Question
Hi Belle0050,
Read you reply and it supprised me. I also had those same issues: Foggy Brain, Alot of memery loss, eye sight problems,tremors, numb in many places. My Nero did a brain mri and it showed a lesion in the optic area. Thought for MS they looked for plak in the brain. Anyway, he kind of dropped the MS conversation and went on to other things. Said we would repeat the test in three months. I also have many different medical problems Cronic pain, FM, DDD, and depression. I have thouht that my mental capacity loss was due to all the medications. I am 46 and this month I lost my ability to spell and loss alot more words that I used to. Really Scared. (sp?) lol. Sounds like I need to talk to me nero again about MS.
Thanks for your posting
Answer
hereubb/rolleyes.gif
Answer
Thanks for the responses.
As far as my own situation goes though, I've been told by three different doc's that it is "definitely not MS." Which I never actually thought was a possibility in the first place, but I guess it's nice to be reassured. My MRI was totally clean apparently, and I've never had (knock on wood) any eye problems or weird pain or burning sensations, which I guess are often associated with MS. And my reflexes are good and I react when they tested the bottom of my foot (which I guess is some kind of MS indicator).
Anyway, I've received an education on the symptoms that are associated with several diseases that I previously knew nothing about. MS, Diabetes, and Lyme's disease apparently all can have numbness, and foggy thinking associated with them. But in my case they've apparently ruled all three of those things out. So, what's left? Well if my doctor's knew the answer to that question I guess I wouldn't be out here trying to figure out the answer myself.
Answer
Hi All!
Answer
Thanks for the responses.
As far as my own situation goes though, I've been told by three different doc's that it is "definitely not MS." Which I never actually thought was a possibility in the first place, but I guess it's nice to be reassured. My MRI was totally clean apparently, and I've never had (knock on wood) any eye problems or weird pain or burning sensations, which I guess are often associated with MS. And my reflexes are good and I react when they tested the bottom of my foot (which I guess is some kind of MS indicator).
Anyway, I've received an education on the symptoms that are associated with several diseases that I previously knew nothing about. MS, Diabetes, and Lyme's disease apparently all can have numbness, and foggy thinking associated with them. But in my case they've apparently ruled all three of those things out. So, what's left? Well if my doctor's knew the answer to that question I guess I wouldn't be out here trying to figure out the answer myself.
Answer
Hi All!
Like I said , There are so many illnesses that mimic MS, and other diseases, that it is so hard to say what it could be for sure !.. and in your case you say the Specialist has ruled MS out which is great !.. I really wrote that on there as it might help someone else to know if they saw similar symptoms, as I had NO ONE to ask , in my case , and searched till I found Answers and Mentors to help me , myself !!
Thru talking to so many people WITH full MS, until they had an MRI Scan done, so many all said the same thing ..
The Dr wouldn't tell me what was wrong ..
gave vague answers .. avoided getting in too deep.. etc..
My GP did tests on me , -pin pricks , all the usual kind,etc, then, -as I was leaving said -
" What you've got wrong with you won't kill you!!"
It wasn't till I got out the door I thought .. " What was she saying won't kill me ?!!"..
About 3 weeks later I was back with more symptoms and DEMANDING an Answer !!..
I was not given a Scan for 10 years after the symptoms first began, as my symptoms all faded away quite quickly , and where I live our city could not afford a Scanner till later..
When I had the MRI done in 1999, due to numbness and other problems,( of course , BLAMED on Ms,.. YES.. The MS plaques and Lesions showed up alright .. in my brain, down the spinal cord etc ,
BUT -
the problem that was actually happening at the TIME right NOW , 1999, shocked the pants off the Specialists !!, was NOT MS.
but a massive pile of Calcification squashing my Spinal Cord ..
affecting my walking and everything you can think of !!..
If you go to Spinal Cord Disorders posts for the last few months and look up Belle's posts ,( and others posts to me, you can see what I've been thru !..) So , MS is kind of irrelevant to me at the moment ..
I'm just trying to learn to walk again after the 3 ops in 3 years on my spine !..
Any way , I hope maybe this vent may help someone NOT TO GIVE UP for Answers from Drs..
It has taken determination to get to where I am at now ..
So Good Luck to you All!!
Belle NZ xxx
------------------
A Friend!
Answer
hereubb/wave.gif
Like I said , There are so many illnesses that mimic MS, and other diseases, that it is so hard to say what it could be for sure !.. and in your case you say the Specialist has ruled MS out which is great !.. I really wrote that on there as it might help someone else to know if they saw similar symptoms, as I had NO ONE to ask , in my case , and searched till I found Answers and Mentors to help me , myself !!
