Good Evening Everyone,
My name is Jason and I am a band director at a large high school in Florida. I am 32 years old. I have had some very strange symptoms for about a year. However, looking back at least four years, MS can explain a lot of things that have happened in my life. I am not sure what I should do. I am looking for guidance on what to do. Who should I see, would they even take me seriously?
I have the following symptoms:
1. Random patches of numbness that come and go. The most likely places are on my hands and feet (Peripheral Neuropathy) This is always like a half numbness. It is very annoying. It has gotten to the point where my hands and feet are almost always half numb. It seems when I touch things or hold things whatever is being touched turns numb as well. I have had these random patches of numbness just about everywhere on my body at some point. I also have an altered state of touch. Very strange sensations.
2. I have always been highly intelligent. However, I have noticed in the last year that I often have brain fog. My recall of information has become poor. Especially words. I know exactly what I want to say, I can see it in my mind but it never comes out. Oddly enough it comes out as something completely different. For example, last night I went to a restaurant and I asked my fiance where she found the forks. What came out was "Where did you find the straws?" I say it with such conviction because I am so sure of what I wanted to say but it is wrong. This sort of thing has been happening with increased frequency and it appears to be getting worse as time goes on. Furthermore, I will be in class teaching and writing on the whiteboard simultaneously but what I am saying and what I am writing are two completely different things.
3. Vision issues. I had 20/15 vision for most of my life until about five years ago or so I started losing my distance vision. In the last year I feel like my vision has depreciated at an alarming rate. It is no longer just distance vision but all vision. My right eye is especially bad. In the right eye it almost seems as if colors are washed out and greyish. Furthermore, I feel like I have lost some peripheral vision.
4. Fine motor skills. I feel like I am slowly losing my fine motor skills. Little things like texting on a phone and typing this message seem much more difficult than they used to. I have slowed down significantly and make a plethora of mistakes. Things I have done so much just feel strange.
5. Movement. I have noticed a significant decrease in my walking speed and my gait seems to have changed. I am well aware of it but it is nothing I am consciously doing. This is not significant but noticeable. I feel much stiffer than I used to.
6. Involuntary twitching. My newest symptom is involuntary twitching. It started in my right eyelid about three weeks ago and sometimes spreads down my cheeks. This is intermittent and does not happen all the time but definitely a neurological issue.
7. Dizziness and vertigo. This one comes and goes but sometimes it can be pretty severe. Sometimes it happens while I am driving and I fear for my life. This is one of those symptoms that I had four years ago that could have been my first episode. I had about three months of debilitating dizziness and vertigo. I had to sit down at work while teaching. It was just awful. Doctors could not explain it but they certainly didn't do anything outside of a blood test.
8. Other cognitive deficiencies. I have noticed it is much more difficult to focus and have developed some ADD tendencies. I used to be able to multitask and get stuff done better than most people I know. It is getting harder. Remembering names is becoming an issue sometimes as well. Names of people I see and communicate with every day like my students.
9. Pain. I have had numerous injuries in my life that can explain pain but most of them are really old injuries. I have more pain than someone my age should ever have to endure. I do not know if this is related or not.
10. Bowel problems. I am almost always constipated and I drink a lot of water and eat fairly well.
I currently have a recurrent cholesteatoma in my left ear that needs to be surgically removed soon but it does not explain any of these symptoms as it is not in brain.
What do you all think and what should I do from here? Any advice would be really appreciated. I have seen my primary physician and they basically turned me away. Thank you for your time!
My name is Jason and I am a band director at a large high school in Florida. I am 32 years old. I have had some very strange symptoms for about a year. However, looking back at least four years, MS can explain a lot of things that have happened in my life. I am not sure what I should do. I am looking for guidance on what to do. Who should I see, would they even take me seriously?
I have the following symptoms:
1. Random patches of numbness that come and go. The most likely places are on my hands and feet (Peripheral Neuropathy) This is always like a half numbness. It is very annoying. It has gotten to the point where my hands and feet are almost always half numb. It seems when I touch things or hold things whatever is being touched turns numb as well. I have had these random patches of numbness just about everywhere on my body at some point. I also have an altered state of touch. Very strange sensations.
2. I have always been highly intelligent. However, I have noticed in the last year that I often have brain fog. My recall of information has become poor. Especially words. I know exactly what I want to say, I can see it in my mind but it never comes out. Oddly enough it comes out as something completely different. For example, last night I went to a restaurant and I asked my fiance where she found the forks. What came out was "Where did you find the straws?" I say it with such conviction because I am so sure of what I wanted to say but it is wrong. This sort of thing has been happening with increased frequency and it appears to be getting worse as time goes on. Furthermore, I will be in class teaching and writing on the whiteboard simultaneously but what I am saying and what I am writing are two completely different things.
3. Vision issues. I had 20/15 vision for most of my life until about five years ago or so I started losing my distance vision. In the last year I feel like my vision has depreciated at an alarming rate. It is no longer just distance vision but all vision. My right eye is especially bad. In the right eye it almost seems as if colors are washed out and greyish. Furthermore, I feel like I have lost some peripheral vision.
4. Fine motor skills. I feel like I am slowly losing my fine motor skills. Little things like texting on a phone and typing this message seem much more difficult than they used to. I have slowed down significantly and make a plethora of mistakes. Things I have done so much just feel strange.
5. Movement. I have noticed a significant decrease in my walking speed and my gait seems to have changed. I am well aware of it but it is nothing I am consciously doing. This is not significant but noticeable. I feel much stiffer than I used to.
6. Involuntary twitching. My newest symptom is involuntary twitching. It started in my right eyelid about three weeks ago and sometimes spreads down my cheeks. This is intermittent and does not happen all the time but definitely a neurological issue.
7. Dizziness and vertigo. This one comes and goes but sometimes it can be pretty severe. Sometimes it happens while I am driving and I fear for my life. This is one of those symptoms that I had four years ago that could have been my first episode. I had about three months of debilitating dizziness and vertigo. I had to sit down at work while teaching. It was just awful. Doctors could not explain it but they certainly didn't do anything outside of a blood test.
8. Other cognitive deficiencies. I have noticed it is much more difficult to focus and have developed some ADD tendencies. I used to be able to multitask and get stuff done better than most people I know. It is getting harder. Remembering names is becoming an issue sometimes as well. Names of people I see and communicate with every day like my students.
9. Pain. I have had numerous injuries in my life that can explain pain but most of them are really old injuries. I have more pain than someone my age should ever have to endure. I do not know if this is related or not.
10. Bowel problems. I am almost always constipated and I drink a lot of water and eat fairly well.
I currently have a recurrent cholesteatoma in my left ear that needs to be surgically removed soon but it does not explain any of these symptoms as it is not in brain.
What do you all think and what should I do from here? Any advice would be really appreciated. I have seen my primary physician and they basically turned me away. Thank you for your time!
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