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16764744 tn?1451272443

I'm not sure if I have MS or not?

This year has been overwhelming. Last year 2014 I stopped taking medication for bipolar to focus on healthy formulas and daily positive reconstructions of coping skills.
   I must admit things have been stressful.. I was suppose to move to Atlanta in January and that failed so I stayed behind for awhile while condemning myself for moving so slow in getting ready of the apparent----PROCRASTINATION. So again starting this year I was very emotional... ONE DAY, I noticed as I drove to the mall to find a dress to attend my friends wedding in March my sight started to go. It was dark out and the lights began to blind me.. Whether it was the street lights, traffic lights or lights from occasional business that I passed. My eyes (mostly started) on my left began to blur and I could not see street signs, I really believed at the time I was going blind. I finished my shopping and returned how.. I THEN NOTICED, that now house lights, and the lights from the television set WERE SO OVERWHELMING,,, again I THOUGHT I WAS GOING BLIND. I would squint and rub my eyes to try to regain focus which was at times obsolete. I think this started about February or so.


As things progressed through out the months and the time approached to attend my friends WEDDING I started to sense sensitivity to warm on hot water on my body in the shower, I also thought my hearing started to become impaired.. My legs started to burn and itch like they were ON FIRE... I could not sleep, I would even wake up at times and be so uncomfortable that pain in my legs would not let me sit, lay down or barely walk.

My breathing would become shallow and also become racy. All of a sudden for a week I started to walk as if I had been paralyzed learning to walk again. It was so odd that now for a week I could not control the sufficiency of my walking. I went to multiple emergency visit, clinics, and urgent cares with not result. My leg side of my body felt numb, my arm, my legs and my eye felt abnormal.

The first visit to the emergency room the doctor thought maybe I had glaucoma (by the way I had just turned 37 in Jan.) He tested me for glaucoma through a vision test as well as with some type of equipment he used to tap my eye after putting drops in them. NO GLAUCOMA but he did say MAYBE JUST MAYBE YOU MAY HAVE MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, WHICH FREAKED MY OUT, he also said check in with your eye doctor which I did.


The exam proved that i did not need glasses and after dilating my eyes the doctor would not see ANY IMPAIRMENTS WHATSOEVER. He said I was 20/20 on my right side and 20/25 on my left, nothing significant to prescribe glasses. He was baffled and said please return to me when you find out what is causing the paralysis of your vision, which I agreed. Another emergency visit claimed it was Sciatica, another said NERVE DAMAGE AGAIN POSSIBLE MS. I began to lose weight rapidly without any weight loss regiments.. I now weigh  around 176, in Jan I weighed about 214 pd. My appetite was off, I was and am now still always exhausted ALL THE TIME :-(...

I started to have INSOMNIA and I still do ALL THE TIME. One doctor or a couple of doctors said maybe it's STRESS OR MENTAL ILLNESS, MAYBE YOU ARE DEPRESSED. I ALSO FORGOT TO MENTION I STOPPED WORKING NOV 2014 AND WAS GOING THROUGH FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES... I loss my car, couldn't pay bills or rent. I could not find consistent STRESS FREE WORK. I started to experience HIGH LEVELS of anxiety, panic attacks and depression. The things I LOVED TO DO began to deteriorate.


To make a longer story short, I've had an MRI, CAT SCAN, X RAYS (on my back, and ankle. Sense I thought I had sprained or broken my ankle on my left side because the phantom pain was so severe.). I've also had migraines. I had a FLU TEST, EKG, VISION TEST, MOBILITY TEST, etc etc etc. WITH NO ANSWERS. Blood test where fine, urine test fine, pregnant test negative (AS I EXPERIENCED SO MUCH PAIN AND STILL DO IN MY LEFT QUADRANT OF MY STOMACH AND PELVIS). I was told that I had this year an OVARIAN CYST RUPTURE.. but that pain never went away after treatment.


NOW I'VE EXPERIENCED FOR OVER FOUR MONTHS increased heat and pain in my lower back, spine, and pelvis. IT CRAMPS, TINGLES, sometimes I can't even walk, sit long or lay on my back for long. FOCUS AND MEMORY are also off...

So feel maybe it's a slip disc or something BUT I AM SO OVERWHELMED WITH THESE SYMPTOMS statement and some that where to long to state, THAT I JUST NEED TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON.


I HAVE AN APPOINTMENT TO REVIEW MY MRI WITH THE NEUROLOGIST THIS FEB 2016......


PLEASE HELP ME ANYBODY IF YOU CAN...