Thru talking to so many people WITH full MS, until they had an MRI Scan done, so many all said the same thing ..
The Dr wouldn't tell me what was wrong ..
gave vague answers .. avoided getting in too deep.. etc..
My GP did tests on me , -pin pricks , all the usual kind,etc, then, -as I was leaving said -
" What you've got wrong with you won't kill you!!"
It wasn't till I got out the door I thought .. " What was she saying won't kill me ?!!"..
About 3 weeks later I was back with more symptoms and DEMANDING an Answer !!..
I was not given a Scan for 10 years after the symptoms first began, as my symptoms all faded away quite quickly , and where I live our city could not afford a Scanner till later..
When I had the MRI done in 1999, due to numbness and other problems,( of course , BLAMED on Ms,.. YES.. The MS plaques and Lesions showed up alright .. in my brain, down the spinal cord etc ,
BUT -
the problem that was actually happening at the TIME right NOW , 1999, shocked the pants off the Specialists !!, was NOT MS.
but a massive pile of Calcification squashing my Spinal Cord
Like I said , There are so many illnesses that mimic MS, and other diseases, that it is so hard to say what it could be for sure !.. and in your case you say the Specialist has ruled MS out which is great !.. I really wrote that on there as it might help someone else to know if they saw similar symptoms, as I had NO ONE to ask , in my case , and searched till I found Answers and Mentors to help me , myself !!
Thru talking to so many people WITH full MS, until they had an MRI Scan done, so many all said the same thing ..
The Dr wouldn't tell me what was wrong ..
gave vague answers .. avoided getting in too deep.. etc..
My GP did tests on me , -pin pricks , all the usual kind,etc, then, -as I was leaving said -
" What you've got wrong with you won't kill you!!"
It wasn't till I got out the door I thought .. " What was she saying won't kill me ?!!"..
About 3 weeks later I was back with more symptoms and DEMANDING an Answer !!..
I was not given a Scan for 10 years after the symptoms first began, as my symptoms all faded away quite quickly , and where I live our city could not afford a Scanner till later..
When I had the MRI done in 1999, due to numbness and other problems,( of course , BLAMED on Ms,.. YES.. The MS plaques and Lesions showed up alright .. in my brain, down the spinal cord etc ,
BUT -
the problem that was actually happening at the TIME right NOW , 1999, shocked the pants off the Specialists !!, was NOT MS.
but a massive pile of Calcification squashing my Spinal Cord ..
affecting my walking and everything you can think of !!..
If you go to Spinal Cord Disorders posts for the last few months and look up Belle's posts ,( and others posts to me, you can see what I've been thru !..) So , MS is kind of irrelevant to me at the moment ..
I'm just trying to learn to walk again after the 3 ops in 3 years on my spine !..
Any way , I hope maybe this vent may help someone NOT TO GIVE UP for Answers from Drs..
It has taken determination to get to where I am at now ..
So Good Luck to you All!!
Belle NZ xxx
------------------
A Friend!
Answer
hereubb/frown.gif
..
affecting my walking and everything you can think of !!..
If you go to Spinal Cord Disorders posts for the last few months and look up Belle's posts ,( and others posts to me, you can see what I've been thru !..) So , MS is kind of irrelevant to me at the moment ..
I'm just trying to learn to walk again after the 3 ops in 3 years on my spine !..
Any way , I hope maybe this vent may help someone NOT TO GIVE UP for Answers from Drs..
It has taken determination to get to where I am at now ..
So Good Luck to you All!!
..
affecting my walking and everything you can think of !!..
If you go to Spinal Cord Disorders posts for the last few months and look up Belle's posts ,( and others posts to me, you can see what I've been thru !..) So , MS is kind of irrelevant to me at the moment ..
I'm just trying to learn to walk again after the 3 ops in 3 years on my spine !..
Any way , I hope maybe this vent may help someone NOT TO GIVE UP for Answers from Drs..
It has taken determination to get to where I am at now ..
So Good Luck to you All!!
Belle NZ xxx
------------------
A Friend!
Answer
hereubb/love1.gif
Belle NZ xxx Belle NZ xxx
------------------
A Friend!
Answer
hereubb/smile.gif
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A Friend!
Answer
Well, I feel for you Belle. Thanks for sharing for your story. I feel like I'm heading down that same road as you here I must say.
It's funny that if it's not "life threatening" the doctors just seem to shrug their shoulders and play that waiting game. I guess maybe there's nothing they can really do, so they figure what's the difference. Only the peace of mind in knowning what it is your facing would sure be a nice.
