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Crying wolf or being blind to the obvious?

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    Crying wolf or being blind to the obvious?

    (Off track but first let me ask if anyone else spends 30 minutes trying to think of a 'title' for these posts and never quite gets it right?)

    Early on after my diagnosis I fell into the trap of assigning any health problem I might have to being caused by MS. I swear I would have thought a hangnail was brought on by MS. Then things calmed down and as my MS didnt really progress I basically went into denial of whether I actually had MS. So I've swung to both extremes. I think I have a pretty good understanding of things now but sometimes I realize I've screwed it up again. Any one else totally miss symptoms sometimes?

    Here's a couple of examples...

    About 3 years ago I swore my thyroid had stopped working completely. Went to 2 different doctors to have my thyroid checked because I just couldn't understand how my lab results could possibly be normal when I was so completely exhausted. Seriously I was almost falling asleep at work after only a couple of hours of being there. Never dawned on me that this was the lovely fatigue of MS!

    Changed out my laundry soap, bath soap and even shampoo because I must be allergic to something otherwise why would I be itching like a crazy fool?!

    Several months ago I went to a minor er clinic for what I knew was an ear infection. No ear infection but it kept bothering me so I made an appointment with my GP the following week just in case it had been too early to show up at the clinic. Negative there too. After another month of this I made an appointment with an ENT; but then it resolved, so I canceled.

    Now this dang ear pain is back. Is it an MS thing?

    But, the real question is does anyone else have difficulty knowing what is or isnt MS? When to call your Neuro or GP or just let it go?

    UGH!!
    Dx 1990 RRMS

    #2
    Ear Pain - I can soooooo relate

    I never know when to contact my GP/neuro as I'm someone who always wants to avoid making a fuss :-(

    In the absence of an ear infection it is highly likely your ear pain is MS related. It is probably either related to your trigeminal or glossopharyngeal nerve. The fact yours has returned makes me think your GP/Neuro needs to look at you for trigeminal neuralgia unfortunately.

    If it is TN, there are plenty of drugs that successfully treat it. Carbamazepine CR is normally the first line treatment and in some people works really well. Gabapentin also works, although I've found it's not quite as successful as the Carbamazepine and it takes less of a rise in body temp for the pain to return.

    Whatever the cause, ear pain is horrible!!

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      #3
      Originally posted by busymomflynn View Post
      (Off track but first let me ask if anyone else spends 30 minutes trying to think of a 'title' for these posts and never quite gets it right?)
      LOL- Yeah all the time. But it is SO IMPORTANT to get get it just right

      Originally posted by busymomflynn View Post
      Changed out my laundry soap, bath soap and even shampoo because I must be allergic to something otherwise why would I be itching like a crazy fool?!
      Been here too - but mine was my scalp. Finally broke down and went to dermatologist, but he couldn't really find anything either. Scalpicen (sp) seemed to work so I kinda blew it off. Imagine my surprise when I learned that this may very well have been a MS thing.

      Originally posted by busymomflynn View Post
      But, the real question is does anyone else have difficulty knowing what is or isn't MS? When to call your Neuro or GP or just let it go?
      World's worse about going to a doctor - for anything. I am somewhat 'germ-phobic' and too many times have heard variations of "Just MS .." or "Cant find anything wrong ..". Normally doesn't seem worth it to go sit in a room with sick contagious people to hear that there is nothing wrong.

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        #4
        Thanks

        Just wanted to say thanks for your responses! I've been waiting till my mind is clear so I could post something meaningful but it's been one of those weeks; no cleverness left in these brain cells .

        Didn't want to wait too long so 'thanks' will have to suffice for now
        Dx 1990 RRMS

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          #5
          I had a really bad habit of doing this for the first few years after my dx. I would blame everything before I would even think of the MS. I think that's somewhat natural. MS can do so many crazy and varied things to your body. It's hard to categorize it's potential, so you shift issues into other areas that make more sense.

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