Live Life Team
Symptoms
Multiple Sclerosis have numerous symptoms and they differ from one person to another. Once damage is caused to the nerve fibres of the nervous system by MS, from any part of the body symptoms occur. It is very rare that an individual can have all the symptoms, in fact most have only few of them. Few common symptoms are mentioned below:
Visual problems
Difficulty in focusing, colour blindness, pain in both eyes and double vision are few symptoms apart from inflammation of optic nerve called as optic neuritis normally affecting one eye some vision loss & pain behind your eyeballs. This symptoms is seen at least in about 25% cases.
Muscle spasms and spasicity
Muscles are contracted painfully and tightly by the damage of the nerve fibres. There is also a possibility that it can be resistant to movement and stay contracted.
Pain
Neuropathic and musculoskeletal are two types of pain as a result of MS
Damage to nerves fibres causes neuropathic pain and it appears as burning sensation, extreme skin sensitivity and appears as stabbing pains.
MS directly doesn’t cause musculoskeletal, it usually occurs if there is sever pressure on joints and muscles as a result of spascity and spasms.
Mobility problems
If you have muscular spasms and spasicity, it can affect can cause difficulty in coordination, walking, moving around and balance. Dizziness or Tremor may also be experienced.
Cognitive problems
Reduced mental speed, confused or slow speech, problems with concentration and attention, trouble remembering things, along with problem of mental processes, like learning and thinking often referred as cognitive problems.
Emotional problems
Anxiety and depression can be more often, you can also laugh and cry for no reason if you have MS.
Fatigue and tiredness
Extreme Tiredness & Fatigue in one of the main symptom, which can make other symptoms worse like concentration, vision and balance.
Bladder problems
The Bladder is either underactive or overactive. In case of underactive, urine flow is interrupted and bladder is felt as half empty. In case of overactive, when not full bladder may contract resulting incontinence.
Bowel problems
MS along with constipation causes incontinence of bowel as well.
MS symptoms are unpredictable, it can worsen and develop with time, while some come and go. At times when symptoms get worse it is called as relapses, and when they disappear or improve completely is called as remissions. The period wherein the new symptoms appear and previous ones worsen is called relapse. This can occur at any time and differ in severity. Symptoms can also be worsened by factors like infection, exercise or hot weather.
MS are characterized by relapses and remissions that symptoms follow:
Benign MS (BMS)
In this form of MS, few numbers of relapses occur followed by recovery each time. It is very mild in nature. And can stay for life. Relapse of symptoms is possible after few years
Relapsing remitting MS (RRMS)
In this form of MS remissions and relapses are many and often last for months, weeks, and days. There can be recurrence of previous symptoms or new one occur. This is the most common in MS. Recovery is possible after each relapse but symptoms will not disappear.
Secondary progressive MS (SPMS)
This worsens the symptoms steadily with or without relapses. People with RRMS often develop this.
Primary progressive MS (PPMS)
Symptoms will worse with time with no remissions or relapses. This is the most severe form of MS.
