MS or extreme anxiety/hypochondria?

[Parrotsmuggler]

About two weeks ago, I was working on some schoolwork on the computer when I realized that I felt a little lightheaded. I got up from my chair and felt slightly dizzy. I immediately became worried and cancelled my workout for that morning (I thought that maybe I had had a TIA - my father had one a few months ago, so I guess that's why it came to mind). I looked up dizziness on the internet and read about the various medical conditions that can cause it. I soon realized that it was very unlikely that I had had a TIA or a stroke. However, MS did come up in my search and I spent awhile reading up on the symptoms of MS. Later in the day, I got a tingling feeling in my left foot and since then everything has gone downhill. Over the last two weeks, I've developed just about every MS symptom there is, some have stayed with me, others have gone away, only to be replaced by others. I've experienced:

-intermittent tingling in feet, legs, hands, and face
-a feeling of weakness in my legs and arms
-muscle twitches all over my body
-seeing floaters
-a feeling of being off balance
-perceived hand/forearm weakness
-finger twitching, eye twitching
-sometimes I feel like my vision is blurry but when I rub my eyes, it goes away
-fatigue
-lower back pain
-leg stiffness/leg pains
-chest pain
-sometimes I feel as if the tips of my toes have gone numb, but when I touch them, the sensation is normal
-lack of coordination (I feel like my movements aren't as precise as they were before)
-a feeling of tightness in my face, intermittent pain in my face
-itchiness all over
-overreaction to the cold
-sometimes I can feel my heart beating very strongly, sometimes it feels like it's skipped a beat.

I just don't know what to make of all this. I've seen three GPs and they've all said stress. I went to the ER and the doctor said my neurological exam was perfect (unfortunately, they didn't give me an MRI). And yet I really don't feel that all this is being caused by stress...I mean, the most stressful thing in my life right now is the thought that I have MS.

Any opinions would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

Stress is the wrong word.  This is a very familiar onset of anxiety disorder focused on ms.  It is impossible for ms to come on like this, so suddenly, and not have any neurological signs. You should see a therapist or ask your doctor for Klonopin for your anxiety.

[born2bfree]

hey guy, check the topic two below yours. we are all discussing the "symptoms" that arise from anxiety. without even knowing you or seeing you i'd bet a million dollars you don't have MS. I've had these SAME symptoms for about a year now and I also thought I had MS, ALS, Parkinson,Some undiagnosable condition. STRESS causes anxiety and after awhile, our body just says enough of this stuff. Its starts acting weird and then this is where the nasty cycle starts. The symptoms start and you start worrying about them which causes more anxiety which in return causes more symptoms. in keeps getting worse until you can get some sort of control of it. you first have to get piece of mind that you are "physically" fine. once you get that in your head(which isn't easy to do because a person keeps thinking something else is wrong)it is then you stop the nasty cycle. it doen't always mean your going to get better right away but at least you can then begin to cope with the root cause of how it all began. I've been going thru this for about a year now and believe it or not there have good days but let me tell you, the bad days still come. the difference is i realize this is anxiety and not a physcial disease. if you ever want to email me my email is ***@****.
God Bless and hang in there. It does get better and easier to live with.

[born2bfree]

also look up the term derealization. it may answer your "dizziness" symptoms.

[Parrotsmuggler]

Thanks for commenting. I'd really like to believe that what I'm experiencing is anxiety, but it's very tough to believe this when all your symptoms point to one disease...MS. Unfortunately, the symptoms of MS coincide almost perfectly with those of extreme anxiety so it's impossible to tell what symptoms are being caused by what.

Even right now, typing at the computer, both my forearms feel weak and sore, my left eye is twitching, etc...so frustrating. I'll tell you one thing, if this isn't MS I'll be signing myself up for CBT!

[born2bfree]

i bet the reason for your weakness is that your totally tense with your body. i bet if you check yourself right now, your back is tense, your arms are clenched, you probably are sleeping tense. i was there, i could barley walk a half a mile without feeling like i had to sit down, previous to that i was jogging a couple miles a day without a problem. just sit back a TRY to relax and not focus on everything you notice about your body. you realize stuff that you've probably had for years but now it will be something you will worry about. sit down and say a prayer that god will give some peace and relaxation. it helps.

[Parrotsmuggler]

What's crazy about health anxiety is that a person can create any physical symptom. When I was worried that I had testicular cancer, I had pain and aching there. When I was worried that I had bone cancer, I had shooting pains in my legs. When I thought I had a brain tumour, I felt off balance, had head and eye pains and felt nauseous. Thinking about these past instances of hypochondria makes me feel better to some degree.

The thing is, this case somehow feels different from the others. I've never experienced so many symptoms at the same time and they were never this persistent. Maybe the stress had just gotten worse and worse over the years and I've finally reached the breaking point.

[Jenny Wren]

Hello there.  I want you to know that you are not the only one with these strange happenings.  Mine all started about 6 years ago with facial tingling.  I started looking up stuff on the net and bang, guess what came up? MS.  I panicked, cause my gram was diagnosed with MS when she was 60.  Not to long after looking this stuff up, I started getting really paranoid, and noticed every little thing about my body, soon I started with muscle twitches, creepy crawling sensations ( only with clothes on), muscle tension, headaches, heart palpitations, you name it, I probably had/have it.  I never endured numbness though.  I finally after 6 years, decided to have a brain MRI done, the only thing that came back was sinus infection.  I still to this day worry about MS, I know its sometimes hard to diagnose.  I have felt a little better knowing that after 6 years probably something would have shown by now (MRI).  My next step is maybe trying an antidepressant, although Prozac didn't seem to work in the past when this all started, your mind can play havoc on your body, I hope that the problem with you, and me, and also a number of people here turns out to be "HEALTH ANXIETY".  By the way, I seen your postings on the MS forum, it's a scary thing.
I hope you feel better soon.

