I don’t have a definite diagnosis yet, but my dr. says I “probably” have MS. It started with numbness in my hands. I thought it was due to stress but about 3 weeks later I developed Lhermitte’s sign. So I had an MRI and they found one lesion on my cervical spine. My brain MRI was normal. I had a spinal tap and there are o-bands in my CSF. My VEP came back abnormal which I expected because I’ve been seeing “flashes” in my peripheral vision, mostly when I’m in a dark room, and around the same time the Lhermitte’s started I had some pressure/pain behind my left eye when I moved it that lasted about a week. So the dr. recommended that I start treatment, even though she can’t give me a definite diagnosis. I’m starting Copaxone on Thursday.
I hope I’m doing the right thing. I want to do whatever I can to delay the progression if this is MS, but I don’t want to be taking injections if it’s not necessary or won’t help. I can’t be sure if this is RRMS, PPMS, or what, so is starting therapy the right thing to do? I asked my dr. if the MRI could have missed something in my brain but she seemed very confident that if there were a lesion, the MRI would have found it. But if there’s nothing on the brain, what would cause an abnormal VEP? It’s all so confusing and I know there aren’t any definite answers. I’m just trying to find a way to cope with all of this. I keep trying to remind myself that I’m very lucky – my symptoms aren’t that bad, a lot of people have it much worse than I do. But I just don’t understand why this is happening. And I’m scared that it will continue to get worse and worse. I’m trying to stay optimistic and believe that maybe I’ll be one of the lucky ones whose symptoms stay minimal and tolerable, which is why I’m going on the treatments. It’s just that fear of the unknown that is really getting to me right now.
To anyone who is reading this, thanks for listening I’m hoping it will help to share my experience and to hear about yours.
I hope I’m doing the right thing. I want to do whatever I can to delay the progression if this is MS, but I don’t want to be taking injections if it’s not necessary or won’t help. I can’t be sure if this is RRMS, PPMS, or what, so is starting therapy the right thing to do? I asked my dr. if the MRI could have missed something in my brain but she seemed very confident that if there were a lesion, the MRI would have found it. But if there’s nothing on the brain, what would cause an abnormal VEP? It’s all so confusing and I know there aren’t any definite answers. I’m just trying to find a way to cope with all of this. I keep trying to remind myself that I’m very lucky – my symptoms aren’t that bad, a lot of people have it much worse than I do. But I just don’t understand why this is happening. And I’m scared that it will continue to get worse and worse. I’m trying to stay optimistic and believe that maybe I’ll be one of the lucky ones whose symptoms stay minimal and tolerable, which is why I’m going on the treatments. It’s just that fear of the unknown that is really getting to me right now.
To anyone who is reading this, thanks for listening I’m hoping it will help to share my experience and to hear about yours.
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