Could I Have MS?? please help.

Hello everyone. Im a 23 y.o. female who has been having strange symptoms for a while now. From the electrifying head sensations i started having my senior year in H.S. to the tingling i have in my hand now as i type. symptoms i have have gotten worse this past year. Ive been to the Dr. twice and the ER twice. the day i went to the er my legs were numb and i had pain all over.. i think they thought i was crazy. the other time i went i was looking down at something at school when suddenly i had the worse pain ive ever experienced go from the top of my head down my spine. i thought maybe i had arthritis as this runs in my family. my RF factor was negative.. as was the test they did for lupus. they said i had fibromyalgia.. which i think is crap. people who have that have pain always. i dont. it comes and goes. but when it comes its terrible. were going through a heat wave and the symptoms seem to be worse.. maybe its the heat.. extreme cold seems to do it too though. ive has tremors.. and i stumble to find the right words when i speak now all the time. ive also learned from this forum that if your toe seems to catch and you trip alot you may have foot drop?? because i do this ALL the time now.. i thought i was just becoming increasingly clumbsy. im scared to go to the drs again.. because they never seem to know what to do about my symptoms. the only thing that truly has me scared now is that my mom has been experiencing sudden but exreme similar symptoms for the past 3 weeks... and shes goingto see a nuerologist.. they suspect MS.. i know it runs in familys .. but im not sure my symptoms even sound like that. what kinds of symptoms did u all have before you got checked out? Im scared b/c im a nursing student and ive takn care of pts with MS.. they were most likely on the more extreme side.. but they couldnt do anything.. couldnt move.. couldnt even void on their ow.. they had caths. im very frightened.. but i also want to make sence of all this.. does it sound like i have it?

None of us here could diagnose you, of course.  All we can really do is encourage you to go back to the doctor with your symptoms. Try to write them down in some sort of logical order, and note when they happen, if there is any connection with heat and humidity, for example.  If your mother is seeing a neuro, he would be a good starting point for you, too.

Yes, there is a genetic component to MS, and to lots of other autoimmune diseases, so it is possible there is a connection there..another good reason to see your mother's doctor.

And also yes, if you are a nursing student taking care of people in a nursing home or similar setting, you're seeing the "worst of the worst".  Many of us with MS have lived long lives -- I've had it for at least 24 years. While I use a wheelchair, I live in my own home, cook for myself and my husband and 4 cats, bathe myself, toilet myself (no catheter, just normal peeing), feed myself, etc.  So while having MS certainly is no cake-walk, it isn't a gloom-and-doom diagnosis either, certainly not all the time.

But first you have to be tested to find out what is going on with you.

brianhanna said...
the followin is results i obtaines from a c-spine mri i am having a hard time deciphering it into laymans terms. mild right bony neural foraminal stenosis at c-3-c-4 disc degeneration at c-5 c-6 and c-6 c-7. bulging of the disc at c-5 c6 .there is mild to moderate right bony neural foraminal stenosis at c-5 c-6 c-7. mild right bony neural foraminal narrowing at c-3 c-4 anyone who can interpret this succesfully it would be greatfully appreciated

You really need to go back to your doctor to ask this question, but very generally and very basically, all that is talking about "mechanical" problems with your spine, spinal compressions, bulging discs, other such things -- not a disease like multiple sclerosis, which is a disease of the central nervous system.  You might ask if your next step is to see an orthopedic doctor.  Good luck!

Hey Brianhanna

I totally agree with Uppity on this. U should be discussing this with u'r doc and asking these and any other questions u may have or think of. This doesn't seem to be related to u'r central nervous system at all, but rather u'r spine. Get u'r doc to break these terms down for u so that u understand what they mean. If u don't understand or if the doc is going to fast, ask him/her to repeat it again, but break it down further. My doc likes to talk in medical terms with me and frequently i have to ask for an explaination. The doc shouldn't care...i think they will want u to have a good understanding of u'r condition so u can make better decisions about u'r healthcare. Take care and best wishes with this.