Ms symptoms checklist nhs how to#
Ms symptoms checklist nhs professional#

I had to learn how to use a self-catheter when my MS first happened because I could not go at all, or when I went, didn’t feel like I could empty my bladder. Bladder problems can mean feeling like you have to go often, or feeling like you never can fully empty your bladder. Bladder problems happen in 8 out of 10 MS patients, but is often the problem that is hardest to talk about.The most common walking problems with MS include: balance issues, sensory deficits from numbness and weakness when trying to lift and drop the leg to walk resulting in drop-foot. I couldn’t walk and was scared that I would never walk again. When I was diagnosed 24 years later, I thought that was my fate. My only living memory of her was that she couldn’t walk and was in a wheelchair. My aunt had MS when I was small and passed when I was only four. Walking difficulties, along with vision problems, are the two symptoms that people without MS associate with MS.

For me, I was experiencing fatigue, but it wasn’t until I started experiencing the numbness, tingling, and walking problems that I decided to seek medical attention. While many of us may suffer fatigue, it may be hard to talk to your doctor about. Fatigue is another commonly reported symptom that can be debilitating.Itching, burning, and other unusual sensations are common with the numbness and tingling. The numbness and tingling can progress to be so severe that it affects your activities of daily living like dressing, eating, and bathing. I had a subsequent relapse where I experienced numbness and tingling from my face to my toes on my right side. In my example, it started in my feet and then spread to my legs. Numbness and tingling can occur in your feet, legs, hands, arms or face.Vision problems can be very scary and affect your independence. This includes blurry or double vision, loss of vision or color contrast, or pain while moving the eye. Vision problems are one of the first symptoms that are commonly reported.While MS affects each person in a different way, there are certain common symptoms that are associated with the early onset of the disease: The same research reveals that of the 2.3 million people in the world diagnosed with MS, 66 percent are women. According to the research, most people will experience the initial onset of their MS symptoms in their 20s to 50s.

Now, multiple sclerosis is unique in that the signs and symptoms are unpredictable and can affect each person in a different way. It was at this point that I knew something was seriously wrong with me and that I needed to seek medical attention right away. I also couldn’t go to the bathroom on my own. The numbness and tingling was so severe that by this time, I could not walk or stand on my own. By May 18, 2005, the numbness and tingling that started in my right pinky toe, had spread to everything south of my waist. However, there would be no third pair of shoes. I asked my wife if she thought we should go by new bigger shoes. So that weekend, I went out and bought wider shoes. This happened consistently for a week, so I talked to my wife and we decided that I needed new, wider shoes. I worked long, hard hours oftentimes on my feet all day in stiff dress shoes.Īround the beginning of May 2005, I noticed that my pinky toe on my right foot would fall asleep.

Ms symptoms checklist nhs professional#

My job required me to wear professional attire each day and with that I had to wear dress shoes. I was working for a real estate developer in Boston at the time. One of the most common questions I get asked is what were the first signs or symptoms I experienced when I was being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.