I'm curious though Belle, did you ever take any "anti-anxiety" type medications? And if so, did you respond to any of them? My psychiatrist is beginning to believe that I maybe responding to some of the higher potency meds for reasons that may actually have nothing to do with anxiety. She thought neurology might uncover some other physical aliment of some sort, but they just did their basic tests and sent me on my merry way.
Answer
Dear not so Lucky
I say that because it sounds like you have fallen into the "lets wait till the symptoms are incurable before we diagnose" trap.
Well.... I think you could be having an adverse reaction to one or both of your medications.
Xanax is an anti-anxiety drug. It can cause dizziness, perceptual disturbances, photophobia, confusion, parasthesias, sweating, drowsinness,light-headedness, tremors and tachycardia.
It has also been known to cause de-realization, headache, chestpain, increased bilirubin, vasomotor disturbance.
It can also cause pshychological side effects ranging from irritability to psychosis.
It is an addictive medication.
Liver enzyme tests should be conducted when using this drug.... as, it is metabolized in the liver.
Klonipin is an anti-seizure drug. It lives in the same family as lithium and valium.
It can cause many of the same effects as the Xanax
and additionally: decreased attention span, sedation...
nausea, headaches, upper GI disturbance, and it too can be very addictive.
This medication is used to treat akinetic, absence and myoclonic seizures.
One drug or the other is usually prescribed, not usually both together, with liver enzyme tests and extreme caution.
The fact thqt both of these cause such side effects, it would be difficult to know which one is affecting you, if not both.... and I would imagine you are experiencing twice the amount of side effects than normal.
Your numbness could be isolated, or it could be a rare side effect of the medication.
BOTH ARE RESPIRATORY SUPPRESSANTS..... so I am not surprised if you are having difficulty breathing.
DO NOT stop either of these meds abruptly.
YOur side effects could turn into full blown seizures with the Klonipin, (if you are not having these already).
Please tell your doctor about these symptoms you are having.
It sounds like the meds are magnifying an underlying condition.
Ever hear of optic epilepsy?
Has your doctor tested you for epilepsy?
How about your blood coagulation?
Please let me know how all turns out!!!!
------------------
A Friend!
Answer
Well, I feel for you Belle. Thanks for sharing for your story. I feel like I'm heading down that same road as you here I must say.
It's funny that if it's not "life threatening" the doctors just seem to shrug their shoulders and play that waiting game. I guess maybe there's nothing they can really do, so they figure what's the difference. Only the peace of mind in knowning what it is your facing would sure be a nice.
I'm curious though Belle, did you ever take any "anti-anxiety" type medications? And if so, did you respond to any of them? My psychiatrist is beginning to believe that I maybe responding to some of the higher potency meds for reasons that may actually have nothing to do with anxiety. She thought neurology might uncover some other physical aliment of some sort, but they just did their basic tests and sent me on my merry way.
Answer
Dear not so Lucky
I say that because it sounds like you have fallen into the "lets wait till the symptoms are incurable before we diagnose" trap.
Well.... I think you could be having an adverse reaction to one or both of your medications.
Xanax is an anti-anxiety drug. It can cause dizziness, perceptual disturbances, photophobia, confusion, parasthesias, sweating, drowsinness,light-headedness, tremors and tachycardia.
It has also been known to cause de-realization, headache, chestpain, increased bilirubin, vasomotor disturbance.
It can also cause pshychological side effects ranging from irritability to psychosis.
It is an addictive medication.
Liver enzyme tests should be conducted when using this drug.... as, it is metabolized in the liver.
Klonipin is an anti-seizure drug. It lives in the same family as lithium and valium.
It can cause many of the same effects as the Xanax
and additionally: decreased attention span, sedation...
nausea, headaches, upper GI disturbance, and it too can be very addictive.
This medication is used to treat akinetic, absence and myoclonic seizures.
One drug or the other is usually prescribed, not usually both together, with liver enzyme tests and extreme caution.
The fact thqt both of these cause such side effects, it would be difficult to know which one is affecting you, if not both.... and I would imagine you are experiencing twice the amount of side effects than normal.
Your numbness could be isolated, or it could be a rare side effect of the medication.
BOTH ARE RESPIRATORY SUPPRESSANTS..... so I am not surprised if you are having difficulty breathing.
DO NOT stop either of these meds abruptly.
YOur side effects could turn into full blown seizures with the Klonipin, (if you are not having these already).
Please tell your doctor about these symptoms you are having.
It sounds like the meds are magnifying an underlying condition.
Ever hear of optic epilepsy?
Has your doctor tested you for epilepsy?
How about your blood coagulation?
Please let me know how all turns out!!!!
Blue
PS Just as a side note, I empathise with you deeply that your doc medicated you rather than finding the problem.
