This last week has been pretty tough on my wife. Lots of emotional stress and physical stress just wore her body out. She has had fatigue, overheating, headaches, pain in different parts of her body and tingling in her legs and feet. Last night she told me that her legs were tingling in a different place than normal. They were tingling along the outsides of her thighs, which she has had before but it is usually in conjunction with the top of her thighs. She said it felt very funny for just the outside of her thighs to tingle. She knew she needed to rest so she took a bath to relax and went to bed early.
Leg issues and Multiple Sclerosis seem to go hand in hand. It seems like most people I meet with MS have experienced tingling, pain and other issues with their legs. My wife's legs have always been a part of her MS symptoms, and we have always been able to reverse the problem with rest, chiropractic and nutrition. She just walked into my office a moment ago and the tingling is gone for now. She is walking and moving fine today, but it is another reminder that stress can bring about an MS issue. We have already had to change our plans this weekend so that we don't stress her body anymore than we have to. For now we will both have to be aware of what all she is doing and how much walking etc. she has to do. She will have to rest this coming week because she is going to be on her feet the following week at a Display for our Children's Home. Just another "normal" week with MS.
Showing posts with label tired legs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tired legs. Show all posts
Friday, September 11, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
Tingling Feet With Multiple Sclerosis
Today my wife came home with tingling feet. She wore herself out earlier this week and her legs have felt "tired". She has also had some tingling on and off in her feet, but today it seemed to be aggravated by her shoes as much as anything else. She came home earlier and immediately took off her tennis shoes and explained that they felt tight today and were making her feet tingle. Once the shoes were off, her feet weren't tingling so much and felt better. The tightness of the shoes rubbing on her feet seemed to make the issue worse. After sitting for awhile her feet felt better and she knew she needed to rest or have more issues.
After overheating earlier this week my wife slept and tried to rest and stay off her feet and legs. Her legs seem to be the first thing to have issues when she is tired and over exerting herself. We felt like it was important to see a chiropractor quickly so we went and visited a new chiropractor that we have been trying since we moved. This new Dr. has been practicing for awhile but has no experience with MS patients and uses a little different technique than we are used to. After the adjustment my wife was very sleepy and felt OK, but still wasn't doing great. It showed us once again that not all chiropractors are equal even if they use similar techniques. We are on the hunt for another chiropractor and will continue to make sure she rests. Through experience we know that it is very important for her to rest as much as possible over the next few days or this will become worse. There's never a dull moment when dealing with Multiple Sclerosis.
After overheating earlier this week my wife slept and tried to rest and stay off her feet and legs. Her legs seem to be the first thing to have issues when she is tired and over exerting herself. We felt like it was important to see a chiropractor quickly so we went and visited a new chiropractor that we have been trying since we moved. This new Dr. has been practicing for awhile but has no experience with MS patients and uses a little different technique than we are used to. After the adjustment my wife was very sleepy and felt OK, but still wasn't doing great. It showed us once again that not all chiropractors are equal even if they use similar techniques. We are on the hunt for another chiropractor and will continue to make sure she rests. Through experience we know that it is very important for her to rest as much as possible over the next few days or this will become worse. There's never a dull moment when dealing with Multiple Sclerosis.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Body Not Cooperating
Today we went on a hike at Tent Rock in New Mexico. We headed up the trail that is about 1.5 miles and has some fairly steep grades. With all of the stress in our lives right now I wondered how my wife's body would hold up in the heat and with the stress on her legs. Within a short time we realized how truly tired her body is right now. One of the first things that happens when her legs become tired is that she starts to trip often. She doesn't fall or come close to falling, but it can become dangerous depending on the terrain we are on. Today she chose not to climb to the top of the canyon due to the chance she would be taking if she did trip on the steep parts of the trail. She was very disappointed but wasn't willing to chance anything since she had made the climb before and stood on top of the rim.
