it a lot. I frequently need to urinate and this has definately got worse the past year, I also seem to have IBS symptoms. Occassionally I struggle to find words and when i type I will find that I have typed words the wrong way such as hte instead of the. I don’t have dyslexia and have never had these problems before but they have got worse. I feel as if I have brain fog and although I am educated I feel as if thinking is hard work sometomes and I feel like it is making me lazy. I hope that all makes sense. Sorry for rambling.

. I am,44 years old. There is no family history of Ms but I do have a heart condition which I am medicated for. I was thinking of starting wth an eye test to see if the optician picks anyting up. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. i feel quite scared and feel reluctant to start with the doctor because Im no sure of their reaction and if I am honest I am a little bit afraid of what they might find. Thanks Lola

Hi Lola, mmm, well there`s quite a lot going on there.

Dunno if I can help, but Ill have a try for you. Lets take each problem in turn.

Vision problems are quite a common symptom in MS. But yes, having an eye test/check up wouldn`t do any harm.

Dizzines/ringing in the ears…perhaps a problem like vertigo?

Tripping over your feet…yes, another very common MS symptom.

Tiredness/pins and needles/tightness in the chest/getting words mudded up…all these could be MS.

Now the important thing to remember is that ALL of these things (plus the others I havent touched on) , could be caused by many other things, therefore in order to get any of them checked out (except the eye test), you wil have to see your GP.

Leaving it all to cause you further anxiety, won`t help matters.

Go on, make that appointment, yeh?

Let us know how it goes yeh?

luv Pollyx

the lump in the throat thing, could it be anxiety, along with the IBS, particularly if you are worrying? Thats not to say the rest of the symptoms arnt MS, just maybe some of them might not be, as for floaters, as we get older everyone gets more but you are definitely right you should visit the optician. go and see your doctor, and raise your concerns, you may not get an immediate referral but the sooner you go you can get the ball rolling.

Just a word of warning be careful what you lump into MS type symptoms. I am currently in hospital having steroid treatment for my c-spine lesion which so far us undiagnosed . I was convinced that visual issues I was having same as you were MS symptoms too. When they did my lumbar puncture the pressure was really high! I had inter cranial hypertension which can cause all the visual symptoms also nausea, loss of concentration, memory loss etc. They are still investigating as May have other lesions causing facial issues. I would urge you to go and see an optician who can have a good look into the back of your eyes to see if your optic nerves are under stress and test the pressures in your eyes too. Very best of luck. Di

hi im new to this so ihope i dont ramble to much… im a 49 year old woman who has recently been having a lot going on health wise, i have been registered partially sighted recently, i have sight problems obviously, i also suffer from numbing down the right side of my face which i actually thought i had a stroke, i also have bad pins and needles in my arms hands and feet, im very unsteady on my feet have terrible dizzy spells etc…etc… i was sent to see a neurologist who basically said i was showing signs of ms the tests were done i had mri, lumbar puncture and vep, alll that came back clear.??? now he said hes not conviced with the results and is sending me to have more tests done in a movement disorder clinic, i also have a lot of tremors and cramping. the neuro also said that ms does not always show its face in tests immediately, but he wants me to to and have other tests just to make sure its nothing else… does this mean it could still be ms im so confused.

i would be very grateful of any information

thanks xx

Hi Lola and everyone, Just to tag onto Di’s observation and comments re: eye exam and other causes, I had very thorough eye exam with PEARS referral from GP at local optition due to blurring, floaters, intermittent stabbing/stinging pain episodes behind eye. Optic nerve and pressures are ok, she did a test with dye into eyes and said left is particularly dry, many floaters and cobwebs can be jelly detachment, shows on X-rays. I also have many of the other symptoms we associate with MS, I have been doing a bit of reading prior to seeing neurologist, Sjorgens syndrome keeps jumping out at me, an autoimmune condition which can have affect on nervous system, can include all the things you describe, I also have IBS and recurring mouth ulcers etc. who knows?? It’s a minefield of conditions and overlapping similar symptoms I’m starting to realise, and that’s why it takes so long for any diagnosis often and process of elimination with tests, assessments etc over time. Let’s hope we all get answers sometime soon. Take care all Ally x

Hi all. Thank you so much for the comments and appologies for not replying but nothing showed up in my email so I thought nonne had replied lol.

Since my post I have been diagnosed with vitamin B12 defciency and had injections but the main smptoms of tiredness and what I call wobbly brain (can’t explain it) persisting. I had a whole host of tests and all came back fine with no cause for he deficiency? I booked an eye test this week and then had to cancel due to wor so back the next week & will see what comes from that.

I will let you know how I go and thanks again :slight_smile:

Hi Ally. Are you any further forward with a diagnosis?

Regards Lola x

Hi I have been diagnosed the following symptoms by neurologist.

Admitted to hospital. Left sided face and arm weakness, left side lower limb sensory disturbance, clear MRI in 2007.

Vestibular disturbance, ataxia, double vision and coordination problems in 2013. No MRI.

Couple of months ago admitted with ataxia, coordination problem, double vision, discharged and diagnosed with functional disorder by ward doc. Did not see neurologist. Gp not happy so asked for a neurology appointment.

