Hello,
Let us talk about symptoms (you can feel free to place a "baby" at the end of that sentence if you read it in the style of Salt and Peppa.) Multiple Sclerosis has about 9 billion possible symptoms, ranging from minor annoyances to crippling horrors. I myself have experienced about a dozen or so symptoms; and they have ranged from minor annoyances to disconcertingly life altering. (Nothing worse so far ::knocks on wood::)
This is the area that holds a stigma for Multiple Sclerosis sufferers. Many have a distinct view in their head of what a sufferer looks like... and from what I am usually told, it usually involves a wheelchair. Symptoms are one of the two main topics that I wish to open some dialogue (wishful thinking that anyone is reading) about. (To find out the other, you will just have to keep on reading, now don't you?)
We had discussed my first symptom, as the left half of my body went numb from the neck down. It wasn't severe and didn't effect my balance or gate; but it was noticeable and bothersome. I had "pins and needles" tingling and a dampened feel to the touch. I was aware that I was touching something, or being touched, but it was no where near normal; hard for me to explain actually.
Within the next few months, I had a couple of other major symptoms rear their ugly heads. First, I had this strange "electrical shock" feeling shoot down my spine with I craned my neck down. It wasn't terribly painful, but it was uncomfortable. Then there way my major symptom: severe numbness and weakness in my left leg. This was strange, and altered my life for a long time. If I were seated for a long time, or was siting on a hard surface for any more than 5 minutes, I would have an awful time standing up and walking. My left leg would go numb to the point where I barely had control over it, and I would feel the "pins and needles" tingling to the point of intense pain.
I had a number of other symptoms, including from decreased grip strength, intermittent numbness in the hands and feet, and severe fatigue (which has been a constant since my diagnosis.) Yet, out of all this, the problems with my left leg were the absolute worst. I tried to hide this as long as I could, but my walking progressively deteriorated and I was unable to keep people from noticing; prompting me to invest in a cane to steady myself (funny enough, this is how I ended up letting many of my friends know about my diagnosis.)
I have had a number of steroid treatments (pills and IV bags) over the years, and many of my symptoms have come and gone. (In fact, the leg issue has hit me on 3 separate occasions, my left leg, then both legs, and then back to the left leg.) Currently, I am (for the most part) asymptomatic. I still have the severe weakness, which has never dissipated over the past 7+ years, some intermittent numbness in the hands (I'm told the Scrabble word for this is paresthesia,) and some minor leg numbness.
I have heard about a myriad of symptoms that can manifest with Multiple Sclerosis, and can include vision problems, bladder and bowel control problems, numbness and tingling, itchiness, uncontrollable movements, etc. One of the many struggles an MS patient has is not focusing on the possible future; because it is the most important to focus on how to live healthy, properly maintain all medications, and enjoy life.
Thanks for reading,
Adam
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