[Parrotsmuggler]

Thanks for responding. I hope you don't mind if I ask you a few questions. Did the majority of your symptoms begin after you started reading up on MS? Did you experience pretty much the same symptoms as me?

[Jenny Wren]

Hi there, yes the symptoms all started after I read about this, at that time, my only symptom was nausea, and somewhere on the net MS came up as a potential symptom, that's when I panicked.  After that, it's been all downhill, been this way for 5, maybe 6 years.  My symptoms don't follow the typical MS pattern, mine are there all the time, I have found that when I'm busy, I don't notice it at all, it's when I try to relax, or I'm bored, go figure, the mind is complex, I wish everyday that all these feelings will go away.  If you find any helpful information, please let me know.  Try to relax, better said than done.

[Jenny Wren]

I have 15 of your symptoms, by the way.

[Jenny Wren]

Go to www.anxietyzone.com, and read "my story in a nutshell", I think you will find it interesting.  Oh yeah, by the way, do you ever get a tight feeling in your face, and then a tingle?  Just curious, what about your lower eyellid twitching?  Let me know.  See ya later!

[Parrotsmuggler]

Thanks for answering Jenny. In answer to your questions - I don't get lower eyelid twitching, but I do get upper eyelid twitching (actually, it's hard to tell whether it's my eyelid or the actual eyeball itself that's twitching); it primarily affects my left eye but happens in the right occasionally. I do get a feeling of tightness in my face, but only on the left side. You see, when I first felt lightheaded I thought that I had had a TIA or a stroke. As you undoubtedly know, when a person has a stroke, only one side of their body is affected. My first real MS-type symptom was a feeling of tingling in my left foot. I suppose that (if my symptoms are actually due to hypochondria) the symptoms came on in a way that was consistent with what I was fearing. So the next tingling feeling I got was in my left hand, then I got some twitching on the left side of my face, etc. I came to realize that there is no way that I had had a stroke, and the symptoms started appearing on both sides!

It's funny, part of my brain is telling me that there's nothing wrong with me. That if I truly had all of these MS symptoms, the docs would've been able to see something in my neurological exam. The other part of my brain (or the devil sitting on my shoulder) keeps telling me that this could be it, the big final death blow that I've been worrying about for the last 5 years. I'll tell you one thing, if I turn out to be fine I'm going to have to go in for some therapy and maybe try some different meds. Something is out of whack in my life and I need to find out what that is and take care of it.

[spiderbaby]

I can tell you I have sure been there!  When I first thought I had MS 8 years ago, the neurologists said no, but we can do a lumbar puncture just to be sure.  I freaked out - there was no way I was doing an LP.  My "MS" symptoms took 6 months to go away and all I was left with was a constant vice-like headache.  I have had this headache non stop for 8 years.  I had one more "MS" symptom outbreak 3 years later.  THis one lasted for 5 months.  I went to the MAYO clinic and the best doctors in the world said - it is not MS - but let's do a lumber puncture.  I again said no.  At that point I figued whatever I had was not going to kill me after three years.

I am currently in a bad state with weird MS symptoms.  The worst is my feet burn and tingle.  I think the anxiety from these pushed me into a hyper anxious state that has caused all kinds of other symptoms - mostly debilitating fatigue, panic attacks, burning in my face, arms & shoulders.  This sucks big time, but I know it is not MS.

I know what it feels like to panic and drive yourself crazy because you don't know what is wrong with you.  I know what is like to have 15 doctors say they aren't sure what is wrong with you - they have never seen anything like this before.  I know what it is like to spend thousands of dollars on "alternative" practitioners who tell you you are just toxic.  It is enough to drive you crazier!

[Jenny Wren]

Do you know of anyone who has MS?  Sometimes people will know someone that has it, and they become obsessed about it and hope and worry that they don't get this.  Then the symptoms start.  Mine started all on left side, then gradually spread everywhere.
How old are you?  How long have you had these thoughts and fears, and when did the symptoms start?  My ear rings alot on the left also, it will start as a high pitch then gradually go away, weird.  What we are experiencing is sensory, it's kinda rare to have just this type of feelings all at once with MS, I've had facial tingling for 6, then came the rest about 1 year after that, doc said I probably wouldn't have a normal brain MRI after 5-6 years of these symptoms.  Maybe try to get a MRI.
Talk again soon.

[Jenny Wren]

What kind of tests did you have done?  Any MRIs, what kind, did you ever end up having the LP?  How old are you if you don't mind me asking?  Male or Female?  I'm 35, female, started thinking maybe hormonal since my gram went through menopause at 39, nothing sparked this, nothing traumatic, just ziltch, done.
Maybe that's me, I dunno.  Talk again.

[spiderbaby]

Hey Jenny Wren.  I heard you could sing ;-)

Well, I am 40.   I have been dealing with this strange syndrome for 8 years now.  I had thought I was healthy previously, but who knows.  All my blood tests have been normal.  I do have active Epstein-Barr titers, Mycoplasma titers, and elevated T-3.  The doctors don't seem to care about any of this so I am not sure why they ran the tests.

I wake up every morning now with burning pain in my arms, shoulders and hands.  Is it from anxiety?  I don't know.  What has me puzzled is, why would I have anxiety upon waking if I had good dreams?  

