Do I have MS?

[RLD0404]

Ok this is a long one so I hope someone will read. I feel like a lot of people think I'm a hypochondriac but I'm not making any of my symptoms up and I'm desperately looking for an answer. My biggest complaint is fatigue. I'm not talking about being tired, I'm exhausted and feel like I need to sleep all the time. I have a very hard time staying awake while driving, writing, watching tv, dozing off is scary when you're driving and your 4 year old is with you. I also feel like I'm losing my mind. I have a terrible memory, I'm always confused, I feel like I'm always thinking very slow and I can't remember anything I read or am told like directions. I have been diagnosed with ADD but even taking strong stimulants I'll be out of the fog for about an hour and then it all comes back. I have also been diagnosed with myofascial pain syndrome. My neck and shoulders and arms are always sore and I have a bunch of knots in them. I used to get migraines when I was younger but not so much now that I'm older. Sometimes I feel drunk like I lose my balance and run into things. I also feel weak and lose my grip on things I'm holding with my hands and fingers. I am always either constipated or I'll have liquid diarrhea. I'm never hungry and I've gained 20lbs in a year and I've always been thin. I have bladder problems. It's very hard for me to start to pee and it never feels like I got it all out. Sometimes I have frequent urgency and sometimes I go all day not feeling like I have to go until all of a sudden I have to run to the bathroom. I have night sweats, sometimes I have enlarged lymph nodes. I have been treated for UTI's probably 6 times this year but there is no bacteria in my urine. Only red blood cells. I've seen a urologist but nothing was found and I was told to follow up with my GP. I started having restless legs at night and I get Charlie horses in my feet a lot. I have muscle spasms and muscles will twitch. Sometimes my eyes get blurry and I'll feel dizzy. I get dizzy when I stand up. I get pain in different parts of my body and the next day it'll be gone or I'll get sharp pains somewhere for 5 minutes and it's gone.  I've been diagnosed with chronic depression since I was 15. Hypothyroidism at 25 but my tests keep coming back normal for the most part and I take medication. One doctor said my thyroid was causing all of this but blood work came back good and I take levothyroxine every day and symptoms have gotten worse over the years. The blood work I had done 8 months ago showed very low ferritin levels and low vitamin D - I've since been taking prescribed iron and D and levels have been going up for the ferritin but not D. I was diagnosed with raynauds when I was 18. I'm 29 now and I feel like I'm 90. Anyone have any suggestions what this could be?

[supermum_ms]

Hi and welcome,

I'm thinking along the same lines as imm (btw thanks imm for splitting up the post :D) you obviously have a lot going on but i'd not be thinking of MS, the majority of your issues would be accounted for with your dx'ed conditions.

Being dizzy when you stand up is often suggestive of blood pressure dropping, dizziness or light-headedness when standing up occurs as a result of abnormal blood pressure regulation. eg orthostatic hypotension

"The drop in blood pressure reduces the flow of oxygenated blood to the brain. Symptoms may include:
Blurry vision
Dizziness
Light-headedness
Mental confusion
Nausea
Muscle tremors
Fainting."

Your currently anemic and that can definitely cause these issues too, your "pain in different parts of my body and the next day it'll be gone or I'll get sharp pains somewhere for 5 minutes and it's gone. " maybe explained by vitamin deficiency's but and enlarged lymph nodes is more to do with infections, viruses etc

In regards to ADD it's not actually uncommon for stimulants to cause you to feel groggy brained, clumsy and very fatigue, you might want to speak to your prescribing psych about trying a different medication, too much stimulant can slow an ADD brain down too far, so it can take some time to find the right balance.

You've dealing with a lot but overall it's not really consistent with the types of things that typically happen with neurological conditions like MS...

Hope that helps.....JJ    

[immisceo]

Many people with MS find it difficult to read large blocks of text. I hope you don't mind, but I've taken the liberty of breaking your post into paragraphs in the hopes it helps more people address your question.

"Ok this is a long one so I hope someone will read. I feel like a lot of people think I'm a hypochondriac but I'm not making any of my symptoms up and I'm desperately looking for an answer.

My biggest complaint is fatigue. I'm not talking about being tired, I'm exhausted and feel like I need to sleep all the time. I have a very hard time staying awake while driving, writing, watching tv, dozing off is scary when you're driving and your 4 year old is with you.

I also feel like I'm losing my mind. I have a terrible memory, I'm always confused, I feel like I'm always thinking very slow and I can't remember anything I read or am told like directions. I have been diagnosed with ADD but even taking strong stimulants I'll be out of the fog for about an hour and then it all comes back.

I have also been diagnosed with myofascial pain syndrome. My neck and shoulders and arms are always sore and I have a bunch of knots in them. I used to get migraines when I was younger but not so much now that I'm older. Sometimes I feel drunk like I lose my balance and run into things. I also feel weak and lose my grip on things I'm holding with my hands and fingers.

I am always either constipated or I'll have liquid diarrhea. I'm never hungry and I've gained 20lbs in a year and I've always been thin. I have bladder problems. It's very hard for me to start to pee and it never feels like I got it all out. Sometimes I have frequent urgency and sometimes I go all day not feeling like I have to go until all of a sudden I have to run to the bathroom.

I have night sweats, sometimes I have enlarged lymph nodes. I have been treated for UTI's probably 6 times this year but there is no bacteria in my urine. Only red blood cells. I've seen a urologist but nothing was found and I was told to follow up with my GP.

I started having restless legs at night and I get Charlie horses in my feet a lot. I have muscle spasms and muscles will twitch. Sometimes my eyes get blurry and I'll feel dizzy. I get dizzy when I stand up. I get pain in different parts of my body and the next day it'll be gone or I'll get sharp pains somewhere for 5 minutes and it's gone.  

I've been diagnosed with chronic depression since I was 15. Hypothyroidism at 25 but my tests keep coming back normal for the most part and I take medication. One doctor said my thyroid was causing all of this but blood work came back good and I take levothyroxine every day and symptoms have gotten worse over the years. The blood work I had done 8 months ago showed very low ferritin levels and low vitamin D - I've since been taking prescribed iron and D and levels have been going up for the ferritin but not D.

I was diagnosed with raynauds when I was 18. I'm 29 now and I feel like I'm 90. Anyone have any suggestions what this could be?"

[immisceo]

Just to clarify, we're not medical professionals here. We're people with MS or people in the process of a neurological diagnostic work-up. We can't diagnose.

You certainly have a lot going on. It's understandable that you are concerned. Have you been given a neurological exam? This can be performed by a GP without the need of expensive tests. It does not, by itself, diagnose anything. But it can help point the way by indicating if neurological issues are present or not.

Much of what you describe seems to have already been accounted for with your other diagnoses of ADD, depression, MPS, Raynaud's, hypothyroidism, digestive and bladder issues, low Vitamin D. Sometimes there isn't one over-arching reason for all of those things that add up into feeling unwell.

In your shoes, I might want to have a neurological exam to help clarify if the issues may be neurological in nature. But I would also be vigilant about treating the conditions I already knew about. It sounds like you're doing that.