Saw neurology couple of months ago told the symptoms match Remitting MS but also Functional disorder. (Diagnosed with psoriasis arthritis in 2000 which was blurring neurological tests) Double vision with no 6th nerve palsy. when she checked result of last MRI she found they looked at MRI of spine done late 2013 for arthritis, no MRI of brain. Just to be sure of functional disorder diagnosis she ordered brain MRI. Also taken off Biologics for arthritis until test came back. Shortly after MRI I had sudden loss of vision and painful eye, saw optician the following day. I have a reduction of vision in one eye reducing prescription by 1.5 which apparently is a lot. Also right eye does not travel all the way across when looking into distance which can be 6th nerve palsy but optician not qualified to diagnosed. She could also not help my vision until MRI results come back.

two weeks later in evening, neurologist rung. Cannot go onto biologics because there was multiple lesions on the brain in an MS pattern. She has sent scan to Edinburgh neurology team for diagnosis.

saw GP last week. She told me to look at this website and inform DVLA that I am being tested for MS. I checked DVLA website, it just says…if you are diagnosed with MS you will be fined £1000 if you don’t inform DVLA. Why has she sent me here and why does she say for me to lose drivers licence until I get diagnosis and they contact neurology??? I am not driving so I won’t be caught driving with symptoms but also not losing licence! Is that the best thing to do?

Good evening,

i wonder if anyone here can help?

I’m a 28 year old male and I’ve been feeling this way on and off for a period of years now.

The main things I’ve experienced are:

vision feels blurred at times and better at others. I find I feel more in control after exercise, particularly right after.

Pins and needles in my fingers

stiff legs quite often and my balance feels off very regularly

concentration feels lacking and it almost feels like there’s something in my head if that makes sense?

my body is often always hot, unsure if this is related or not

i get a stiff neck from time to time

it felt like there was something stuck in my throat last month and I had difficulty swallowing but this seems to have faded for the moment

i feel very fatigued even when I’ve had a good nights sleep and my diet is very good.

My right arm sometimes feels quite weak and heavy

theres more things happened but these are the ones that happen the most

Any feedback or suggestions on what to do would be great?

Thanks

Ryan

Hello all I’m wondering if I can get any advice,I have been under the eye clinic for a couple of weeks now and they have said I may have M.S do are doing a scan since first seeing them I am having major problems with my leg muscles and dizzy spells to the point I went to A&E as I have never felt like this before. The doctor there made me feel really bad and basically said before even looking at me that I had read obout symtoms and saying I have them, I work really hard and m.s is the last thing I want. I really am at my wits end as legs seem to be getting worse and I feel I can’t go to my doctors without judgement.

Sorry Wayne. I am making a real lash up of these posts today. Posted a long reply which was eaten and then managed to post a shorter version to a completely different thread!

Sorry you had such a bad time with Junior Dr Personality at A+E. I am a BIG fan of the NHS and what it does but experience does not lead me to think that all Doctors and nurses are saintly geniuses! Some are brilliant whilst others should not be allowed to practise in the dolls hospital let alone on real people. Added to this, many frontline doctors would not see a (potential) MS case for years if ever.

I watch 24 Hours in A+E religiously and they do some fantastic things but I have to put what they show on TV against my personal experiences in the A+E at both of the hospitals featured which were VERY different indeed to what they show on telly. Put it like this, Kings is not known as “Fraggle Rock” for nothing!

Waiting for doctors to diagnose MS or rule it out is horrible because it is a process of elimination rather than something where a sample of blood or a biopsy can give you a yes/no answer very quickly. Keep strong and hang on in there. Whatever the answer is, you will deal with it.

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hi all … i am looking for some advice really … i have been having a lot of rather strange symptoms over the past 6/7 months … i had an Arthscopic operation on my right knee in may and since then i have severe nerve damage . i do have Arthiritis of the knees,hips and lower back so some of the symptoms i am going to put do relate to this although some dont.some are also quite personal

uncontrollable shaking of both legs ,pins and needles , numbness in both legs and around my lady parts. brain fog, floaters in eyes, unsteady legs, muscle weakness , sharp shooting pains up and down both legs from the hips down to my feet. dyr mouth. unable to orgasam , vaginal dyness .heaviness of my legs .burning aching pains in hips knees and legs. muslce spasams in my thighs .chronic pain deppresion and anxiety, fallen arches in both feet

i am more concerned with the shaking of the legs as this is uncontrollable and my husband has to physically hold my legs down . i am currently on a high dose of Gabapentin for the nerve damage , i am waiting for a scan on my legs to look at the nerves and to find out how damaged they are… i have spoken to my physio about this and my podiatrist . my GP is aware of the spasms and all the symptoms .

thank you for any advice given

Emma xx

At the end of July , I was at work and one of my friends noted that my left pupil was fully dilated and not reacting to light. I went to the emergency department and had a chest x-Ray and a brain ct scan which were normal. I was referred for an mri scan and it showed lesions. I have had no other symptoms but I had a lumbar puncture 2 weeks ago and due to have evoked potentials test on Monday before I here any results. I’m worried sick!

I need some advise I had and MRI done that showed A few tiny nonspecific T2/ FLAIR hyperintensities are noted in the cerebral white matter without diffusion restriction, of questionable etiology/ significance. I also have optic neuritis, lump in throat, and all over body pain severe…My whole back from top to bottom has nerve issues and spondylitis. Oh im 44 year old female and I am getting worse daily Does this sound like MS or am I just trippin