I am currently taking Remeron to sleep.  I take 15 mg. before bed and it lets me sleep for a few hours.  Then I have to take another 15 mg. to get a few more hours sleep.  This is only when I am in severe anxiety/stress.  Normally, I can take 15 mg of Remeron and sleep for half a day.  I am wondering if stress/anxiety disturbs the sleep cycle and I am not getting any stage 4 sleep and that is why I wake up in so much pain.

Who knows!

Thanks for chatting, Jenny Wren.  It is good to meet you!

[Jenny Wren]

That's funny, when this all started with me 6 years ago, my doc ran bloodwork, he said that I have a reactivated infection EBV, it's been downhill since.  There has been others on here with the same problems that have elevated EBV titers, did you ever here of them saying that they think EBV causes MS, I have, they were talking about it on Lymenet a few weeks ago, the lymies there seem to feel that MS is lyme untreated, maybe someday they will find what's behind that, theres a lot there that was misdiagnosed with chronic fatique, fibromyalgia, MS and many other conditions and then later find that they have lyme disease and treated and are better, I may have to go this route, and find a doc that treates Lyme if this is my cause.  Oh yeah, I can sing, but not that good, my grandmother that I was very close to called me this about 2 days before she died, she always called me Jenny Lou Boo, but that day I was Jenny Wren, so thats the story.  Take care, it was also nice chatting with you.

[spiderbaby]

Oh my gosh - I have never heard the EBV MS connection - but it doesn't surprise me.  I don't think doctors even know if someone can suffer from EBV outbreaks when their titers are high.  My GP just says "If you had mono you will always have EBV titers".  That's it.  

I know for sure I don't have Lyme, as I live in Arizona and we don't have it much down here.  Also, I have never had a tick bite except for when I was a child.

Good Luck with your journey.  It has been nice to talk to someone who knows.

Spiderbaby

[englishlad]

wow guys! haha we should all get together in a bar and get our problems off our chest! we all have alot in common i swear to god! its amazing what your mind will do if you are fully convinced there is something wrong with you. i was fully convinced that i had high blood pressure and even went to extremes to buying my own personal monitor which totally made things worse!! i found myself coming home from work just to check it and convince myself that it was normal which it never was cuz i would stress myself out over it! it became an obsession and had to visit a doctor 2 times last week and have them convince me that i was normal( im still not fully convinced by the way! =(..i took numerous blood tests which were all fine,and now they have givin me xanax which helps alot!now, my mind is under the idea that maybe my blood pressure is only normal when im on xanax!eeeeeek!!! my ekg had some st elevation on the 1st day but none 2 days later when i went back,  however now im worried about my heart,and for peace of mind,im seeing the cartiologist tomarrow!! guess ill be taking another xanax pill!!! anyway . best wishes to everyone!!!

[rthomas003]

hey ive had all the same experiances except reaction to the cold for me its the heat (also a ms sign) ive just had a bunch of tests done including a very pricy mri with contrast and everything is normal, i would bet money on it that your suffering from anxiety, i thnk thats whats going on with me and it was good to see soemone else list so catagoriacally all the same symptomology, i didnt know anything about ms though before my symptoms, i had all those symptoms THEN looked into what could be causeing it and found there were alot of similaritys to MS so that makes it harder for me to beleive its just anxiety, i think your post just sealed it for me though. try and put it out of your mind, i know what your going through and its horrible to feel like your life as you know it could be on its way out, dont spend another day feeling like that, put it in your mind that your ok and if you cant do it then talk to your doctor about medication, im trying to avoid meds because (though ive always had some anxiety) it was never like this before so i figure if i was ok before i can be ok again,anyway i wish you the best of luck ,hope you feel better soon.

[Parrotsmuggler]

Well, I had a brain/c-spine MRI w/contrast done yesterday. The technician who took the scans could see how nervous I was so he broke the rules and told me that from what he could see everything looked fine. While I was still in the MRI machine, he sent the images over to a neurologist at the hospital affiliated with the MRI centre, and the neurologist said that everything looked great. So I guess it's time to stop worrying about MS. I still don't have the official report back from the radiologist, but I think it's safe to assume that a neurologist would not say that everything was fine unless he was damn sure that there wasn't a problem. I was quite relieved yesterday and for a few hours, my symptoms seemed to dissipate. Unfortunately, my symptoms creeped up earlier today...I guess it will take awhile for my body to get out of MS-mode.

[Energizer]

Let me first say that reading your comments today have helped me calm down a bit.  For the last six months I have convinced myself I had Hepatitis C.  I Google searched symptoms I was having after returning from a trip to Mexico.  Hep C kept popping up and matched my symptoms and still do almost to a T.   I have had bloodwork done twice, with all Liver enzyemes normal.  In the second test I had a HCV anitbody test run along with HAV and HBV.  All negative.  

I too have been suffering from physical ailments such as tingling and pain in my feet and hands, mild headaches that come and go like the wind, vague and intermittent abdominal pain, discomfort in my rib right rib cage (front, side, and in my upper back under my shoulder blade.  My left eye is not as clear as it used to be and also have swelling of my lower eyelid over night with a small round whitish spot on the inside of my left eyelid.  Also periods of fatigue and one weekend of what I would definitely term as malaise about six weeks after my return from Mexico.

This is a vicious cycle that I have struggled to break even with tests that confirm the opposite.  Hep C is a very mysterious virous that I understand can cloak itself for some time.  If I felt well for a long enough period I believe I could break the cycle.

