Does this Sound Like MS?

[SojourningMama]

10 months ago, after my fourth child was born I began having mild headaches every day that would come and go throughout the day.  This went on for four months.  During that time I also began having a mild tingling in my little left toe and left pinky that I might describe more as a buzzing.  The headaches disappeared for a time, but the buzzing did not.  Then the headaches reappeared and I also one day went on a hike with my family.  When we got out of the van to start the hike I noticed my left leg felt weird.  Like a weak or tired or heavy feeling but it was almost more of a perceived weakness as it did not effect my hiking at all.  But the feeling remained and also my left arm sometime after that for two months.  It was almost every day, sometimes it was more noticeable than other days.  When it finally seemed to going away I woke one day with a sore throat.  The next day dizziness.  Then ever since then, most days my head feels weird, just off or full or something and I have this mild nausea that is enough to make me just not feel very good but still able to function and take care of four young children.  The days my head feels like this I have no headache but the days I don't feel like this I do have a headache.   I have an appointment with the Neurologist but it's a long wait until then.  Just trying to get some feedback in the meantime.

[SojourningMama]

Thanks again.   I've already racked my brain for possible causes.  The only thing is a possible sinus issue as I've had several long lasting sinus infections over the last two years.  Other than that, none of the other things you have listed are true for me except the taking care of four children.   The leg and arm tiredness is not from use as I have tried giving it complete rest and there is no change.   Interestingly enough, I have had a flu bug of some sort the last two days and during that time have had no headache or nauseous full feeling in my head.  My leg and arm have still felt tired.  A week ago I began getting chills that lasted very briefly.  Unprecipitated by weather as it is warm here.

[supermum_ms]

Not having answers for what's medically going on can definitely get frustrating and wear you down...i don't think your going to find your answer is a chronic neurological issue though, if your neuro exam is normal it's 'less likely' to be a neurological condition like MS and 'more likely' to be something else.

Often the answer is often overlooked if it's the simplest, so with that thought in mind, the one issue you had at the beginning and have now experienced for the last month is the headaches and there's a pattern you've notice to them ie the days you don't have a headache the nausea and full head feeling is noticeably worse and the days you do have a headache the nausea and full head feeling is noticeably reduced, which is a headache pattern of sorts.

The headache, full head feeling and nausea are all there on some level everyday, the intensity fluctuates but it's still all there...so if you don't have other head cold signs, sinus issues or allergies, your not pregnant or experiencing menstrual or hormonal issues, you haven't changed or altered your diet,  started drinking alcohol eg red wine, wearing a new perfume, deodorant, hair spray or using a new sented product. You haven't stopped or changed breastfeeding routines, started changed or added a medication-herbal remedy or vitamin, nothing additional is interrupting your sleep, you haven't lost or put on weight, your not sleeping on a new bed or pillow lol i'm running out of ideas um oh can't forget being over worked raising 4, your mental health is fine and your no longer sleep deprived with the new bub or not sleeping as well lately cause your worrying about your health, kids, finances etc  

:D that should at least get you thinking....true story when i went back to work after my youngest, it was my hubby and not me who started the day off feeling sick and had headaches, it turned out he was reacting to the hairspray i'd just started using. Sometimes the answer is a simple one you haven't considered, so try thinking about what the simple thing 'might' be and you just might find it....

btw it's not abnormal to have slightly weaker muscle strength in your non dominant side, if your right handed you automatically use your right arm more, if your left arm is abnormally weaker it's usually noticeable on the neuro exam...babies are not necessarily the same, at 10 months my boy was the same size and as active as a healthy 2 yr old, I held him on the left side to keep my right hand free to keep working, usually perched on my hip because like any 2yr old he was too big and heavy to hold for long with only the strength in my arm.

Oh that's a thought, unnatural posture...the spine is not meant to be bent with hip cokked or out of normal alignment for long periods, add the extra weight of a heavy object or child and the uneven distribution on top of an unnatural posture can start to not only cause structural spinal problems over time but  posture is associated with headaches too, might be something there to consider too.

Anyway hope something in there helps......JJ

[SojourningMama]

Thank you for you lengthy answer.  Yes, my GP did a basic neuro exam.  No problems.    I have had full bloodworm done.   Everything from that turned up normal.  No vitamin deficiencies.  No thyroid problems.  I say the weakness in my left arm and leg are perceived but it does effect how long I feel like I can hold my baby in that arm.  It gets so tired and even shaky.  I can continue to hold her if I must but perhaps it is actually weaker.    

As far as the nausea and full head feeling.  I have had that nearly a month now and nobody else in my family ever experienced any kind of virus / dizziness / nausea.  There are some days it seems mostly gone and on those days I have a headache.  The days I have the nausea I have little or no headache.  

Just feeling frustrated as this is wearing me down.   Thank you for your thoughts.

[supermum_ms]

Hi and welcome,

There's nothing you've really mentioned that would put a neurological condition like MS above all the other more common and possible explanations. It's not unusual in the months after having a baby to experience postpartum headaches due to fluctuating hormone and hydration levels, with things like thyroid issues, tingling in the peripheral limbs and a host of other issues developing postpartum eg sleep deprivation, postural or structural spinal issues, vitamin deficiencies, circulation issues etc etc

I'm not sure i understand where MS would be from the hike incident on wards....you went on a family hike whilst you had a headache, your left leg felt weird after you'd been sitting in the van for a time and you first experienced the perception of weakness in your left leg, perceived weakness because your leg was otherwise functioning perfectly normal and didn't affect your mobility at all. Sometime after the hike you also developed a perceived weakness in your left arm also with normal function...

With MS, the experienced weakness isn't the 'perception of' because the weakness felt in a limb or limbs, actually does affect your ability to use the limb(s) normally, the more you use the affected limb(s), the more weakness and less function there is eg the leg feels heavy because of the damage to the nerve fibers (demyelination) in the spinal cord and brain that signal the muscles, so basically the muscles in the affected limb(s) don't receive normal nerve impulses to work properly.

If the muscles in the affected limb are actually weakened by wonky nerve signal and the repetition of using the limb makes the limb seem even heavier and function even worse, going on the hike should of been affecting your gate and your endurance.

It might make more sense if you think of your 4 little ones, each child weighs more as you go up in ages, right? Now imagine your left leg has the youngest child hanging off of it, the left leg will feel a little heavier than your right and when you step with your left leg you'd notice the slight difference, after you've been walking for awhile your next child starts hanging off your leg too making it heavier and harder to walk normally, you keep walking and adding another child along the way.....the same situation applies to upper or lower limbs, perceived weakness is not usually the same as the type of weakness that happen's with neurological conditions like MS.

A soar throat isn't a symptom of MS, and if you woke with a soar throat one day and the next felt dizzy, feeling off and experiencing mild nausea, it actually sounds more like you've had or have a bug or infection in your system, although if you've still been able to function normally whilst looking after 4 little ones and it's been going on for weeks/months, i'd think it's 'possible' you could be dealing with a sleep issue, allergy, diet or vitamin deficientcy situation.

Have you seen your OBGYN or GP about any of this, had any blood tests, basic neuro assessment for any of this, if so did anything turn up?

Hope that helps........JJ

[HVAC]

Has your GP done a neurological exam. That is reflexes and such? If it is abnormal you need to see a neurologist. It is more accurate than a MRI. You could have atypical migraines. I have them and go weak and lose vision on my left side. The nausea also points to headaches. If the neurologist is a headache specialist this is good.
Alex