Not sure what I have going on...Advice please?
OK so I'm not sure where to start, so I'll just start with a little about myself. My name is Crystal and I'm 32 years old. I know that I haven't felt "right" for some time now, but lately (as in since about May) I've just gone downhill fast.
The very first thing I remember being off about me is that last year, around this time of the year, I had really bad urgency and came close to having accidents more than a few times. I've always been the person who could ride in the car for hours on end and not have to see the inside of a rest area once, then last year I had to go inside just about every one I saw, and just seeing the toilet was enough to get me going. This lasted for close to six months, then it just stopped, basically as suddenly as it appeared. It never hurt to go or anything like that, and I never took any type of antibiotic or anything, either, so I doubt it was a UTI.
It was just so sudden and weird that it has stuck with me..unlike basically the rest of the last few years, because another thing I have noticed is short-term memory loss. I can go on vacations and not remember details of them soon after getting back. I took my mom up to Michigan last summer for her birthday and SHE has to tell me about what we did there, because I barely remember even going at all.
Other symptoms I've noticed since May:
*I have spasms (seizures? jerks?). I usually get them when I turn my head a certain way, though some can just hit out of nowhere. I can also usually feel them building in my spine, but again, some just come out of nowhere. They are sudden, throw my head back, my arms and legs will fly out as well, and sometimes they are strong enough that I make noises. They come on so randomly, I've been told that I should no longer drive because I have had them while driving.
*I can only walk good for about five minutes, then I start getting wobbly on my feet, start walking "crooked" like I'm drunk or something (I saw a doctor for a physical because I'm trying to get on disability and he called this Ataxia)
*Recently, my right arm started to shake when I would walk for longer than about five minutes as well, and my fingers from both hands twitch at this point also
*My hands and feet will randomly go numb, my right leg even likes to go numb up to the knee as I'm walking on it..that's always fun
*I trip myself up a lot, it's like my feet refuse to pick up properly and I just trip. I don't completely fall, I just trip myself up and have to catch myself.
*Recently, as in within the past few days, my neck has started hurting really bad, so I try to move it around...and then I spasm
*I used to be amazing at math, but now I need a calculator or something or I can't do it. Really sucks because I used to only need a calculator for "big" math problems, but now I've recently discovered (by the psych exam I was just sent to) that I can't subtract down by 7's...and I really only handled the smaller math questions of that exam well.
*My hips, shoulders, and knees are extremely sore to the touch. I can walk without my knees hurting, but if I try to kneel on them it hurts so bad I can't stand it. I can sit OK, but if someone or something pushes on my hips, I can't stand that, either, and same with my shoulders. And I'm not even talking about strong pressure, just touching them in general is unbareable.
*I'm fatigued...constantly. Just getting out of bed wears me out
*Any activity anymore makes my entire body shake. I wash my hair and my legs and arms shake to the point where I can't walk, brushing my hair makes my arms shake, if I try to get dressed at a "normal" pace, I lose my balance and have to catch myself.
*My eyes have always been bad, it's genetic for girls in my family to need glasses by the age of about ten, but I have noticed that I have to concentrate to focus my eyes, even with my glasses on, and it's almost common to see things in my peripheral vision that just aren't there. I usually think I have someone standing in my doorway that isn't there. I'm not hearing voices or anything, just random sightings.
Ugh...sorry this is so long, but I think that's it. I tend to forget things easily...something I'm still getting used to, my mind used to be a steel trap but now it's like a mesh net...
If anyone has any ideas on if I'm in the right place, please let me know! I have not seen a neurologist, and all doctor visits are becoming useless.
** Moderator's note - Post broken into paragraphs for easier reading. Many people with MS have visual difficulties that prevent them from reading large blocks of print. **
The very first thing I remember being off about me is that last year, around this time of the year, I had really bad urgency and came close to having accidents more than a few times. I've always been the person who could ride in the car for hours on end and not have to see the inside of a rest area once, then last year I had to go inside just about every one I saw, and just seeing the toilet was enough to get me going. This lasted for close to six months, then it just stopped, basically as suddenly as it appeared. It never hurt to go or anything like that, and I never took any type of antibiotic or anything, either, so I doubt it was a UTI.
It was just so sudden and weird that it has stuck with me..unlike basically the rest of the last few years, because another thing I have noticed is short-term memory loss. I can go on vacations and not remember details of them soon after getting back. I took my mom up to Michigan last summer for her birthday and SHE has to tell me about what we did there, because I barely remember even going at all.
Other symptoms I've noticed since May:
*I have spasms (seizures? jerks?). I usually get them when I turn my head a certain way, though some can just hit out of nowhere. I can also usually feel them building in my spine, but again, some just come out of nowhere. They are sudden, throw my head back, my arms and legs will fly out as well, and sometimes they are strong enough that I make noises. They come on so randomly, I've been told that I should no longer drive because I have had them while driving.
*I can only walk good for about five minutes, then I start getting wobbly on my feet, start walking "crooked" like I'm drunk or something (I saw a doctor for a physical because I'm trying to get on disability and he called this Ataxia)
*Recently, my right arm started to shake when I would walk for longer than about five minutes as well, and my fingers from both hands twitch at this point also
*My hands and feet will randomly go numb, my right leg even likes to go numb up to the knee as I'm walking on it..that's always fun
*I trip myself up a lot, it's like my feet refuse to pick up properly and I just trip. I don't completely fall, I just trip myself up and have to catch myself.
*Recently, as in within the past few days, my neck has started hurting really bad, so I try to move it around...and then I spasm
*I used to be amazing at math, but now I need a calculator or something or I can't do it. Really sucks because I used to only need a calculator for "big" math problems, but now I've recently discovered (by the psych exam I was just sent to) that I can't subtract down by 7's...and I really only handled the smaller math questions of that exam well.
*My hips, shoulders, and knees are extremely sore to the touch. I can walk without my knees hurting, but if I try to kneel on them it hurts so bad I can't stand it. I can sit OK, but if someone or something pushes on my hips, I can't stand that, either, and same with my shoulders. And I'm not even talking about strong pressure, just touching them in general is unbareable.
*I'm fatigued...constantly. Just getting out of bed wears me out
*Any activity anymore makes my entire body shake. I wash my hair and my legs and arms shake to the point where I can't walk, brushing my hair makes my arms shake, if I try to get dressed at a "normal" pace, I lose my balance and have to catch myself.
*My eyes have always been bad, it's genetic for girls in my family to need glasses by the age of about ten, but I have noticed that I have to concentrate to focus my eyes, even with my glasses on, and it's almost common to see things in my peripheral vision that just aren't there. I usually think I have someone standing in my doorway that isn't there. I'm not hearing voices or anything, just random sightings.
Ugh...sorry this is so long, but I think that's it. I tend to forget things easily...something I'm still getting used to, my mind used to be a steel trap but now it's like a mesh net...
If anyone has any ideas on if I'm in the right place, please let me know! I have not seen a neurologist, and all doctor visits are becoming useless.
** Moderator's note - Post broken into paragraphs for easier reading. Many people with MS have visual difficulties that prevent them from reading large blocks of print. **
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