I believe now what I had was a bacterial overgrowth with extreme anxiety about having Hepatitis C.  After reading your comments, I had to share what I have been going through.  Please reply with any questions / comments.

[roll 'em]

Hi parrotsmuggler have you had your results yet? I can relate to your situation and the other posters. Have had MS symptoms for months now tingling,pain in hands, fatigue, feeling of dizziness etc (although good point about derealization born2befree). Went to doc then ms specialist neuro who did exam and told me no way MS- NO MRI needed. You would think thats enough but still cant shake the symptoms. Amazing how many people have exactly the same issues- which hopefully will convince me its anxiety related.

[Parrotsmuggler]

I got the official MRI report back a few days ago...no signs of demyelination. Am I happy about the MRI? Yes, but..(there's always a but), as anyone who's read up on MS knows, it is possible (and not a 1 in a million chance either) for a person to get clean MRI results and still have MS, particularly when the disease is in its early stages. I think the figure is 90%, 90% of people who go on to develop clinically definite MS show lesions on MRI at the time of the first flare-up. Now 90% is a nice figure, but it's just not good enough for my messed up mind.

What I need to do is try to get in to see a neurologist as soon as possible. My GP can try to reassure me all day long, but frankly, he doesn't know as much about MS as I do. He's said some things that really show how little he knows about the disease. For example, the last time I saw him he said that there are no treatments for MS besides steroids. Talk about outdated information! Anyways, I'll only really believe the words "you don't have MS" when they're coming out of a neurologist's mouth!

[roll 'em]

good idea to see your Neuro if it gives you the reassurance you need.From the reading ive done on MS (far too much!!) I would put money on it your ok. MS doesnt present and come on as quickly as you describe with no deficits in functioning. The problem is we all become too good at looking at every movement we make and deciding that a tiny pain is a sign of something seriously wrong-- been there myself.

Once you can stop looking inwards so closely thats when the symptoms start to disappear, but as has been already said, there are good days and bad days which is pretty much where i'm at. Patience is the key which isnt easy.

See your Neuro but if he says you are ok then youve got to try and 'move away' from thinking about it 24/7. Things will start to get better then. Best of luck and let us know how you do.

[Parrotsmuggler]

Thanks a lot for the comments.

The fact that the symptoms came on so suddenly has made me think twice about whether I'm just going nuts. Half the time I think I'm a hypo, half the time I really believe that I'm a person with MS who just happens to be a hypochondriac!

I have read posts on half a dozen MS forums, and I have yet to read about an initial MS attack that involves so many symptoms. The large variety of symptoms that I've experienced would indicate that I have damage all over the CNS. Now I haven't been able to get a straight answer on this, but it would seem to me that a person with MS who presents 15 MS symptoms would be more likely to have lesions on MRI than a person with MS who has only a single symptom, say intermittent tingling of one arm.

Now let's say that I do have MS. Wouldn't the fact that all these symptoms came on so suddenly, as well as the fact that 90% of the symptoms I listed above have gone away (it's as if my mind can only focus on 5-6 symptoms at a time, some of the symptoms have stayed with me, most have come and gone, only to be replaced by others) indicate that I have RRMS as opposed to a more progressive form of MS? The MS websites always say that the symptoms of primary progressive MS usually come on gradually, and the motor functions of the legs are typically the first to be affected. The question is..what do they mean by slow onset?

The fact of the matter is that RRMS scares me, but PPMS is a whole different ball game. I think that I could deal with RRMS. There is so much hope for the more mild form of the disease...Avonex, Rebif, Betasteron, Copaxone, Tysabri, low dose nal-something or other, campath, Neurovax and at least half a dozen other drugs currently in the pipeline. And treatments for PPMS...none.

What's really been getting to me lately are bladder issues. Not to get into too much detail, but I feel like I need to go all the time, and when I do, it takes quite a while to get going. Now I'm not sure if this is just anxiety, after all, I did read about all the bladder symptoms of MS before this began.

Damn, it's so hard to figure all of this out in my head. You can tell by my post that my thoughts are all over the place! I should just focus on school and work and wait for the neuro to give me the answers I need.

Roll'em, if you don't mind my asking, what MS-type symptoms have you experienced? What was the onset?

[roll 'em]

Hi parrotsmuggler.Firstly i dont think you have any type of MS. neuro tests +MRI's are neg. As the ccf neuro said MS doesnt present with all the symptoms you have. I've done FAR too much  symptom surfing on this and I can tell you I havent seen any example with all your symptoms, no neuro deficits and all tests neg. Im not a doctor but if your docs and CCF on this forum are telling you no- then believe them.

My problems started with sinus infection in January previously very healthy and fit guy. This was followed by two months of 'brain fog' where I felt tired all day every day- concentration poor and feeling off balance etc.At this point I wasnt getting anywhere with docs who were telling me 'it will just clear up' which in hindsight added to my stress. About two months ago I started getting tingling in my right hand, which lead me to the docs again. A possibly innocent comment by my GP 'it could be MS but probably not' lead brain into overdrive which was not helped by 10,000,000 hours on the net.

the tingling persisted so enough was enough and I went to see MS specialist neuro. Exam perfect he was adamant no MS- i could have an MRI but he didnt think necessary. Since then I still have tingling, (arms+ legs),lightheadedness and went through big period of self doubt that Maybe I do have MS etc etc (just like you are)

The point is Neuros are professionals they know what to look for. Mine said he would spot things that are wrong that I wouldnt about my own body on exam. He sees thousands of MS people so he knows. Once I started genuinely to look at the facts and concentrate less on every twinge in my body then slowly things start to get better. Thats where I am now.

