How does MS affect your legs?

Over time, your muscles can get weaker and weaker. Some people with MS find that their muscles tire more easily than usual. For example, someone with MS might find that their legs might start to feel unstable or they may have trouble moving them after periods of exercise, like walking.

What does MS feel like in the legs?

Some people with MS describe it as like having bags of sand attached to their legs. This muscle weakness combined with MS fatigue can be upsetting. Weakness in your legs can cause balance and walking difficulties and you may be more likely to fall.

Does MS make your legs ache?

Neurogenic pain is the most common and distressing of the pain syndromes in MS. This pain is described as constant, boring, burning or tingling intensely. It often occurs in the legs.

How do you explain MS pain in your legs?

MS can damage the nerves that affect your muscles. This can cause acute or paroxysmal pain in the form of spasms. Your arms and legs might shoot out uncontrollably and might have pain like cramping or pulling. Nerve pain can also be chronic in the form of painful or unusual sensations on your skin.

Can MS only affect legs?

Numbness in the face, body, arms, or legs is another common symptom of MS. It is often one of the earliest symptoms of the condition.

My Leg Pain Was Actually MS | Multiple Sclerosis #Misdiagnosed | Health

How do I know if I have MS or fibromyalgia?

MS can permanently damage your nerves. Fibromyalgia causes pain and stiffness all over your body, along with other symptoms. Doctors aren't sure what triggers it. They think it might have something to do with how your brain processes pain.

What does MS feel like in the beginning?

Numbness or Tingling

A lack of feeling or a pins-and-needles sensation can be the first sign of the nerve damage from MS. It usually happens in the face, arms, or legs, and on one side of the body. It also tends to go away on its own.

Is MS worse at night?

Spasticity is one of the most common MS symptoms, and often feels worse at night. This is because it can be aggravated by reduced movement, tight muscles and pain from other symptoms.

Where do you itch with MS?

Itchy sensations can occur virtually anywhere on your body, usually involving both sides. For example, both arms, legs, or both sides of your face might be involved. Occasionally, though, the itchiness may be confined to a single location, usually an arm or leg.

What helps MS leg pain?

Does MS show up on blood work?

While there is no definitive blood test for MS, blood tests can rule out other conditions that cause symptoms similar to those of MS, including lupus erythematosis, Sjogren's, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, some infections, and rare hereditary diseases.

What does an MS flare feel like?

Increased fatigue. Tingling or numbness anywhere on the body. Brain fog, or difficulty thinking. Muscle spasms.

Does MS hurt all the time?

Pain that comes from weakness, stiffness or other mobility problems from MS is considered musculoskeletal pain. Both types of pain can be acute, having a rapid onset and short duration, or chronic, starting gradually and persisting daily or almost every day.

What mimics multiple sclerosis?

These include fibromyalgia and vitamin B12 deficiency, muscular dystrophy (MD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease), migraine, hypo-thyroidism, hypertension, Beçhets, Arnold-Chiari deformity, and mitochondrial disorders, although your neurologist can usually rule them out quite easily.

Why do my legs feel heavy and weak?

Without enough blood circulating, your legs can feel tired, crampy, and achy. These symptoms are one of the first signs of PAD. The same things that cause fatty buildup in your other arteries cause them in your legs as well. High cholesterol, smoking, diabetes, and high blood pressure are top risk factors.

Do you gain weight with MS?

It's also common for people with MS to gain weight due to their symptoms. It's important to try and reach a moderate weight and maintain it. Being overweight or underweight can worsen MS symptoms.

Does MS make you thirsty?

Results: Six of the 15 symptoms and signs of FS (dizziness, low body mass index, cold hands and/or feet, tendency toward perfectionism, reduced thirst, feeling cold) were found significantly more often in MS patients than in controls.

Does MS qualify for disability?

The Social Security Administration (SSA) recognizes MS as a chronic illness or “impairment” that can cause disability severe enough to prevent an individual from working.

What is an MS hug?

The 'MS hug' is symptom of MS that feels like an uncomfortable, sometimes painful feeling of tightness or pressure, usually around your stomach or chest. The pain or tightness can stretch all around the chest or stomach, or it can be just on one side. The MS hug can feel different from one person to another.

Can MS be seen on MRI?

MRI plays a vital role in how we diagnose and monitor MS. In fact, over 90% of people have their MS diagnosis confirmed by MRI.

Can MS cause tight calf muscles?

Spasticity is a common symptom in MS. It is a tightness or stiffness of the muscles – occurring typically in the legs (calf or thigh), groin, and buttocks. Although less common, some individuals may experience spasticity in their back. These are all muscles that help people to stand and balance in an upright position.

Can I test myself for MS?

There are no specific tests for MS . Instead, a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis often relies on ruling out other conditions that might produce similar signs and symptoms, known as a differential diagnosis. Your doctor is likely to start with a thorough medical history and examination.

How do doctors diagnose MS?

MRI: This imaging test lets the doctor take a closer look at your brain. They can see changes caused by multiple sclerosis, like signs of inflammation in the deep parts of your brain or spinal cord. But older people or those with high blood pressure and diabetes also can have the same kinds of spots on a brain MRI.

When should I worry about leg numbness?

In almost all cases, you should see a doctor if you have persistent or frequent numbness anywhere on your body. If the numbness won't go away on its own or seems to come back again and again, it could be a sign that you're dealing with something more serious than a limb that's “fallen asleep.”

Does MS cause Nightsweats?

However, because people with MS are especially sensitive to temperature, this increase in heat can result in many restless nights, waking up drenched in sweat and struggling to ever feel cool and comfortable.