Newly Diagnosed with MS

Being diagnosed with MS is like grieving, the psychological effects is not easy to deal with. Are you still working? Have you been assigned a Neurological Nurse? If you have, spend time talking to her, it can be an enormous help. Do you have an MS Society near you? If you do, join them. You will see people with more severe strains of MS, but the people who attend WILL understand what you are going through. Try to find a challenge to focus on, I was told once to write a book, but have never got round to it! Keep your appearance up, so that when other people look at you, to them you are that poster girl.

MS is a lifelong illness and for that reason, the sooner you can forget yesterday, live for today and think or something nice and new to do tomorrow, the sooner you can start living again. Talk to your friends, help them to understand your feelings. There is an online MS website where you might find other help as well.

I wish you well.

you sound just like me nearly thirty years ago. Like me, your first symptoms are what they call sensory. This means you have a

better outlook than if they were nonsensical, e.g. weakness or spasticity. In my case actually now I remember there was some weakness in that I had trouble lifting my left foot. This disappeared within a couple of days, before I even got to the emergency room thinking I had had a stroke at age 35.

Despite having no symptoms at all by the time I saw the neurologist the next day, after literally just a few minutes I was told I had MS. I know many have to wait, some years, to find what is causing trouble. I think the quick diagnosis is nothing to wish for instead! I nearly passed out. A friend in the medical profession told me that there were lots of other neurological diagnoses which would be worse to hear, and that helped.

It also turned out to be true. I have no mobility issues at all after decades of MS. I have fatigue that developed after ten years, but it hasn't kept me from enjoying life. I started, but discontinued. Avonex during treatment for breast cancer fifteen years ago, and otherwise need no medication for my MS.

I've had several brief attacks over the years of sensory stuff like you describe, annoying as heck on occasion but not dangerous symptoms. The tight band feeling early on, and leaden feeling legs when overtired sometimes. A few spasms here and there even. Nothing for over a decade but mild tingling and fatigue which did cause me to retire early from traveling the world making public television documentaries. My Neuro recommended I go on disability from my strenuous career. Not a bad outcome after all as I have enjoyed my new career as housewifer and master gardener.

Eighty-five percent of us have a non progressive course like mine. The statement lately that half of these will turn secondary progressive is in my view scare tactics of the huge drug companies which have come to depend on our believing we will get worse without their products. Unfortunately much of the science on MSissue is funded by big pharmaceutical companies. There is a huge amount of propaganda you willbe barraged with, but if their administration and side effects are worse than the symptoms you are having you may want to buck big posts and do fine like many of us.

The odds are in your favor ! Know that the MS community online, which is wonderfully informative and a boon to the.more impacted MSers. I would warn you off spending too much time online: obsessing over this. Naturally most of the info online r relates to those of us who are more affected, and it is easy to forget the majority of us do OK. I hope this helps.

excuse typos! it is very early here but I wanted to respond quickly since I wish someone had told me these things early on!