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Does MS cause suffering?

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    Does MS cause suffering?

    I am approaching the second decade of “living with MS” and there is a certain trepidation that things could get really rough. Today is not terrible but the future scares me a lot.

    MS has specific symptoms. We know them. Numbness, restless legs, muscle cramps, pain, dizziness, nausea, falls, bladder and bowel problems, the hug. They are all on the symptoms page as isolated “complaints” as doctors write on our medical record.

    But does all that constitute suffering?

    I ask because I feel an achiness that so often consumes my being. Just like the poster below, I have time to reflect on these things and post. Right now everyone is out enjoy the summer fun and the last thing I want to do right now is go out in the heat, everyone is on vacation so I can’t find a caregiver and it is only the first half of July.

    Are we sufferers?

    #2
    I have suffered greatly due to MS.

    I remind myself that others with MS have suffered far more than I have at this point so I try to be mindful and appreciative of that fact.
    He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion.
    Anonymous

    Comment


      #3
      I think it's a kind of suffering. Maybe when people hear the word, they think of extreme physical pain. But then they might also consider being paralyzed a kind of suffering.

      All of what you mention is a kind of suffering. People who don't have MS will never understand it, because they can't see it. The symptoms you suffer with are so diverse that they might not believe us, anyway.

      If someone has fatigue from cancer treatments, they get a lot of understanding. If we have fatigue from MS, we're often doubted. When someone with cancer has a good day, everyone is happy for them. When we have a good day, it's seen as proof that our fatigue is not real.

      The symptoms you mention are a kind of suffering. The social isolation is a suffering, too, just as it is for people who can't get out because they're undergoing cancer treatment.

      I'm not comparing MS to cancer. It's just a condition that everyone goes out of their way to sympathize with, even if they've never had it and actually know nothing about it.








      Originally posted by palmtree View Post
      I am approaching the second decade of “living with MS” and there is a certain trepidation that things could get really rough. Today is not terrible but the future scares me a lot.

      MS has specific symptoms. We know them. Numbness, restless legs, muscle cramps, pain, dizziness, nausea, falls, bladder and bowel problems, the hug. They are all on the symptoms page as isolated “complaints” as doctors write on our medical record.

      But does all that constitute suffering?

      I ask because I feel an achiness that so often consumes my being. Just like the poster below, I have time to reflect on these things and post. Right now everyone is out enjoy the summer fun and the last thing I want to do right now is go out in the heat, everyone is on vacation so I can’t find a caregiver and it is only the first half of July.

      Are we sufferers?

      Comment


        #4
        I know that I suffer. I am sad every day. It has been very hot here and I know that causes all of my symptoms to be worse, but it seems relentless.

        I have stopped doing a lot of things because of the heat. My husband has to do all the grocery shopping and cooking.
        It is so much like what my mother went through with her MS. She was the same age as I am now when she died of MS complications.

        I think if I could just get a good nights sleep I would feel better but I can't sleep more than an hour or two at a time.

        I will see a therapist next week to try to get help coping with this disease. I am ashamed that I am not able to cope on my own.

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by loopey View Post
          I know that I suffer. I am sad every day. It has been very hot here and I know that causes all of my symptoms to be worse, but it seems relentless.

          I have stopped doing a lot of things because of the heat. My husband has to do all the grocery shopping and cooking.
          It is so much like what my mother went through with her MS. She was the same age as I am now when she died of MS complications.

          I think if I could just get a good nights sleep I would feel better but I can't sleep more than an hour or two at a time.

          I will see a therapist next week to try to get help coping with this disease. I am ashamed that I am not able to cope on my own.
          Hi loopey

          Thank you for sharing and letting us know what you're experiencing.

          I'm very sorry to learn that you are having an especially difficult time dealing with your MS symptoms, along with lack of sleep and heat intolerance.

          Memories of your Mom and her experience with MS must also be really extra tough to live with.

          Hopefully your therapy will be helpful, as it was beneficial for me.

          Remember that having MS is no fault of yours, and therefore not something that you, or any of us, need to be ashamed of.

          Good luck with therapy, and hopefully you will get help with your sleep issues, as well as the deep sadness that you feel.

          Wishing you peace and good energy, and relief from the heat too.

          Take Care
          PPMS for 26 years (dx 1998)
          ~ Worrying will not take away tomorrow's troubles ~ But it will take away today's peace. ~

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by loopey View Post
            I am ashamed that I am not able to cope on my own.
            Please don't be ashamed. Therapy and if needed medication can make a significant difference in quality of life. I think you are courageous for seeking help when you need it.
            He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion.
            Anonymous

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by palmtree View Post
              I am approaching the second decade of “living with MS” and there is a certain trepidation that things could get really rough....Are we sufferers?

              I think we are. Actually everyone living is suffering in some fashion.

              V. Frankl, a concentration camp survivor wrote there must be meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even as fate and death. Without suffering and death, human life cannot be complete.

