Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
Avatar universal

Looking for answers...

Hi all,

I'm new to the forum and am trying to better understand some of the symptoms I've been experiencing.

I'm a male in my late 30's and about 6 months ago I felt a little dizzy, not vertigo, just a bit spacey (if that makes sense) and noticed my eyesight (bilateral) struggled to focus on objects very close up. I also had pressure in ears (bilateral). I went to an ENT who eventually sent me for an MRI of the Brain, which came back clear.

Symptoms continued so I went to my Primary Care doctor, he ran a load of blood work and I came back with Epstein-Barr antibodies and COVID-19 (although I can't remember a time where I had either), he mentioned the Epstein-Barr seemed recent.

I've seen a cardiologist (fine) and an Optometrist (tests came back fine). It's obviously nice to get a negative test but it just adds to my anxiety that there's a bigger underlying issue.

Although the ear pressure has now gone, I've started to noticed more things as time goes on, a slight tremor in my hands, it comes and goes. I've recently noticed tingling, both hands, both arms, feet, legs, this also comes and goes and now today I've noticed tingling on my tongue and any google search for the above keeps suggesting MS.

I'm going to see a Neurologist next months to try and get some answers but was looking for some insight

Regards,
Britabroad.
1 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
987762 tn?1671273328
COMMUNITY LEADER
Hi and welcome,

Nobody should google their symptoms if they're ever experiencing anxiety about their health,  all it will do is escalate health related anxiety and that alone will make any situation become even worse to deal with, so no googling symptoms and looking up undx medical conditions!

MS is one of the medical conditions that has hundreds of associated symptoms because the brain and spinal cord lesions damages the central nervous system, and fortunately a neurological condition like MS is not the most common cause of 99% of its symptoms..

When the symptoms are caused by MS brain and or spinal cord lesions there are neurological clinical signs and a pattern to the symptom eg first presentation, suggestive / consistent symptom type, return and worsening of existing symptoms, an expected development of new symptoms over a long period of time etc  etc

What you've described experiencing along with your test results so far, would actually be some of the common red flags pointing away from a neurological condition like MS as a causation. Just to put it in to some context for you, your very first symptoms 6 months ago are how this first presented right ("a little dizzy, not vertigo, just a bit spacey,... eyesight (bilateral) struggled to focus on objects very close up.....pressure in ears (bilateral)" ) and those types of symptoms are all non-specific and they had a
bilateral pattern so its bilateral prensentation wouldn't be suggetive/consistent of MS because unilateral would of been and these types of nonspecific symptoms could be anything or nothing so they would typically be suggetive/consistent with a neurological condition like MS.

examples of what is suggestive/consistent with MS..
a) lost vision in left eye  = visual test results found lesion in optic nerve dx unilateral optic neuritis..... b) tingling presented all down the left side of my body, weridly just in my left arm and my left leg = neurological exam showed abnormal clinical signs and MRI test results found spinal cord lesion.

I genuinely believe your symptoms were originally explained by your blood test results Epstein-Barr antibodies or COVID-19 even if you didn't know you had either of them, which isn't unusual for someone in your age group. Keep in mind anxiety is a legitimate medical condition and IF this has triggered health related anxiety for you, its possible the latest symptoms and symptom pattern are related to your anxiety so you could get your anxiety situation assessed to rule it in or out because as i mentioned googling when your experienciing health related anxiety could be what's make things worse...    

Hope that helps.......JJ
Helpful - 0
2 Comments
Hi Supermum,

Thank you for your quick response, my suspicion has been healthy anxiety for a while. The tingling has only been a thing for the last week, my tingling tongue I mentioned yesterday has already subsided but since learning a little more about MS and it's unilateral behavior, I'm now feeling a more prominent tingle (that comes and goes) on my left arm, left hand and left leg, again pointing towards my healthy anxiety and the way it can mimic symptoms.

As you mentioned, my symptoms are all non-specific, they come and go and tend to be bilateral. Whilst it doesn't scream MS,  I will look to see a neurologist next month to see if they can provide any answers.

I will keep this forum updated on my journey as I hope this information can offer help to other.

Regards,
Mark
The ways to help minimise the symptons IF you do suspect Health Anxiety is the more likely cause of whats happening more recently, is to not google symptoms or undx medical conditions but other tricks are distraction and redirecting your thoughts, so if you find your self mentally tuning in to a sensation its fine to acknowledge it but then you make a point of ignoring it, distracting your self from hyper focusing on it and redirecting your head space onto something you really enjoy.


Good luck Mark........JJ
Have an Answer?

You are reading content posted in the Multiple Sclerosis Community

Top Neurology Answerers
987762 tn?1671273328
Australia
5265383 tn?1669040108
ON
1756321 tn?1547095325
Queensland, Australia
1780921 tn?1499301793
Queen Creek, AZ
Learn About Top Answerers
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Ask a question
Popular Resources
Find out how beta-blocker eye drops show promising results for acute migraine relief.
In this special Missouri Medicine report, doctors examine advances in diagnosis and treatment of this devastating and costly neurodegenerative disease.
Here are 12 simple – and fun! – ways to boost your brainpower.
Discover some of the causes of dizziness and how to treat it.
Discover the common causes of headaches and how to treat headache pain.
Two of the largest studies on Alzheimer’s have yielded new clues about the disease