I'm a mess, scared of MS

[Bugalooo]

About 2 months ago I had a panic attack I think, couldn't catch my breath,chest tightness, heart racing, dizzy...its been down hill ever since..Been to the the emergency room like 4 times with these symptoms since then..They did all the tests with a echo stress test on heart and could find nothing..My doctor gave me Klonopin and buspar for anxiety which doesn't seem to do anything for my anxiety..About two weeks ago my left big toe went slightly numb for about 8 hrs after I stood up from my chair and I get muscle twitches all over not constant but once in a while at different places, arms and legs feel weak I think and slightly painfull at times...Had an MRI of brain done but showed nothing...My doctor finally sent me to a MS neurologist who did all the reflex tests and pin tests and said he couldn't see anything wrong, I asked him about doing a MRI of the spine for lesions(MS) but he said I don't have MS and I don't have lesions....I'm driving my wife nuts worrying about MS and I don't know what to do, I still can't get it out of my mind

[nell1965]

What exactly is it that you are worrying about? You have been told by a specialist that you dont have MS, are you worried that he has got it wrong or are you worried that although you dont have it at the moment that you might take it?. The statistics are in your favour as men are less likely than women to develop ms. I dont want to seem unsympathetic to how you are feeling as i do understand how bad anxiety can make us feel, but you have been seen and told you dont have it, would having a total body mri scan make you feel better or would you still worry that it had missed something, you have to learn when to switch off from this or it will consume you day and night, be relieved that you dont suffer from ms, celebrate this with your wife and spare a thought for all of the poor souls out there who do have it. You have to work out what it is thats really bothering you and address this before you go any further. Take care


I just want my life back
nell
x

[april tones]

Hiya, if your mri was clear im sure you will be fine!
I had mri of head and neck which was clear! xx

fibrochat) http://apriltones.proboards54.com

[ItWillPass]

I can totally relate to everything you have said. MS is one of my biggest fears, and it seems that I have almost all of the symptoms. However, I keep telling myself that all of my symptoms can also be symptoms of anxiety. Since i know that I have anxiety, it would be pretty odd that I also happen to have MS. I know all of this logically, but that does not always help. I am always terrified I have it as well. I drive everyone nuts with my fears also. I dont have much advice, but sometimes it helps to know you are not alone in this.

[Graham]

Not sure if this is of any comfort?

http://www.physiohypervent.org/hyperventilation.html

It is a poor heart, and a poorer age, that cannot accept the conditions of life with some heroic readiness. RLS.

[pnb]

Hi,

I was in exactly the same position as you.

I had tingling skin, burning sensations, muscle twitches, vibrating muscles etc.

I too went to A+E, once by ambulance.

I too was obsessed about having MS.

I went to my doctor 21 times in three months and also paid to go and see two independent neurologists.

I was so frightened, I lost weight, nearly lost my job and my family.

So I do know how you feel.

My sensations didn't just come and go, they seemed to always be there. Which I believed was contrary to everybody elses anxiety experience.

I also wasn't convinced that I was even anxious. I felt my response to my symptoms was entirely justified.

My eyelids twitched for 11 months every day, to a greater or lesser degree. Again I thought this was symptomatic of MS. I even telephoned the MS society in desperation. The lady on the end of phone had had MS for over thirty years and told me "it doesn't sound like any form of MS".
Still I could not believe her.

Today is different... I hardly ever get any tingling, twitching, my eyes have stopped twitching too....

In my experience there are no shortcuts, no pills that stop the fear, no exercises that remove the doubt.

Time & courage are the way to get better. It's taken me 18 months to get this far and I am not out of the woods yet.

You must find your own courage to accept the way life is. If you had MS, you would have to deal with it. Many people with all sorts of ailments live happy, fulfilled, worthwhile lives.

It is your imagination that is causing you the pain ( all the "What If's ?" )
It is what you add to real life situations that causes the excessive fear.

Dig deep inside, realise your own power & strength.

