Ben Van Alen
Michelle, You asked why I think I might have MS, how a recent knee injury might be "MS-related", and why I've gained not lost weight as you'd expect if I've got a neurological disorder? First, I guess I've been concerned that I might have MS ever since my Dr. sent me for a head MRI to "r/o MS". I've been trying to rule out MS ever since. From what I can tell all of my symptoms are consistent with MS. As I hinted in my original post, in a couple of year's I've gone from being athletically gifted (i.e., top local road and mountain runner and quick, strong, and agile at skiing, basketball, soccer, baseball, windsurfing, etc.) to being guarded, weak, and accident prone. I simply can no longer run, jump, dance, or, now even walk comfortably for long. Physical activity used to invigorate me, now, on most days, I feel too ache, weak and tired to be physically active. I've found that I'll pay a price if I overexert myself. When I first had problems moving my legs and had lost power "around the middle" a hernia was suspected. I've regained abdominal/pelvic strength but have persistent weakness, numbness, burning, tingling, in feet, calfs, hands, shoulders, cheeks/lower jaw. Joint weakness, I suspect, was a contributing factor to my knee injury as my joint stability and fitness have gone south. In recent months, I have the feeling that my gut shuts down. I was such a regular guy too. Anyway, lack of aerobic activity, a funky gut, and loss of enthusiasm to cook nutritious meals have probably contributed to a weight gain. Again, if not MS then what?