Anxiety is a powerful thing though and there are bad days for me so the most important thing is patience and knowledge. You can  get the knowledge from your Neuro and the forum the patience bit is up to you. You will have symptoms for a while if your body is anxious- they dont just disappear.( its always one that fits the disease that your worrying about in your case its your bladder- mine was i thought i'm only tingling in one hand so its okay then the other started!! )

Trust in your results and find other focuses apart from this. your brain needs to think of other things for at least part of each day - be patient and you will start to feel better. Be prepared for bad days they still come but are not as bad if you dont get up tight when they do appear. Just remember they will disappear and as long as there's more good than bad then you are on the right track.          

[bayareashrink]

Hello everyone. I can completely relate to the many postings here. I am a clinical psychologist who also suffers from depression, GAD and Panic Disorder. Yes, it is sometime embarrassing to admit I am a psychologist and still suffer from such debilitating symptoms, but I also have to remember that I am human and have always been an extremely "sensitive" girl. I think many of us with these symptoms are likely able to classify ourselves as sensitive, hence our nervous symptoms are also highly sensitive and prone to "attacks".

I had my first "attack" at age 23 as I was preparing to move away on my own for graduate school. I have had about 4-5 similar "attacks" since (I am now 32). The first time it happened I was so scared and had all the classic symptoms you are describing (tingling, numbness, hand cramping, dizziness, weakness, heavy feelings, etc) and the doctors tested for everything, including MS (which they told me)...well, that was exactly the wrong thing to say to me!!! Even though all the tests came back negative, the word MS still sticks with me-- almost 10 years and 4-5 similar "attacks" later. Each time I begin obsessing about MS, and each time I drive myself and loved ones completely insane with my worry. My doctors have tried to reassure me, and it works temporarily, but without medication and therapy the symptoms do not seem to go away on their own. I have had a lot of success with Prozac and I usually seek treatment right away, as the symptoms are so scary and unbearable for me.

My advice to you all. . . . .feel confident that if you have had good medical testing, and ruled out other potential causes, it is most likely anxiety. I suggest you start reading about "health anxiety", "health phobias", or "Hyponchodriasis". I have found reading about the way our mind can influence our bodies to be fascinating and relieving at times. Health phobia is another aspect of anxiety and people who struggle with it will turn even minor physical sensations or observations in their bodies to the worst case scenario. Fear breeds fear and the mind is extremely powerful, leading one into a vicious cycle, where you start to zero in on a symptom and start obsessing. The more anxious you are, the more glaring the symptom.

I also recently discovered a condition called "Hyperventilation Syndrome" and suggest that you all check it it. There is quite a bit written abut it online and in the books I listed below. It is a breathing related disorder that co-exisits with anxiety and panic disorder and causes many of the "neurological like" tingling, panic, and dizzy sensations.

3 books I recommend are:

1) It's Not All in Your Head : How Worrying about Your Health Could Be Making You Sick--and What You Can Do about It. by Gordon J. G. Asmundson
2) Self-Help for Hyperventilation Syndrome: Recognizing and Correcting Your Breathing-Pattern Disorder. by Dinah Bradley
3) Breathe Well, Be Well : A Program to Relieve Stress, Anxiety, Asthma, Hypertension, Migraine, and Other Disorders for Better Health. by Robert L. Fried


Be well everyone.

[mrAdam]

Hi, I am a generally healthy 25 year old male. I have had general unrelated panic attacks since I was about 18 years old every now and then. I know there are people in this forum with more severe symptoms, but I feel like I need to ask someone about this as it is eating me up inside. I guess I have always coinsidered myself alittle bit of a hyprocondriac, but nothing over the top. About a week and a half ago I got a muscle twtich in my left arm above the inside of my elbow that was on and off every minute for about a week. I was a little scared and by it, but did'nt think it was anything really serious. I looked up my symptoms online, and found all these diseaes like ms, and got pretty scared. Two nights after I looked up all of this online, the twitching pretty much went away. But, then my left arm felt strange: stinfness, creppy crawly's, Slight tingling. Then my girlfriend told me about her co worker that was diagnosed with ms about 6 months ago, and how her legs went numb, and that why she went to get checked out and found out about the ms. I think maybe the day after hearing that, I started getting symptoms in my left leg that are still prevelent. Mostly slight tingling, sharp and slight pains, muscle contrations or something of that nature, muscle stiffness. And a feeling of numbness, but when I start touching my foot, it does'nt really feel numb, but I cant tell. this is all in my lower calf, ankle and foot. The feelings in my left arm have gone away, the only other thing that I have is some other muscle twitching sometimes in other parts of my body. Also, I went camping this last weekend and recieved bad 2nd degree burns in my left hand, and I could care less about the burns, I am just focused on my leg now. I hope its all in my head. It seems like everytime I read about symptoms, one of them happened to me in the next day or two. But I am not sure. But I guess this all about being not sure. Reading everyone elses posting in this forum have helped. Anyone that could comment on this would be greatly appreciated. Thankyou.