              How we handle suffering, not are we suffers, is the heart of the matter. There are hidden opportunities for achievement, even within suffering. Frankl further states that in camp it was necessary to teach despairing men that it did not really matter what we expected from life but rather what life expected from us.

              Keep your chin up Palmtree, MS is just another (expletive) bump in the road.

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by 502E79 View Post
                I think we are. Actually everyone living is suffering in some fashion.

                V. Frankl, a concentration camp survivor wrote there must be meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even as fate and death. Without suffering and death, human life cannot be complete.

                How we handle suffering, not are we suffers, is the heart of the matter. There are hidden opportunities for achievement, even within suffering. Frankl further states that in camp it was necessary to teach despairing men that it did not really matter what we expected from life but rather what life expected from us.

                Keep your chin up Palmtree, MS is just another (expletive) bump in the road.
                Good answer! Still hoping for a "like" button.
                1st sx '89 Dx '99 w/RRMS - SP since 2010
                Administrator Message Boards/Moderator

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by 502E79 View Post
                  I think we are. Actually everyone living is suffering in some fashion.

                  V. Frankl, a concentration camp survivor wrote there must be meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even as fate and death. Without suffering and death, human life cannot be complete.

                  How we handle suffering, not are we suffers, is the heart of the matter. There are hidden opportunities for achievement, even within suffering. Frankl further states that in camp it was necessary to teach despairing men that it did not really matter what we expected from life but rather what life expected from us.

                  Keep your chin up Palmtree, MS is just another (expletive) bump in the road.
                  Yes. This!

                  Take care of yourself, Palmtree. Eat healthy, exercise moderately, practice stress management techniques, pamper yourself when needed.
                  ~ Faith
                  MSWorld Volunteer -- Moderator since JUN2012
                  (now a Mimibug)

                  Symptoms began in JAN02
                  - Dx with RRMS in OCT03, following 21 months of limbo, ruling out lots of other dx, and some "probable stroke" and "probable CNS" dx for awhile.
                  - In 2008, I was back in limbo briefly, then re-dx w/ MS: JUL08
                  .

                  - Betaseron NOV03-AUG08; Copaxone20 SEPT08-APR15; Copaxone40 APR15-present
                  - Began receiving SSDI / LTD NOV08. Not employed. I volunteer in my church and community.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by 502E79 View Post
                    I think we are. Actually everyone living is suffering in some fashion.

                    V. Frankl, a concentration camp survivor wrote there must be meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even as fate and death. Without suffering and death, human life cannot be complete.

                    How we handle suffering, not are we suffers, is the heart of the matter. There are hidden opportunities for achievement, even within suffering. Frankl further states that in camp it was necessary to teach despairing men that it did not really matter what we expected from life but rather what life expected from us.

                    Keep your chin up Palmtree, MS is just another (expletive) bump in the road.

                    Thank you for this beautiful answer.

                    "Comforted that I am dust..."
                    All the best, ~G

                    Comment


                      #11
                      I never expected to get such a powerful answer. But, at times, I have compared this to being a POW.

                      This thread was not meant to be a pity party but the analogy was an inspirational testimony to the human spirit.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Spasticity-MAN!

                        I rolled with the punches for years with MS,every symptom to some degree! For me fatigue was really a life changer.
                        Then the word 'spasticity' enter my world about 3 years ago. Stress started it with rental properties and all the headaches that comes with that. I do NOT want to worry anybody but the spasticity that I deal with now is nothing short of torture. I do everything I can on a daily basis to help keep it under control... Medication(muscle relaxers) and for me ICE works. I exercise if I can but it is terrible. I hate to say this but PAIN has become a daily ritual and PAIN management an every day struggle...I am sorry!
                        Bob
                        dx 2000...Avonex 2000...
                        started Ty 2006 stopped Ty 2008

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by FlyerFan View Post
                          I rolled with the punches for years with MS,every symptom to some degree! For me fatigue was really a life changer.
                          Then the word 'spasticity' enter my world about 3 years ago. Stress started it with rental properties and all the headaches that comes with that. I do NOT want to worry anybody but the spasticity that I deal with now is nothing short of torture. I do everything I can on a daily basis to help keep it under control... Medication(muscle relaxers) and for me ICE works. I exercise if I can but it is terrible. I hate to say this but PAIN has become a daily ritual and PAIN management an every day struggle...I am sorry!
                          Nothing to apologize for. You are testimony to the fact that MS does indeed cause pain.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Oh my gosh YES!
                            I suffer every day with something or another. My body is in pain all day every day. I'm mentally, physically and emotionally exhausted. I look at pictures of me 10 yrs ago and look in the mirror now and wonder what happened to me? I try to do what I can to stay healthy but it's not working. So I'm ready to just let whatever happens to happen and just try to enjoy what time I have left.
                            DIAGNOSED=2012
                            ISSUES LONG BEFORE
                            REBIF 1 YEAR

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Suffering is part of life. But I think most people in the world would agree that the Holocast was a human rights abuse.

                              Comment

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