The main issue today was her hip. Her hip will hurt right where her hip socket is and her leg bends. The pain comes and goes and after a visit to the chiropractor we learned that the pain is actually coming from her back to the front of her hip. Her lower back has been way out of alignment and once she is adjusted, the pain stops and her hip loosens up. Since we have been on vacation and very busy, my wife hasn't been proactive and didn't see the chiropractor when she first started having the hip issue. So now she is having to deal with a little pain and more frustration than anything. Multiple Sclerosis seems to cause a lot of frustration for my wife which is hard to watch when I don't feel like I can help. Today was one of those days, when her body wasn't cooperating and the frustration was alive and well.
The main issue today was her hip. Her hip will hurt right where her hip socket is and her leg bends. The pain comes and goes and after a visit to the chiropractor we learned that the pain is actually coming from her back to the front of her hip. Her lower back has been way out of alignment and once she is adjusted, the pain stops and her hip loosens up. Since we have been on vacation and very busy, my wife hasn't been proactive and didn't see the chiropractor when she first started having the hip issue. So now she is having to deal with a little pain and more frustration than anything. Multiple Sclerosis seems to cause a lot of frustration for my wife which is hard to watch when I don't feel like I can help. Today was one of those days, when her body wasn't cooperating and the frustration was alive and well.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Multiple Sclerosis Leg Pain, Twitching and Heaviness
My wife has had some sort of leg issues from the beginning symptoms of her Multiple Sclerosis. We have always been able to treat her symptom and her issues go away, but it can be a real annoyance for her. Normally she has one leg that is worse than the other, and it seems to be pretty random which leg it attacks. Most of the time her legs just become tired. If she walks too much or is standing too long her legs will become tired and as she explains it, "heavy". She has also had other issues though that seem to come back anytime she over does things.
One of those issues is twitching and restless legs. Usually it starts with her leg or legs getting tired and then she sits down to rest. Once she sits down, her leg will start to twitch and jump. Sometimes I can place pressure on her leg and it will subside, but there have been times that her legs will spasm bad enough that she will kick things in front of her. Her legs don't hurt as much during this time, but it is more of a nuisance that she gets very frustrated with. She has also had restless leg sometimes when she lays down to sleep. This can keep her up until it subsides which leads to her being exhausted and more issues.
Another issue is her leg giving out. We were walking one day into the mall and she suddenly fell. She was able to catch herself, but was frustrated and embarrassed that she fell in front of so many people. This has only happened a few times, but when it does, she tells me that it just feels like her leg gives out from under her. She explains that it feels like her knee will not support her and the leg just buckles. Again, this has only happened a few times, but is quite abrupt when it happens. Her legs may be tired before it happens, but there are no other warning signs that it will happen. Clumsiness and falling seem to happen with Multiple Sclerosis. I know that my wife had great balance before her symptoms started, but now has problems with it periodically.
Heaviness is something else she says happens to her legs. It usually starts with tingling and numbness and then she will drag the leg or have issues tripping over things. Sometimes she will have this in the mornings if she laid on her leg wrong in bed, or this will happen after a long hard day of standing and walking. She describes the tingling as if your foot was going to sleep and it won't wake up. It is usually more annoying than harmful, but it does affect her when we have plans or are out trying to go somewhere.
Another issue is leg pain. I have already written a post about the pain, so I won't say much here. Leg pain in Multiple Sclerosis seems to be quite common. My wife only has pain when she pushes too hard and goes past her stopping point. When the pain does start, it is often difficult for her to do anything. Again, this doesn't happen very often, and if she is listening to her body, she can keep her legs from progressing to this point. The pain usually runs on the outside of her thigh from her hip to her knee. This is one of the major leg muscles that is worked on during Bowen Therapy and massage. Her knee will sometimes also hurt, and the muscles along the top of the thigh.
Once in our marriage my wife lost all ability to use her legs. She stayed that way for about a month until we started seeing an ND that treated her with a host of things. This is the sad place that we seem to find so many MS patients. My wife's mother has lost all use of her legs and has not been able to use them for years. I know that she never tried the different therapies we have used, but I often wonder if she would still be able to walk today if she did. When my wife lost the use of her legs, it started as numbness in her torso then spread down until her toes were numb. Her legs just wouldn't cooperate with her, which I know was frustrating. I am glad this has only happened once, and that we have been able to stop it from happening since then.