[BD1742]

Hey, I've got the same thing going on too, though it's much better now that it's summer.  I get muscle twitches all over my body randomly.  I started getting worried a few months back that I could have MS or some other neuromuscular disorder so I checked symptoms online.  The next day I started feeling electric shock sensations in my hands, but those only lasted for a few days while I was still fixated on MS.  I went to my doctor and he told me that it was just stress and anxiety.
I'm probably on the same level of hypochondria as you, only a little bit concerned most of the time, and then when something really plays into my fears the whole situation blows up.  I find that it is best to try and relax myself, go for a run, meditate and just cool down for awhile and then a lot of the symptoms seem to lessen.  
I have a reoccuring muscle twitch over my right eye that lies dormant until something stressful happens and then it bugs me until I can bring myself to relax.  Anything can cause it, stress with relationships, the morning/evening commute, or it can come on when I everything seems otherwise tranquil.
I would just try not to worry so much, meditate, exercise, get more sleep, whatever you can do; I bet it goes away, or at least lessens in intensity.  It wouldn't hurt to go and see a doctor just in case you need to be absolutely certain you don't have any neurological disease (though it is highly unlikely that you do have such a disease, having spoken with neurologists about symptoms of MS at the medical school where I do research).  Good luck, I'm sure you'll be able to control this all very soon.

[crazzystress]

I wanted to tell my story here since this post has helped me so much.  Thanks to you all for taking the time to tell your stories and help others.  Here's mine I hope it helps.

My story:  About 9 weeks ago my wife went in for major surgery, and 3 weeks prior to her surgery I was extremely tense and stressed.  I started to notice numbness in my left big toe.  Well that worried me so I went to the internet to find out about numbness in the feet, big mistake, first thing I get was MS!  Well that started extreme anxiety, and days later my feet started to tingle on the bottoms.  Well I decided to go to my doctor and he told me that my blood work was fine and that I should see a neurologist because he said I could have MS!  Well that just put me over the top, my wife goes in for surgery and I freak out.  My feet tingled on the bottom for a solid eight weeks, my hands would go numb while I slept, and my feet would go numb while I slept.  My eyes would twitch; I had shooting pains down the back of my legs.  During the day my pinkies would go numb, my middle finger on my right hand would go numb.  My left arm would feel like something was crawling on it.  I felt light headed, dizzy; I would have floaters in my eyes.  Suffice it say I was jacked up.  Was sure I had MS.

I went to the Neurologist, who order a half dozen exams.  EMG, NCV, MRI on Lumber, Cervical Spine, and Brain, I also had blood work done.  Worst 12 weeks of my life!!!

Well guess what, everything is fine.  All tests were negative, and as soon as I got my reports, all my symptoms left.

By the way, one thing that did help was massage.  I had two a week and that really helped.  I can't say enough how much.  If your stress, take the time and money and do it

[annah]

I've been reading all these post trying to find something to make me feel better.  I'm 63 years old and have suffered from anxiety, stress, panic disorder, and mild OCD all of my life.

Now that I've put myself out there, please let me tell you what has me scared to death!  I'm very much alone which scares me a lot too.  

I've had a problem with burning sensations on the sole of my feet for about 25 years.  But for the past couple of years or so, my lower legs, knees, ankles are tingling and stiff, also the ball of both feet hurt.  Now my hands are tingling.  My eyelids began twitching when I had to euthanize my little dog last June.  The right lower lid has more or less stopped but my left upper/outer corner still twitches.  The eye feels pretty dry also.

There is a lot of uncertainty in my life right now.  A lot of stress, anxiety, and grief over my little dog.  

I went for my three month check up last month and mentioned the problems of tingling and feeling of stiffness/tightness in lower legs to my doctor, and, she saw my eye twitch.  She is scheduling a "nerve conduction study" for me.  She says she wants to "find out what's causing the pain."  I do have some pain in my knees - from arthritis I'm sure.  I also have Raynaud's in my fingers.

I walk 1.7 miles each morning (35 minutes).

I don't know why I write this.  Maybe it's because there isn't anyone I can talk to who would understand it.  Thank you for reading this and I'd be honored to 'hear' your opinion.  Blessing, Annah

[crazzystress]

Glad you posted, it's good to get feedback.  Stress is all encompassing, it can effect you entire body.  I find the longer I stress the more issues I have.  Go out and get a massage and see if that doesn't help you relax.  If some of the symptoms go, then you know that it's working.

[St26]

Wow. I feel bettter reading all these posts.  I've had (over the past year)...eye floaters, pain, numbness, tingling, weakness, fatigue, etc etc etc. every MS sympotm under the sun.  a good friend has MS and htis is how hers started, so I am really freaking out.  I had an MRI in december, which came out totally clean.

[MONARCH]

Hi everyone, i can relate to how everyone feels here ,parrotsmuggler etc, i started to feel dizziness when i'm sitting and feels like i'm rocking in a boat ,i do suffer from anxiety and OCD and so i start looking up what can this be dizzy feelings ,than my right ear rings so i look up that ,and next i start to get palpitations which i got for many years ,was checked out by a cardio i was okay but its been 5 years since i saw him so i have a doubt in my mind that what if it's connected to the heart palpitaions ,i'm driving myself crazy can't seem to stop looking up health issues ,seeems every morning dizziness starts same time ,i go to councling my councler said its possible i'm bringing this on myself but to get checked out if i feel i need reassurrance .......i can't even sleep at night i have to listen to my personal cd player so i don't think bad thoughts or feel any symptoms, silence drives me crazy ,i feel so unsettled ,i take xanax for anxiety and atenonol for b pressure i can't plan anything or enjoy life right now because the FEAR so intense ,i know i looked up to much on the internet now i'm a nervous wreck and stressed myself out ,i want so much to be happy and not worry ,but nothing is helping me right now ,i feel for everyone here that suffers from worry ,it helps me to read the posts here i don't feel so alone i have also have the twitching in my right eye omg ,my family and boyfriend tells me i always have something wrong so they never know when it's anxiety my ocd or really something wrong ,i wish everyone here the best thank's for sharing how you feel what you all are going through all i do sit cry wonder how to help myself so i can enjoy life, i have such fear of dying i'm not living my life the way i should be, i think i was born scared , i have a phobia when it comes time to go to my dr appoint ,i go in september and i am telling him all that i am feeling going through ,i can't seem to think about anything else but health ..take care !