SINCERELY,
4HEALTHWARRIOR
7 Responses
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5112396 tn?1378017983
In many circumstances, abruptly stopping medication can cause all manner of physical and/or mental repercussions. This is why it's truly not recommended. It is your right to decide to stop, but having a doctor monitor your reactions as you taper the dosage gradually is really the more advisable way to do it.

Additionally, abruptly stopping can also muddy the waters in terms of figuring out what is going on with your body and anxiety level. However, I do realise you said you stopped over a year ago. Any withdrawals would presumably be long over. But this doesn't mean you're not still dealing with mental health issues that may complicate your situation.

Again, I have mental health issues myself, so there is zero prejudice here! I know what you mean about stigma, but your health information is no one's business and is protected by law to remain private. I know it can feel exhausting finding the right combination of this drug or that therapy, and I've had my own periods of not speaking to family or lost relationships. But having reached a place of stability (both with my mental health and my MS), I can say that it was worth it - the work to find a great therapist, trying various drugs, revisiting diet, exercise, the whole ball of wax. For me, it's all connected, so I don't want you to feel that I'm ignoring the physical issues you're experiencing.

Many of us in this community have 'kissed a lot of frogs' to find a good health care professional, but you're on track with your upcoming neurologist appointment. I would encourage you to reconnect with a professional who can provide support in the mental health area as you go forward. 2015 sounds like a tough one for you. But look ahead to the clean slate of 2016.
Helpful - 0
16764744 tn?1451272443
Thanks HVAC for the sincere and generous offer of care and concern, I really appreciate it. Maybe I have nothing to worry about, maybe my mind is getting the best of me and maybe I really do need to rest, check in with a professional in both areas of psychiatry and neurology.

THANKS FOR THE LOVE :-)
Helpful - 0
16764744 tn?1451272443
Thanks so much kwarendorf...

Waiting is the key! :-)
But the waiting for 12 mons is dragging. But again thanks for the inspiration to hold on and check with a professional in that area, not ER or Goggle... lol :-)

Thanks again for your response
Helpful - 0
16764744 tn?1451272443
Thanks Immisceo.

To answer your question about the medication, no I did not stop them gradually it was just one I was praying and felt that God said he would heal me, (I know it sounds strange but I believed it) so I stopped taking them Dec 6th of last year.

It has been a very very bumpy road. I went back on anti-depressants maybe 2 or 3 months later for a very short period but it caused hallucinginations and I was like or heck no so I stopped. That's probably because you can not take them without an anti-psychotic I believe that's what I was told before. But maybe a month or two later from there I started on Seroquel small dose for anxiety. I felt it kind of helped but wasn't sure. So I stopped.

I'm not sure if I should go back on them. I'm not sure if even then when I stopped I really heard God though I did hear it will be a struggle. I'm kind of clueless right now. I guess who wants to be stigmatized? Not me, but it appears if I don't do something I will continue to struggle and lose not only friends and family but jobs and the ability to handle life.

I can't wait to make an appointment with a Health Care Professional in that area. This year I've gotten a lot of mediocre doctors.


Thanks for your response. :-)
Helpful - 0
667078 tn?1316000935
What you describe is real and scary. It does not scream MS to me either. I wish you had an answer. Optic neuritis and double vision are the two biggies with MS. They would show up on a MRI or when they look at the back of your eye if you have ever had it. Double vision they can tell from a neurological exam. They could tell I had double vision when I was a child. I am sorry you are going through so much.

Alex
Helpful - 0
1831849 tn?1383228392
Hi - As immie suggested, anytime you google a symptom that may be even remotely neurological MS is going to show up in the results. THis holds true for ER residents as well as google :-) MS is rarely the cause. THere are only 400,000 of us with it in the U.S.

The symptoms you describe sound too widespread to be MS to me, but I'm not a doc. MS tends to affect your right arm or your left leg, very very rarely both. I would wit util you meet with the neurologist and work from there.

Kyle
Helpful - 0
5112396 tn?1378017983
Due to your age and sex, MS is always going to be on the radar for medical professionals, simply because it is the demographic most often diagnosed. It doesn't necessarily mean that anything is pointing straight to MS, just that it's a possibility.

Was your cessation of medication for bi-polar done with medical supervision? As someone with mental health issues myself, I know that it is a bad idea to stop medication suddenly. Generally, professionals will monitor you over time as a dosage is very gradually reduced, while other supports are simultaneously developed. For example, I did a year of CBT and lowered my anti-depressant dosage by 50% in that time.

This isn't to say you are not having physical issues, rather that your ability to cope with them or see them in context might be compromised.

I would make sure you keep a list of questions to ask of your neurologist in February, as well as a brief timeline of the most important things you're experiencing. These appointments generally do not last as long as we'd like, so it pays to come prepared.
Helpful - 0
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