anyone here have MS?

[jnjross]

if you have MS, how old were you and what was it that made you go to the doc for a diagnosis?

 

[willowcol]

I don't but my cousin does, she was about 29-30 when she found out.

 

[meriruka]

I don't, but my best friend does. He was in his late 30's when he woke one day to find he couldn't move & was in pain. He was diagnosed at that point. Took him months to get moving again and was fine until about two years ago. He had another "attack" and has not been doing well since.

 

[debilorrah]

A friend of mine does, and she initially went because of lacy vision.

 

[LilBizzy]

My stepmother does. She was in her late 50's. I know there was fatigue, wobbly walking and vision troubles. it took doctors quite some time to diagnose. It's been 17 years, and she is doing well. Her one leg drags a little, she tires easily, but she can still make it up and down stairs.

I have a friend who was having vision troubles, muscle weakness, fatigue. She was in her mid 30's at the time. She has good days and bad days, and it seemed to have progressed faster in her.

 

[coffeelady3]

My mom's had it for over 30 years. She first went to the doctor because she was having numbness in her limbs, and problems with balance (this would have been around 1976 or so). The doctors initially didn't know what she had, but said she was suffering from MS like symptoms. In 1981 we moved to WA from the Bay Area because the cooler climate was better for her. (Heat made her symptoms worse.) It took 12 years before she was officially diagnosed as having MS. One thing I've learned about the disease is that it affects everyone in different ways. Some people have one flare up, recover, and are fine afterwards. Some people's symptoms progressively get worse and then stablilize (sp?) at a specific point. Unfortunately for my mom, her MS is progressive. She's now in a nursing home and unable to care for herself.

Now, that being said, there have been huge strides in the advancement of MS treatments. There's a lot more options for people who are diagnosed today, then when my mom was officially diagnosed over 20 years ago. My mom's disease has progressed too far for any of the new drugs to be of any use, but it gives hope for newly diagnosed people.

On a somewhat funny note. When my mom was first diagnosed, her doctor actually gave her business cards to hand out that read, "I'm not drunk, I have MS". Thankfully, doctors seems to be a bit more tactful these days!