Anyone share these problems?

[busymom2003]

Hi,

Several months after the birth of my last child, I started having strange symptoms. To keep things simple, I will just list the problems I have had. TIngling, numbness, blurry vision in one eye, speech problems, mild foot drop, and fatigue that is debilitating. Not to mention I fall all the time. The strange thing is sometimes I feel great and just when I think nothing in the world is wrong and life my life feels normal again...it comes back. The heat and over doing it are the only things that seem to make the problems worse. I had been seeing a primary care Dr. who has been telling me she is certain this is early MS. Finally saw a neuro who said it sure sounds like MS, but my MRI was normal. (only a t2 high signal which is  "probabaly incidental abnormality") I also had a normal LP. So, the Neuro said nothing seems to be the problem. I asked what he thought was causing my symptoms and he said, IDK. He did put me on amantadine for fatigue. I am so frustrated because I have always been very healthy and energetic. The problems have been going on since last summer and I just wanna be me again. I am beginning to feel very alone and like I will never have an answer or feel better. Just looking for some answers.

[MDeStef84]

I know the feeling. I have 3 kids, and after the birth of my 2nd child I started to feel symptoms. I got pregnant with my 3rd and the 1st trimester was god awful. The symptoms werent so bad the rest of the pregnancy, but got worse after delivery. I thought it was because I had my first C-section, now 4 months later and I still have crap days. I have a lesion on the brain and 2 in my cerv spine. I have no diagnosis yet my old neuro told me she thought i was epileptic and having sensory seizures and thought I had heart problems, 3 eegs later n a clean bill of health from the cardiologisy and another mri positive for lesions, Im going to see a neuro that specializes in MS. Maybe you should look into a new neuro that specializes in the disease .. I hope u start to feel better :)

[busymom2003]

Thank you guys for replying. I did have tons of bloodwork and the Neuro said mimics were ruled out. He did put me on amantadine for fatigue. I told him I have never been lazy and its like I get hit in the afternoon with this heavy exhaustion that I cannot begin to describe...I feel heavy and its like my brain slows down...I mess up words and such. Anyways, I have 3 little ones depending on me and have always been very active. Thank you all, I am so tired of feeling alone.

[Deb61]

There lots of mimics for MS.  You may want to check out the Health Pages (see the top right hand corner of this page).  

It's possible that you may have MS, but it is also possible that you may not.  Sometimes early signs of MS show up before detectible lesions and findings in the LP.  It is also very common for MS symptoms to show up after giving birth.  But then again, pregnancy sure has a way of messing up a woman's hormones and for some it sets off autoimmune stuff for people that are prone to it.

If your doctor hasn't ordered a million and one blood tests to rule out mimics, I would encourage your doctor to look into the mimics:  lupus, Sjogren's thyroid disease, vitamin B12 deficiency, diabetes, etc.  If this neuro hasn't done this, he hasn't done his job.  

Sometimes diagnosis takes time.  I hope this is not the case for you, but often times this happens.  If your neuro thinks you're fine and doesn't seem like he wants to figure out what the problem is, see an MS specialist or a different neuro.  It must be frustrating to be told that "you're fine" when you know your body and obviously don't feel that way.

Deb

[lenorekitty]

That sounds similar to how my symptoms started a few months after I had my son. The first Dr told me it was all because I was obese (about 20 lbs over weight at that time). Luckily it went away a few wks later. But then came back 4 yrs after w/ vertigo so bad I was crawling to the bathroom, and legs that buckled so often I had to use a cane to walk. Fast forward 7 yrs and I still have normal MRI's, had a normal LP in 07. But my latest neurologist is leaning towards a definative MS diagnosis after reading my medical records. I just had evoked potentials done last week (which I already know are going to be abnormal) and get to wait another month before I see my neuro. But she told me that MS doesn't always show up in testing for years in the earlier stages.

Hang in there, you are definatly not alone. And you will find many wonderful supportive people here to listen while you are looking for answers.