weakness in legs & arms with MS - Multiple Sclerosis Message Board

Johands333 · 04-07-2006, 03:12 PM

My best friend has known that she's had MS for about 7 or 8 years now. She copes with it rather well in my opinion. She is a strong willed person who tries to lead a normal life. But in the last month she has had weakness in her legs and now her arms. She descibes it as muscle weakness. We normally walk on Fridays and she had to decline because it's gotten so bad. She's trying to hold off seeing her doctor, but has given herself until Monday to see if she gets better. Has anyone had this problem? Any idea why it happens and anything else you can tell me I will pass along to her. She's in her mid 40s.

curious11 · 04-08-2006, 07:25 AM

Hi Johands333! Muscle weakness is a common side effect of MS. It is personally one that effects me the most. Walking even what would seem short distances, tires my legs out and I must sit and try to recoop. Going grocery shopping is the worst for me because I can not sit and rest anywhere. By the time I get out, I literally just want to collapse. My legs are shot for the whole day after that. Unfortunetly there is not way to treat it that I have found. When this first started I thought... "Well I will go to Physical Therapy and strengthen my muscles, then they won't tire so easily." My neuro advised against it... and I soon found out why. I went to PT for a couple of weeks and we did basic stretching and lifting. That alone tired my muscles out so much that I could not walk unassisted for 3 weeks and had to take an LOA from school. I felt like I was using every ounce of energy that my muscles had for the day in my session of PT, and then it left me with nothing. It's not so much that the muscles tire easily, it's that they don't recooperate at a normal speed. Everyone is different, but I would advise your friend to speak to her doctor. And she is right by listening to her body and not going walking if she doesn't think she is up for it.

lestoby · 04-08-2006, 09:01 AM

I thought the same thing too. When I was out of it for 5 weeks, I lost 10 lbs (all my muscle mass). I thought I just needed to start building up my muscles to what they used to be and then I would be fine. NOT.....

Some days I am more energetic than others, but any form of excersie can really tire me out. I now take my dogs to the dog park and I feel "great" and start to walk around the park, but after 2 laps I start the "foot drag" on my R side and realize, that's it, time to quit.

I agree with the store situation...... just the mere thought of Wal Mart tuckers me out. I also use online grocery shopping. I know this makes me sound lazy, but I would rather use my energy for the more "fun things" in life. Besides, I always hated grocery shopping and I was using online shopping before I got sick. Wouldn't you pay somebody $10 to go to the store for you, shop for you, put it in the car for you, and carry the bags into your house! Especially on rainy days - I can stay in my house nice and dry while the delivery person shleps in my groceries.

We are going to Las Vegas this week and have reserved a more expensive room that has elevator banks closer to the front entrance just to avoid having to walk through an entire casino, shopping atrium, etc., get on the elevator and then walk down a long hallway, just to get to your room. My husband is also disabled (mostly due to plantar fascitis in his feet), so we are "equals" now in our need for moderation. I used to walk at least 1 block ahead of him, because I just couldn't walk that slooooooooowwwwwwwww. Not a problem anymore... sometimes I have a hard time keeping up with him.

Just God's way of making me slow down and "smell the roses".

Johands333 · 04-08-2006, 01:30 PM

Curious & Lestoby,
Thanks for your responses. I guess my friend will probably be seeing the doctor on Monday. She tries so hard to have a normal life with her MS. She said her hands and feet feel like they fell asleep and are just numb most of the time. I can understand that--I had carpal tunnel and had surgery last year (hence my screen name). Only with carpal tunnel (cts), you have both pain and numbness. Lestoby, my husband had the same foot ailment. He had cortisone shots that made most of it go away. He plays golf. He wants to go to Vegas. Where are you staying? He'd like to go to Luxor. I'd prefer Mandalay bay because of the pool, but I'd settle for Luxor too.

lestoby · 04-08-2006, 05:40 PM

To 333,

we are way past the cortisone shots, electric shock treatments (?) of some sort and there is virtually no help at this point for him. He was a beer truck driver for 21 years and kicking handtrucks 50 times a day didn't help. Plus he has slipped discs in his spine, torn rotator cuff, epicondylitis, basal thumb joint, etc. He just got accepted for SSI, but mostly because he turned 50 and is considered "approaching advanced age" and he is now unemployable. He has been on Work Comp for 6 years and the battle still rages on. We invested in California Real Estate 6 years ago and that is how we have been surviving for the past 6 years, but now that I am sick with thiese "probable MS" symptoms, I am no longer capable of managing all of the units we used to have. So, we have sold some, paid off some, and virtually condensed our portfolio to a size that we can manage without doing further harm to our bodies.

PS: We are going to the Tropicana since they have an indoor pool.

Have a great Easter!