I think I'm joining here :(

[SJMCK]

Hi guys, I'm Jen. I've been lurking for a week or so, but never posted. I saw a lot of people posting in the Limbo section that never seemed to post again, so I figured my chances of having MS were low and I was just jumping the gun.

I have had "symptoms" for about 6 years, but I honestly thought everyone had this same sort of stuff going on. My DH is a Physician Assistant and I'd mention things to him off hand about something going on and he'd give me the "hmmmm" voice and ask me other questions. I didn't think anything of it. When I finally realized that there was something going on, he said he's known for 6 years. I dismissed him every single time because I thought he just knows too much in the medical field and is making it worse than it is (and I was probably in denial).

I had an episode in early October and I think I finally realized it was time to do something about it. Luckily I could self refer to the neurologist and he got me in pretty quickly.

I had my first 2 MRI's done last week. Brain and Cervical spine. Brain showed periventricular and subcortical lesions-- small and not many. Cervical showed 1 at C-1 and another at T-1, but it wasn't clear enough on the T1 so they sent me for another one on the thoracic spine with contrast. Results came back and I have the same one at T1 and then another at T3, T6 and T7. I'm meeting with the neurologist tomorrow.

I'm feeling totally dazed by this. Like I knew it was a high possibility, but seeing it on paper is totally different.

[SNOOPY]

Hello SJMCK and welcome to MSWorld.

I am curious what your symptoms are...if you wouldn't mind sharing Spinal cord lesions are usually more symptomatic than brain lesions.

I'm not saying you have MS but it is presenting like MS, MRI wise Best wishes on your Neurology appointment tomorrow.

[SJMCK]

Hi Snoopy--

Ugh. Symptoms. At the beginning of October it was mainly the headache of all headaches with a stabbing pain behind my right eye combined with a stabbing pain in my head. After that subsided (about 3 days) I noticed that my eyesight in the eye pain eye was much more blurrier than the other. That's when I realized I probably should be taking DH's advice seriously. Since then it has been the extreme-need-a-4-hour-nap-every-day kind of fatigue, numbness in random limbs, pin-prick sensations, still have a eye-headache (lol). Added to it is the dizziness, concentration and memory problems.

[SJMCK]

Just re-read that and I think you mean symptoms from the past- not current symptoms! LOL

I think the thing that put DH on the course of thinking it was MS was when I had the Lhermitte's sign. When I would look down it felt like someone tasered me from my neck down. That eventually went away. I think it has happened a handful more times since then, but the first one was 6 years ago.

The stabbing eye pain has been another one that comes and goes. I think I just always thought it was from seasonal allergies.

Dizziness - quite frequently.

Depression.

I've never had problems walking or anything. I don't know. I kind of just dismissed the whole thing and thought everyone had these same sort of things. I'm sure if I asked DH he could run of a running list of things I've mentioned to him over the years.

[SNOOPY]

Hi SJMCK,

I kind of just dismissed the whole thing and thought everyone had these same sort of things.

Yes. I grew up thinking everyone dealt with or felt as I did I found out some years later that abnormal is normal for those with MS

When related to MS, Lhermitte's it is caused by a lesion(s) on the cervical spine. This is one I am quite familiar with as it's been a constant for me for 30 years I experience vibrations/buzzing from mid spine, sometimes just waist down, when bending my head. I am glad yours cleared up and didn't stay around.

Have you been referred to an Ophthalmologist or neuro-Ophthalmologist regarding your eye pain, if not that might be something to ask about.

I'm sorry to hear you are dealing with depression please seek treatment asap, if you haven't already.

Take care

[Teekybird]

Hi,
Welcome to the site and posting. I personally find comfort in posting and having a real person reply.

I have to ask a dumb question. What does DH stand for?

There are also some dumb minor symptoms that I have had in recent years that at the time I thought were just aging or something that wasn't medically significant. (There was one time when I was sure there was a 3-5 second earthquake, and numerous other times I felt like a cell phone was vibrating in my pocket (but my cellphone was not in my pocket or vibrating). Leg spams at night sleep issues/insomnia. Extreme fatigue and some cognitive fog in recent years. I was thinking it was all aging. Some of it still may not be MS, but I think most are probably actually little MS symptoms. For me the symptom that led to MRI and diagnosis was optic neuritis in the right eye.

Good luck to you. Keep posting. Keep pursuing the answers to your questions. My name is also Jen/Jennifer/Jenny. I'm ok with whichever derivative.

[Kimba22]

I have to ask a dumb question. What does DH stand for?

I was clueless when I first saw this, too. It's an acronym for "dear husband."

Here are some others: http://www.msworld.org/forum/showthr...s-amp-acronyms

I do a Google search whenever I see others I'm not familiar with, since there are so many nowadays!

[SJMCK]

Hi SJMCK,

Have you been referred to an Ophthalmologist or neuro-Ophthalmologist regarding your eye pain, if not that might be something to ask about.

I'm sorry to hear you are dealing with depression please seek treatment asap, if you haven't already.

Take care

I haven't been to a eye doc EVER, but I'll find out from the neuro tomorrow who he recommends I use. The last time I had an eye exam was in elementary school! That was the thing that finally made me realize there was a problem. My vision has always been perfect. PERFECT. When I realized the eye that had the pain was the one that was blurry I realized something was off.

I have been on depression meds for the last 9/10 months. So far, so good!

Thank you for the replies. It helps to know there are others out there.

[SJMCK]

Hi,

I have to ask a dumb question. What does DH stand for?

There are also some dumb minor symptoms that I have had in recent years that at the time I thought were just aging or something that wasn't medically significant. (There was one time when I was sure there was a 3-5 second earthquake, and numerous other times I felt like a cell phone was vibrating in my pocket (but my cellphone was not in my pocket or vibrating). Leg spams at night sleep issues/insomnia. Extreme fatigue and some cognitive fog in recent years. I was thinking it was all aging. Some of it still may not be MS, but I think most are probably actually little MS symptoms. For me the symptom that led to MRI and diagnosis was optic neuritis in the right eye.

Good luck to you. Keep posting. Keep pursuing the answers to your questions. My name is also Jen/Jennifer/Jenny. I'm ok with whichever derivative.

Hi Jen! I respond to all three, but it normally depends on who's calling me! I mostly go by Jen, but my parents call me Jenni and my cousins call me Jennifer.

Yeah, DH is "Dear Husband". I guess I've been on mommy message boards too long. I'm just lucky I don't call him my DH in real live conversations with friends!

I can so relate to the cell phone vibrating thing! I check my purse all the time because I think it is buzzing and it isn't.

Your post rings true-- its hard to know what is normal aging stuff and when you finally realize something is off. Then I put it off because I thought "This is all in my head-- nothing is going to show up on the MRIs".