JUST AGGRAVATED...

[DebbyV]

So I went to see my Neurologist yesterday because my legs have been acting funny. I always have the pain, but a few times they've gotten very weak and felt like "jello" and it just scares me. Well he basically told me that I need to exercise. Oh and I have bursitis in my left hip, so physical therapy here I come.

Why am I aggravated?? Well, I can barely keep my eyes open, I have NO energy to do anything. This depression is just KICKING MY BUTT! But, ya let me go for a walk.

I was diagnosed almost a year ago....does this just keep getting worse?? I'm finding it VERY hard to find those "positive thoughts."

[Ihb7337]

debby you are not alone!! I also have pain most of the time but take narcotics to help. I am lucky that I have not had the jello leg feeling. That would be scary. But, as with all of these MS symptoms, if we just wait for five minutes or so, they may go away and something else will take its place! That was supposed to be funny!?

I am really really trying to grab the good days when they come along and they do eventually come. Not as often as I would like lately but I grab them like someone is trying to rip them out of my hands! And I go go go on those days and they feel so good! So we have to hold out hope that we get strings of good days in a row! That is a freaking bonus.

As far as " does it get any better" I'm not sure. I think we are the healthiest, taking each day as it comes. It's frustrating not being able to plan much of the time, but it is what it is, and we can deal with it. I've probably had this disease for many years but was only finally diagnosed last fall.

I am still trying to figure out whether or not I'm going to treat my illness.....I treat it right now with many supplements but no true MS meds.....and that's for another forum anyway. So I am writing to you to let you know that you are not alone. Also re the lethargy....I get the feeling that my body is made of lead and it's so hard to move it around. But we push as hard as we can to keep moving. Some days will be better than others.

And the exercise thing. Your doctors delivery of such a plan seemed to be a bit harsh and cold. Yes exercise is important for us but again, there will be days when we can take a walk for hours and then there will be days when walking around the house is all we can do. So we go with it. It's hard to not feel frustrated. I'm there too right now. Have had a crappy month or so. But I want to go to bed tonight, hoping that when I wake up tomorrow, it will be a good energy day.

So that is how I am trying to handle this illness that we both have. Hope some of my babbling has been helpful....wishing you a good nights sleep and a day tomorrow with limited to no symptoms so that you can enjoy the day.

[JayEm]

Do you ever use a cane, or any other kind of support?

Sometimes my legs will get very wobbly (or any part of my body that I use for long), and some of what it requires is rest. Sometimes, even just fifteen or twenty minutes will let me go a little further.

If I need to walk any distance, I use a cane, or at the grocery store, I get a cart even if I'm just getting one or two small things, because it means I feel less exhausted.

It also helps me to walk with someone (although some of that is because my partner has multiple herniated discs, so she doesn't move too quickly either).

And when I can't walk at all, I try to do some stretching exercises, or at least spend some time outdoors (or next to an open window) so that I can counteract some of the depression that comes from not being able to move around as much as I'd like.

You might also want to make sure that your vitamin levels are where they should be. I know that when my iron is low, I'm falling over exhausted no matter what I do, and when I finally found iron pills that worked, my baseline energy went from about 3/10 to 5/10. Not magical, but much better. (3 is just about able to sit up for a few hours, and maybe go for a 50 foot walk; 5 is able to sit up most of the day, and walk with a cane or other support for several hundred feet.)

I hope you can feel better soon!

[Thinkimjob]

I'll try. The bursitis will get better, the physical therapy will help, you'll be able to do a little bit of exercise and it's good for your depression (and blood pressure) to express your feelings.
There.
Aren't I a little Pollyanna today.