Flare Up with Old Lesions

I thought the title sounded kind of sexy! 

 But, my flare-up that started 9 weeks ago is not :(

So, in all my knowledge of MS I did not realize that a flare up could be from an old lesion.  I love it when I learn something new about MS.  Kind of.

9 weeks ago I had shingles.  Again.  4th time.  On my butt.   And a bad cold.   Fun. (actually hellish) When those two things started dying down I realized my right side was extremely weak.  Then come the tingles.  (luckily mine aren't uncomfortable. I've heard some are)  Now the tripping starts. And my pals fatigue and cog fog to the extreme.   Surprisingly it takes me a couple of weeks to put it all together.  After a fall getting out of the dentist chair (embarrassing)  it dawned on me.  Could this be a flare-up?   (nobody said I was the brightest bulb)

 An MRI and a visit to my neurologist who tells me it is a flare-up but the good news is that it is a flare-up from an old lesion.  Which she believes was triggered by the shingles or cold or both.  That is why I'm so paranoid when I get a cold or bug.  

Apparently old symptoms and flares from an old lesion are common.  What we don't want is a exacerbation of a new lesion.  That would mean progression. 


And since I've had these symptoms before it has been easy to deal with. 

So, don't panic over a flare-up.  It could be a flare from an old flame.....

MS Awareness Week March 2-8

Well,  it's that time again!!  National MS Awareness Week March 2-8.   For those who have been in a snow bound state it's time to get our MS brains going again!    Let others know via voice, social media, and general communicating what MS is.  What MS means to you.  How are you tied in with MS.  Trust me those openers will generate questions.  And the more questions the better!!   We (MS Community) are so much closer to a cure than ever.  Our MS meds now are doing a fantastic job of staving off or shortening some of our worst flair ups. (exacerbation's)

But, there is more work to be done.  More funding required.  So as MS'ers it is out duty to get the word out.  Make Multiple Sclerosis heard.


Have a Fantastic Week!

Teresa H

New Year

There is nothing more promising as a New Year.  It's like a chance to throw away the old and start fresh   I love closing out old files and finishing up last years insurance stuff (MS'ers have a lot of that!) and scrubbing my house top to bottom in anticipation of the new year.  For me it's a purge of sorts.

Now, I don't mean I make a bunch of New Year's resolutions.  Or that I'm going to change my ways dramatically.  I'm realistic in the fact that I may just want to tweak a few things here and there.  Smaller  things are so much easier to accomplish than taking a huge leap and saying something crazy like "I'm going to lose 100 lbs and stop drinking and stop smoking".  (just an example)

This time of year marks my 6th anniversary of being diagnosed with MS.  6 years ago I was very very sick.  I was in and out of the hospital for a month.  I couldn't see well.  My left side was completely numb from my face to my foot.  I couldn't even write my name.  The anxiety and cognitive issues from the flare up (that phrase sounds so lame compared to how it felt)  made me barely able to communicate. My weight dropped quickly actually too quickly to 107 lbs.   My face drooped and I slurred like a stroke victim.  I was physically and mentally unwell.

6 years later I am now at a comfortable point with my MS.  I know I won't die anytime soon from it.  I know how to read the signals and signs my body gives me and I take action accordingly.  I religiously take my disease modifying med Tecfidera as prescribed.  I exercise at least 4 times a week to keep my muscles from drawing up and killing me!  

I keep my stress down as much as possible by taking medication, attending therapy and going to yoga.

So my goal this year is doing the same but a  little more of.  That's a reasonable goal for me.

So, with all that being said.  Take small steps and you can accomplish whatever your heart desires  :)