My Shifting Multiple Sclerosis Symptoms

Marti My Shifting MS Symptoms

Symptoms A-Z

Anxiety

Many people living with MS experience anxious and depressive thoughts because of their diagnosis. Cognitive behavior therapy can help people manage the pain, fatigue and emotional challenges of MS.

Bowel problems

Loss of bowel control, constipation and diarrhea are common MS concerns that can cause discomfort and embarrassment. Some tips to manage these issues include increasing fluid intake, eating more fruits and vegetables, being more active and seeing your doctor for help.

Cognitive changes

More than 50% of people with MS experience a variety of changes in high-level brain functions including difficulty remembering, learning new information, organizing, problem solving, focusing and maintaining attention.

Depression

One out of two people living with MS is affected by depression. Depression symptoms can vary from low mood on some days to severe depression that lasts months.

Emotional changes

The stresses of living with MS, coupled with neurologic and immune changes, can lead to considerable emotional challenges, including mood swings, irritability and episodes of uncontrollable laughing or crying.

Fatigue

About 80% of people with MS experience fatigue, which can interfere with their physical, mental, social and/or emotional functioning.

Gait difficulties

Several factors including muscle weakness, spasticity, loss of balance, vertigo, fatigue and not knowing where your body is in space, can affect gait (walking) difficulties and increase the risk of falls.

Heat Sensitivity

Some 60-80% of people living with MS experience temperature sensitivity and a worsening of their symptoms when they get overheated from exercise, hot showers or just a hot, humid day.

Impaired swallowing

Nearly 40% of people with MS have trouble swallowing (dysphagia) because of muscle spasms, weakness, decreased sensation and decreased muscle coordination.

Jarred Speech

Some 25–40% of people with MS develop speech problems, including slurring (dysarthria) and low volume (dysphonia), particularly later in the disease and when extremely fatigued. People can also experience other communication challenges, including stuttering and nasal speech.

Kissing issues

…or more than just kissing. As many as 75% of people living with MS experience sexual problems that stem from nerve damage, fatigue and spasticity, as well as from psychological factors relating to self-esteem and mood changes.

Less common symptoms

Some less common symptoms of MS include hearing loss, breathing problems, tremors and seizures.

MS hug (dysesthesia)

Often a first symptom of MS or a relapse, an MS hug is a squeezing sensation around the torso that feels like a blood pressure cuff when it tightens. Relaxation techniques can help lessen this strange sensation.

Numbness or tingling

Numbness or tingling in the face, body or extremities is a common early symptom experienced by those eventually diagnosed with MS.

Optic neuritis

As one of the most common vision problems associated with MS, optic neuritis is often a temporary yet frightening symptom that can result in blurry vision, loss of color vision and eye pain.

Pain

Up to 80% of people living with MS will experience some type of pain—neuropathic (from nerve damage) or musculoskeletal (from weakness, stiffness, or other mobility problems)—during the course of their illness.

Quality of sleep

Sleep disturbances—including reduced sleep quality, too much sleep, excessive tiredness, sleep-related breathing problems such as sleep apnea, restless legs/body syndrome and more—are common in MS.

Restless legs

Nearly one quarter of people with MS involved in a new study experienced restless legs syndrome, compared with less than than 4% in people without the disease. Restless legs syndrome causes an urgent need to move the legs due to discomfort. 

Spasticity

Approximately 80% of people living with MS experience spasticity, stiffness and/or involuntary muscle spasms—caused by damage to the nerves that control muscle impulses.

Taste changes

One-fourth of people living with MS experience a diminished sense of taste.

Urinary problems

Bladder dysfunction occurs in at least 80% of people with MS and can include incontinence and other problems.

Vertigo and dizziness

Feeling off balance or lightheaded or having the sensation that your surroundings are spinning is a common symptom of MS that can limit activities.

Weakness

Weakness, which can occur in any part of the body, is caused by the deconditioning of muscles from lack of use or damage to nerve fibers in the spinal cord and brain. Assistive devices can help people living with MS to keep moving.

X, Y, Z

MS symptoms are variable and unpredictable. One person might experience only one or two symptoms while another person may experience X, Y and Z. Symptoms tend to worsen with age, but there also are a variety of ways to help people live well with MS at all ages and stages of the disease.

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I’m fearless, driven, passionate. It’s a little ironic that my MS is as aggressive as I am.

Marti diagnosed in 2018

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Marti, diagnosed in 2018

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