Tricky situation

DAZ39 I agree with Alison, leave it for now, and just see how he goes. Once you say those words MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, his life will be ruined sadly.

Because i have MS, my children and their grandchildren have turned themselves into disabled people. Yes they have. Not one has MS, but they are i am sure convinced they will catch it off me.

M.E., fibro, pain disorder you name it, they have it. I feel GUILTY all the time. Yet its not in my family although auto immune disease is, father had lupus, grandfather had parkinsons.

If it was my son i wouldnt mention it, he is 17 it could have been stress, it might be MS but for now just keep an eye on him. Is he still at home? If so you can watch him for signs.

Its a difficult situation for you I get where you are coming from but i know how this news would affect a 17 year old i am living around it everyday, my grandchildren range from 24 > 14.

x

I think thatā€™s the wisest option Daz. It is a good thing to have it recorded on his medical notes at any rate. Iā€™m sure none of you want to ā€œforget about itā€, and if it was to turn out to be ms, Iā€™m sure you know the long road of investigation ahead. With your family history.

I dropped to the ground like a stone just the once. Thought it was very odd and unexplainable, and forgot about it. Aged 50 then, I put it down to my continual aching, creeking knees. Five years of investigations on my ā€œweakā€ knee followed. I then had three incidents of partial paralysis in as many days and after a visit to a&e via ambulance I was admitted to a ward in Saturday. Various tests. (LP wasnā€™t necessary), Monday diagnosed with ms. It was only then I started looking back, searching for possible signs that could have led to an earlier diagnosis. Not that it would have made any difference.

I imagine you all would like to know some answers. Best wishes.

Thank you poppy and your right about the long road of investigation i was in hospital for a full week while they did every test including a lp which wasnt nice at all

no, I wouldnā€™t ask him to go the g.p.

At present there is no mention of m.s. on his medical records - he doesnā€™t have to inform DVLA if heā€™s a driver or going to learn to drive. He wouldnā€™t have to disclose anything to a potential employer.

But you donā€™t have to tell the DVLA if not actually diagnosed (even with CIS) nad even with a diagnosis only disclose to employer if you choose. I worry about the mindset ā€œdonā€™t investigate because you might find outā€ - reminds me of people not getting AIDS tests for the same sort of reason back in the day, but discretion is not the better part of valour any more IMO.

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better to know then stick your head in the sand hoping it will go away if it is anything at all. I first started having symptoms that I now know were MS at 17 (with no family history) but didnā€™t go to a doctor, because like most teenagers I thought ignoring it would make the problem go away. wouldnā€™t have made a difference medically at the time being diagnosed, but now it would with all the treatments available.

and even with a mention in his notes, without a diagnoses he doesnt need to tell the DVLA or anyone else

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But with a suspicion of MS now, if he ever gets a mortgage with income protection and subsequently has to claim on it due to developing MS (or even a different autoimmune disorder or a different neurological problem) in say, his thirties, early investigation now could disqualify him from having it pay out.

If this is a one off, then it might be as well to let sleeping demons lie.

Just keep a watch on it, maybe mention it to him, to just be aware of sensory issues etc, without scaring the poor boy to death. As it is, he knows that the potential is there. And if it is MS (and I truly hope itā€™s not, it seems so unfair to get MS very young, bad enough when youā€™re older!) then it will make itself apparent.

Sue

I see the sense in not worrying the lad unnecessarily.

But on an insurance applcation as long as you answer the questions honestly there is no basis for an insurer subsequently refusing to pay out, and pre-insurance investigations should not be reason to refuse cover either (unless there is a definite issue diagnosed.)

If something is found then it may affect future insureability (but only if something is actually found in which case the benefits of knowing IMO will always outweight any bliss that comes from ignoranceā€¦)

Insurers have a duty to treat customers fairly and that includes not penalising someone for investigating health concerns.

apply for mortgage/insurance cover or Critical Illness cover and disclose that in the past you had had a neurological investigation because you had temporarily lost the use of your legs and had pins and needles then you ainā€™t going to get any cover.

There are pwms who think they have Critical Illness Cover but if a claim was made their records will be scrutinised and if thereā€™s anything not disclosed that may even hint at m.s. developing in the future they wont get a payout. (often people donā€™t report a symptom when applying for cover because they thought it was irrelevant but the Insurance people thought otherwise)

Not sure what the situation is re. getting cover if another family member has m.s.

You may have more specific experience than me but from my years working in the industry thatā€™s not what I have seen, particularly in recent years where the regulators & Ombudsman have a much stronger focus on treating customers fairly. Personally I would stick to a reputable company and not worry too much.