[anxietyprone]

I am also terrified of having MS, although the doctor doesn't think it is.  I have:

---Numbness in feet--comes and goes

--Joint pain (been checked for joint disorders...all is fine)

---Problem with right eye (not blurry, just a funny feeling...if i rub it, it goes away)

---Perceived weakness in foreararms


I CANNOT stop obsessing about these symptoms.  It seems that the more I obsess, the more symptoms I come up with, the worse everything gets.  my husband says i have stopped living. My therapist says to "schedule time to worry about it."  yeah, right. PLEASE...can anyone ease my fears about this?

[GOS]

Hi all,
I just stumbled on this site and its amazing how better I feel already. My story is a long story but ill try and keep it short & sweet! I am a 26yr old female who started getting panic attacks 5yrs ago. From that I developed GAD and have been suffering ever since. I went on anti-anxiety med (Lexapro) for 2yrs approx and it was a great help. Seemed to help a lot and was coping.
I got married in March this yr and am currently trying for a baby  so came off meds. I started getting panic attacks again and now im convinced I have MS.  
I started getting strange sensations in my arms and legs. I wake up every morn with pins&needles in my hands and legs. I feel like my leg is about to lose power any minute. Some days its a prob with my leg and others its in my arm. I am totally freaking out. I have my husband driven up the wall. I went to doc 3wks ago who done bloods and assured me it is anxiety.
Of course I dont believe him. But reading this website has made me realise im not the only one suffering like this and thats comforting. Just want to wish everyone luck. Iam waiting to see a CBT therapist which I hope will help without me going back on meds.
Hopefully we will get better and realise our strange sensations are anxiety and not MS. I am positive today but tomorrow might be a different story and I might be logging on begging for answers.
Bye for now. Looking forward to hearing from anyone who can offer me advice. Thanx again,
GOS
(PS Sorry its so long winded)

[crazzystress]

GOS, I'm glad to hear that your feeling better.  I had the same exact issues with numbing in my hands and feet, and it was always worse in the mornings.  But I've noticed that when I settle down the sensation goes away.  Even though I've had half dozen tests which show no issues, I still get the numbing and tingling when I stress.

By the way if anyone wishes to discuss there issues, I'd be glad to trade emails.  

hockeynut_5505***@****

[CowardlyLion]

For what it's worth, I'm going through something similar.  I've got little twitches in my fingers and sometimes in my feet.

And Hypochondria?  Oh yes.  I've got it.  This summer alone I've been worried about a brain tumor, a stroke, lung cancer, stomach cancer, ALS, and a few other things.  It never stops.  My body is taking such a beating from all the worry.  That is what may explain the twitching in my fingers or so I hope.

Thoughts?  Thanks.

[GOS]

Thanx for your replys,
I find it so helpful to know their are people out there who experience the same symptoms as me but its awful we all still worry so much about our health.
Why is it that we cant ignore these feelings? I have got a fixation on MS and cant get it out of my head. To make things worse, my hubbys cousin was just diagnosed and im obsessed "its a sign" and constantly enquiring about her symptoms.
Anyway I suppose it could be worse and I do feel so guilty for the way I feel coz there are millions of people out there who genuinly are not well and here I am complaining about some strange sensations I experience.
When will it all end?

[ambi2727]

hi everyone...i am so scared. ive had two episodes recently where ive lost my balance for a week each time, feeling as though i was drunk. ive also had the feeling that my feet and lower leg are asleep or numb. i am a 30 yr old female and am going to a neurologist in 3 weeks. in canada there is a 9 month wait for a mri so i will have to pay $900 for one but i am really scared if they find ms or a tumor.....i would hope to the Lord that this is only me freaking out for nothing, but its so hard not to obsess. anyone have a similar story??

[Millerman]

Thank you all for posting; it's good to know that I'm not alone.  Here's my story:  

A month ago I found out that I have cementomas in my lower jaw--those are self-limiting, benign tumors that calcify bone and are so innocuous that they aren't even treated.  Well, the endodontist thinks that's what they are, but they of course could be cancer.  Anyway, I handled that news surprisingly well given the fact that I've always been a hypochondriac.  I was also obsessing about a bump on my lip at the time.  The next week, school started (I'm a high school teacher) and I found out on the first day of school that one of my students had been killed in a parasailing accident in south Florida.  Then I developed some kind of thing where my left eye teared and teared all day.  I was teaching with a hanky in my hand all week.  

Stay with me...I promise I'm going somewhere MS-related with this.  :)

So I visit an eye doctor about my eye that just waters non-stop but isn't irritated.  He thinks maybe viral conjunctivitis or a blocked tear duct.  He prescribes Tobradex drops and I use them for a few days.  He told me to come back Saturday morning if there was no improvement.

I wish I'd  never gone back, but I did.

I went back and he attempted to probe my tear duct.  Now, I have passed out three times in my life:  once at the ophthalmologist's when I was 17, once when I was sick at an Express Care Center, and once in the ER because the lady taking my blood kept narrating how my vein kept "rolling over" as she tried to draw blood.  I felt it coming this time, but thought I could fight it.  I thought about my three beautiful little girls and my wife and my mom and dad....but I lost.  

