Could this be the early stages of MS?

[itsinthetriforium]

I know this is a really common story, but I'm wondering if anyone can give me some advice.

For the past two years, I've been feeling more and more ill. It started off with fatigue just coming out of nowhere and flooring me for a couple of days. Also aches and pains and, lately, brain fog, tremors, clumsiness - quite minor but enough to have an effect and be noticeable.

I had an MRI two years ago and it turns out I have some slipped discs and minor osteoarthritis in my neck. A rheumatologist also diagnosed me with joint hypermobility syndrome and fibromyalgia, which I just accepted.

However recently I am not sure that this is right. Although I do have pain (and I am definitely hypermobile), this isn't what causes me the most problems. It's the fatigue and the tremors/clumsiness/brain fog. I can still do everything, but sometimes I have to concentrate extra hard on doing certain things otherwise I drop things, knock things over. The brain fog is really disconcerting, and I forgot words, can't concentrate. I can also be completely fine for weeks, and then suddenly it "comes on" and takes usually 3 - 10 days to get better.

When I read people's experiences of fibromyalgia, it doesn't really match up. As I say, I am not often in much pain and most of the pain can be explained by the discs as it is in that area.

I have started wondering whether there is something neurological going on and whether it is worth asking for it to be investigated.

Anyone's experiences would be welcome. Thanks in advance.

@Maelstrop life is definitely unfair! I've seen people who often have a bad relapse after a pregnancy. I hope she gets a miracle asap and can enough her new family.

I could be wrong but I think it’s ME that’s called the snowflake disease? Not MS.

Like mmmm25 I had those symptoms and have also been diagnosed with autoimmune thyroid disease.

Thanks for all the responses. I’m now beginning to think it’s probably the JHS / EDS. I have really bad circulation problems which doesn’t help. My hands and feet are often purple and you can see all the tiny veins in them 🤢

I will get blood tests done though.

See your doctor and for your own sake, stop googling if you're doing that. I was diagnosed with MS last year after sudden sight loss in one eye. It was optic neuritis and that, along with the MRI, confirmed the diagnosis.

It's far too easy to self-diagnose and you could be completely wrong, see an expert. Best wishes and I hope whatever it is, is diagnosed quickly and you get the treatment you need.

I haven’t been googling, because I know lots of illnesses have these symptoms. When I was diagnosed with JHS, the doctor also mentioned MS but said there was no evidence of it on my MRI at that stage so not to worry. That was a while ago, and before my symptoms got so bad.

Your (still relatively recent) MRI would have shown evidence of lesions. I was told this by several neurologists who were investigating my migraines - an MRI within the last 8 years or something was satisfactory for ruling out MS.

I think an earlier poster was confusing MS with ME...very different.

I would also suggest B12 etc, well worth being tested. I had many of the symptoms you have but was established i have pernicious anemia, I can't absorb b12 through food so have injections bi-monthly

Communist, the MRI wasn’t of my whole spine or brain but yeah it probably would have showed something if there was something to see in terms of lesions.

I could be wrong but I think it’s ME that’s called the snowflake disease? Not MS.

No it's MS because no two sets of symptoms are the same. No two snowflakes are the same.

Not the modern connotation of the term 'snowflake' which would be a bloody offensive term to use for any illness so not sure why anyone is mistakenly attributing it to ME/CFS.

By the by. The poster who originally said it was correct in both it being the original inoffensive meaning and it being used with MS.