MS and Lupus together

[scaredguy309]

Well, i have been doing alot of research and it looks like i have both lupus and MS unofficially.Yes i am still waiting for my ANA but look at these symptoms. I have attacks that came a couple months ago, left and recently came back, only to leave again. My first attack came with mostly faigue, headache and joint pain. Recently they came back worse. Am constantly in the sun cause i live in the tropics so  don't know if it was because of that, but i got a red butterfly rash on my face together with some white patches of dried skin on my face. Then that disappeared and then came the joint pains, little fatigue, few headaches, all over body aches, many fasiculations all over (small spasms), muscle pains. When those started subsiding, i became weak all over with depression, difficulty swallowing and anxiety. However I have a histor of panic attack so the depression and swallowing with choking sensation is most likely due to that. The biggest worry is my muscles. Don't know when it started but i just know it was there after the first attack and remains. My muscles have tremors when i do eccentric contractions. Example when I contract my bicept, there is a little vibration but its not as bad as when i extend it. Like if i have some weight such as a dumb bell, and i slowly lower my bicept (extension) with it in hand, that movement is jerky. This happens in all, and i mean all my muscles.Even in contraction they seem to be contracting slower than normal. Example when squatting and i observe my thigh muscles, you can actually see them contracting and relaxing in a slower than usual fasion. Normally they're supposed to contract and relax so quickly that it just seems like a vibration. Hope someone understands as am trying to put this as simple as possible. Now all my symptoms are gone except my eyes heart at times, still have spasms/fasiculations and ofcorse my muscles. Strangest thing is my muscle strength doesn't seem to be affected. I know cuz i do gym. My blood works so far: some lupus latex test (not ana) was neg, Rheum factor:neg Liver, kidney and pancreas function:normal, CK levels:norm and sed rate remains at 3. Only abnormal results are: lymphocytes: slightly high, neutrophiles: slightly low, LDL(cholesterol): slightly high Any ideas?

[essdipity]

Udkas is right in trying to help you put things into perspective. You are getting WAY ahead of yourself here. You definitely should try to find out what if anything is wrong, but diagnosing yourself with Lupus and MS is not a good way to proceed.

Start with your primary physician and have a complete going-over. Tell him or her what symptoms you feel, but don't give any diagnosis for yourself. Based on what you tell your doctor and what the blood work turns up, you may be referred to a specialist, such as a rheumatologist or a neuro.

But don't use the intenet to make yourself into a doctor. You will only worry yourself and make your anxiety worse. It's at least possible that anxiety is causing what is troubling you most. That would actually be a good outcome, because there are good medications for anxiety. That's a much simpler deal than either MS or Lupus, believe me.

ess

[Udkas]

Hi there,

I can understand you googling your symptoms when you are looking for answers as we all do the same, it's human nature, if we don't feel well we want answers and try to find them BUT HOW EVER sometimes we can come across things when we google that might fit our symptoms but this does not mean that we have that disease. Many symptoms are parts of many different diseases, some relatively mild and some more serious. It really does need a trained Dr to be able to analyze your symptoms etc.  Some of your problems may just be anxiety, I am not implying that they are but you need a DR to assess this. Has your Dr talked to you at all about his/her views as to what is wrong with you.  I would wait and see how your testing goes for Lupus and then discuss your fears/concerns with your Dr.  If your Dr is concerned for MS or feels your reflexes symptoms could be MS they would arrange for you to see a neurologist who can do further testing.  The symptoms you describe could be part of many things, not just Lupus or MS.

I am not a Dr so I can't say you do or you don't have MS or Lupus, both can be quite complex diseases to diagnose and yes it would be possible to have both but I would imagine that it would be rare but certainly not seen.

I have two cousins with Lupus and yes both cousins had the butterfly rash when exposed to the sun and joint pain.  I think you should try and relax until you get your results and then discuss them with your DR.  

Twitching is not part of MS and usually when this occurs all over your body it can be a benign (harmless thing) although annoying... try to relax as the more you worry the worse your symptoms will be.  I am not an expert but what you are saying does not point at classic MS..but then MS can present in different ways.  Some of what you describe could be brought on by being anxious too.

Take care, take a list of questions to your Dr so you can discuss your concerns etc.

Cheers,
Udkas.

[Karen99]

Have you seen a neurologist yet?  The symptoms you describe could be from one single cause.  Do you still have the butterfly rash?  Are you being seen by a rheumatologist? Have you had your thyroid function tested?  

It is said that if you have one autoimmune disease, there can be a slight increase in developing another.  But please, don't scare the heck out of yourself.  There can be many causes for your symptoms.  You need a lot more testing.

Take a look at the "Health Pages" button on the upper right hand corner of this page. There is a wealth of information that can help you.  Good luck.  

[scaredguy309]

And how often are SLE and MS diagnosed together?