When I woke up, I was confused and had a terrifying 5 mins where I just couldn't think--the first thing I articulated to the doc was "I can't think."  I was in a fog the rest of the day and drank like 4 diet Vaults to try to get awake (aspartame....ugh....never again).

I felt foggy for the next few mornings, but it would seem to clear in the afternoons.  Three days later, I thought I was doing okay.  The tearing had stopped and my mind seemed to be clearing.

Then I noticed that I was feeling just a little off-balance.  Not dizzy.  Not vertigo.  But my equilibrium was just a tad off...nothing you'd notice....I can walk straight and turn corners and all, but I feel like there's just a little of water rolling around in there...it's like after making yourself dizzy and just before you're all straight again.  Anyway, that has lasted for the last three weeks.

I of course Googled dizziness and found MS.  My first-cousin has MS.  I am terrified of MS.  The last three weeks of my life have been the worst of my life, full of fear and tears.  

I visited an Express Care doc, who thought it could be inner ear.  He prescribed Allegra and Zithromax and I took them dutifully, but no improvement after five days.  

So I went to the ER and got a CTscan.  They said it looked clean, but to follow up with my GP.  

The next day, I couldn't sleep because my eye felt like it was getting zapped all night.  I got up and my eye looked bigger and felt pressurized...like someone had injected some jelly in there or something.  I of course remembered my reading and thought optic neuritis--the death knell of MS.  I called in sick (I would have been a zombie on no sleep anyway) and went to see an ophthalmologist.  He said vision was fine, insides were fine, IOP was fine....maybe it was allergy.  

By this time I contacted a neuro and got an appt to get some tests.  Two days after eye problem, I got the nerve conduction test and an EEG.  That night my legs started feeling weak, and I was hoping this was due to the zaps from the nerve conduction test....although there are supposed to be no after-effects.  Leg weakness got worse over the weekend and has continued for the past 12 days.  I also noticed that my right pupil is a shade larger than my left, although I've heard having pupils dilated for a test can play games with that for a few weeks.  But in my book I have a weirded-out eye, disequilibrium, and weak legs....bad signs.  My fingers seems somewhat uncoordinated, too, when I'm doing fine motor stuff.  And both of my eyes are twitching at times.  

Anyway, they gave me a VENG and did a carotid ultrasound, too.  Neuro examined me last Fri and said I was normal.  I said what about leg weakness?  He said that he couldn't measure any weakness....I don't really understand that just because I can hold me legs up when he puts pressure on them that I'm not weak.  My legs shouldn't be tired in the afternoons.  I was running 25 miles a week over the summer and legs just don't get tired.   He said he bet it wasn't MS, but knew I wanted more info.  I did an MRI with contrast yesterday on brain, and tomorrow is the LP, which I'm terrified of but willing to do because I have to know.   He also took 10 vials of blood to test for Lyme, B-12, syphilis, etc.  I hope it's Lyme rather than MS.  I got bit by something in my yard in May when I was trimming our oak tree, but I just don't think it was a tick.

Then I get to sit and wait for two weeks to learn the results.  

I don't know if I'm mental or if this is MS.  What I do know is that I'll never be the same person again one way or the other.  I have spent the last two weeks thinking about how many idiotically inconsequential things I have obsessed about in my life, and all that's important to me now is that I get to raise my girls and be an involved father who can take part in their lives.  I used to dread getting old...and now all I want is the opportunity.  I was down about emerging age spots and wrinkles over the summer....I now realize the cosmetic problems of aging are a privilege to endure.  So many never get that privilege.  They never got the chance.

I know this is long-winded.  Like many of you, I know more about MS than I ever wanted to know.  I guess this is more of a soul-baring journal entry than a question or comment, but I wanted to throw my experience out here to get your thoughts.  Thanks for listening.

Chris

[Jenny Wren]

Do you like Miller beer?  LOL  My brothers email address is millerbinge, oh well, trying to make you laugh here.  If you scroll up you will see that I posted on this subject.  I still to this day have no diagnosis, going to neuro tommorow, not to thrilled.  I have had sensory symptoms for 8 years now, my brain and spine MRI are normal the same with all my bloodwork.  My neuro said last time I was there maybe small fiber neuropathy, great.  Anyways my gram had MS, so you can see why I am and have been for the last 8 years a basket case.  Please try to calm down.  Your symptoms really don't sound like MS.  They keep telling me that, they say anxiety, I dunno.  But to you and I its real, and its scary.  Please post back here and let us know how everything goes.  I never had a LP, my neuro says that they only do it if the MRI comes back with lesions, mine didn't.  I would try calling your neuros office before the two weeks and see if you can have him/her call you with the results.  Its better than waiting for your next appointment.  Stay calm, Jen  BTW, where are you from?

[jacqueline345]

wow, this is weird that so many people are going through the same thing that i ahve been dealing with for 8 months. Im 27 year old female that started having all over muscle twitching shortly after a friend died. After that the panic started, i had extream neck pain from stress and still do. I think i have brought on every Ms symtom there is except for numbness. i have had face tightness leg tightness, body pain a feeling like im rocking back and fourth, pins and needles, i have even found red hive looking bumps on my arms and tummy. But my nerologist says no way do i have Ms. I have had blood test, physical exams, and the EMG All come back neg. oh i have even had bladder frequency and some slight leaking. I deel like i have had just about everything. I think theres a point in lige where you just have to believe that everything is ok. And your mind is a most powerful organ capable of making sypmtoms appear espesicaly after reading them online. If the Dr says no then believe him