Seeking reassurance after a certain pointm only feeds the anxiety and results in a need for more reassurance... (hence the repeated Dr visits)

Stop this now !

Allow all the symptoms to come, however horrible and let them flood right through you. They have to come out for you to get better. Fighting them will only delay this healing and cause the symptoms to build.

I wish you all the luck in the world and hope that this message brings you hope. :D

[pnb]

Hi,

I was in exactly the same position as you.

I had tingling skin, burning sensations, muscle twitches, vibrating muscles etc.

I too went to A+E, once by ambulance.

I too was obsessed about having MS.

I went to my doctor 21 times in three months and also paid to go and see two independent neurologists.

I was so frightened, I lost weight, nearly lost my job and my family.

So I do know how you feel.

My sensations didn't just come and go, they seemed to always be there. Which I believed was contrary to everybody elses anxiety experience.

I also wasn't convinced that I was even anxious. I felt my response to my symptoms was entirely justified.

My eyelids twitched for 11 months every day, to a greater or lesser degree. Again I thought this was symptomatic of MS. I even telephoned the MS society in desperation. The lady on the end of phone had had MS for over thirty years and told me "it doesn't sound like any form of MS".
Still I could not believe her.

Today is different... I hardly ever get any tingling, twitching, my eyes have stopped twitching too....

In my experience there are no shortcuts, no pills that stop the fear, no exercises that remove the doubt.

Time & courage are the way to get better. It's taken me 18 months to get this far and I am not out of the woods yet.

You must find your own courage to accept the way life is. If you had MS, you would have to deal with it. Many people with all sorts of ailments live happy, fulfilled, worthwhile lives.

It is your imagination that is causing you the pain ( all the "What If's ?" )
It is what you add to real life situations that causes the excessive fear.

Dig deep inside, realise your own power & strength.

Seeking reassurance after a certain pointm only feeds the anxiety and results in a need for more reassurance... (hence the repeated Dr visits)

Stop this now !

Allow all the symptoms to come, however horrible and let them flood right through you. They have to come out for you to get better. Fighting them will only delay this healing and cause the symptoms to build.

I wish you all the luck in the world and hope that this message brings you hope. :D

[ItWillPass]

that was a great post pnb. thanx.

[jackie]

bugaloo have you ever read claire weekes book entitled " self help for your nerves. " it describes all your symptoms and more and also points out that most people with these symptoms of anxiety and tension fear ms.

i really think this book would make you see things clearer

jackie

[reddevil]

<b id="quote">quote:</b id="quote"><table border="0" id="quote"><tr id="quote"><td class="quote" id="quote">bugaloo have you ever read claire weekes book entitled " self help for your nerves. " it describes all your symptoms and more and also points out that most people with these symptoms of anxiety and tension fear ms.

i really think this book would make you see things clearer

jackie

<div align="right">Originally posted by jackie - 08 May 2006 : 21:37:10</div id="right">
</td id="quote"></tr id="quote"></table id="quote">



I have just ordered this book myself from play.com.

[NYguy]

It sounds like your wife is upset either because you’re sharing too much or not sharing enough of what’s going on with you. I find my wife and I are better able to deal with my panic if she knows what’s going on. She actually proved to be my biggest advocate in all of this. I really struggled to “let her in on it.” I think like most men I have trouble “sharing.” Women just don’t work that way. I had all the same things going on that you do last year. I was going to one doctor or another two or three times a week, eleven visits to the ER. I thought I was going to die of some disabling disease, particularity ms. I pushed my wife so far out of what was going on with me, I thought she was going to kill me or leave me. Her being upset just upset me more. I just knew that I couldn’t do all of this alone, but I couldn’t keep hurting her too. After having a lot of test done, just to convince me noting was wrong, I finally decided to trust the professionals and my wife. I do still have anxiety about some things and I worry a lot, but we’ve just had a healthy baby girl and now I have something happy to worry about! Hope this helps you see the light at the end of the tunnel.