This week we are going skiing for three days. This is one sport where her MS doesn't seem to cause problems. She can usually ski all day and rest well, then ski another day. Today, she is prepping for next week. She is taking the time to lay down, rest her legs, and give her body time to recoup before the trip. We have learned that rest is an essential part of life for an MS patient. We have also found that if she rests and listens when her legs start to tire, she can avoid the leg twitching and pain. We have been able to use rest, Bowen Therapy, Massage, Chiropractic, diet and supplementation to keep my wife walking, running and using her legs without any major issues. We have also used yoga and stretching to release tension in her legs, especially her ham string.
I spoke with a physical therapist the other day about back pain and leg issues. He pointed out that almost every patient he sees has tight hamstrings. He showed me how the hamstring affects the back muscles which in turn can cause leg pain, back pain and headaches. When my wife was getting regular massages, participating in yoga and stretching, she didn't seem to have the headaches and leg issues. The PT explained that this is one of the major muscles that needs to be stretched regularly to keep the body functioning properly. These are just a few ways that a my wife has kept her ability to walk and run.
One of those issues is twitching and restless legs. Usually it starts with her leg or legs getting tired and then she sits down to rest. Once she sits down, her leg will start to twitch and jump. Sometimes I can place pressure on her leg and it will subside, but there have been times that her legs will spasm bad enough that she will kick things in front of her. Her legs don't hurt as much during this time, but it is more of a nuisance that she gets very frustrated with. She has also had restless leg sometimes when she lays down to sleep. This can keep her up until it subsides which leads to her being exhausted and more issues.
Another issue is her leg giving out. We were walking one day into the mall and she suddenly fell. She was able to catch herself, but was frustrated and embarrassed that she fell in front of so many people. This has only happened a few times, but when it does, she tells me that it just feels like her leg gives out from under her. She explains that it feels like her knee will not support her and the leg just buckles. Again, this has only happened a few times, but is quite abrupt when it happens. Her legs may be tired before it happens, but there are no other warning signs that it will happen. Clumsiness and falling seem to happen with Multiple Sclerosis. I know that my wife had great balance before her symptoms started, but now has problems with it periodically.
Heaviness is something else she says happens to her legs. It usually starts with tingling and numbness and then she will drag the leg or have issues tripping over things. Sometimes she will have this in the mornings if she laid on her leg wrong in bed, or this will happen after a long hard day of standing and walking. She describes the tingling as if your foot was going to sleep and it won't wake up. It is usually more annoying than harmful, but it does affect her when we have plans or are out trying to go somewhere.
Another issue is leg pain. I have already written a post about the pain, so I won't say much here. Leg pain in Multiple Sclerosis seems to be quite common. My wife only has pain when she pushes too hard and goes past her stopping point. When the pain does start, it is often difficult for her to do anything. Again, this doesn't happen very often, and if she is listening to her body, she can keep her legs from progressing to this point. The pain usually runs on the outside of her thigh from her hip to her knee. This is one of the major leg muscles that is worked on during Bowen Therapy and massage. Her knee will sometimes also hurt, and the muscles along the top of the thigh.
Once in our marriage my wife lost all ability to use her legs. She stayed that way for about a month until we started seeing an ND that treated her with a host of things. This is the sad place that we seem to find so many MS patients. My wife's mother has lost all use of her legs and has not been able to use them for years. I know that she never tried the different therapies we have used, but I often wonder if she would still be able to walk today if she did. When my wife lost the use of her legs, it started as numbness in her torso then spread down until her toes were numb. Her legs just wouldn't cooperate with her, which I know was frustrating. I am glad this has only happened once, and that we have been able to stop it from happening since then.
This week we are going skiing for three days. This is one sport where her MS doesn't seem to cause problems. She can usually ski all day and rest well, then ski another day. Today, she is prepping for next week. She is taking the time to lay down, rest her legs, and give her body time to recoup before the trip. We have learned that rest is an essential part of life for an MS patient. We have also found that if she rests and listens when her legs start to tire, she can avoid the leg twitching and pain. We have been able to use rest, Bowen Therapy, Massage, Chiropractic, diet and supplementation to keep my wife walking, running and using her legs without any major issues. We have also used yoga and stretching to release tension in her legs, especially her ham string.
I spoke with a physical therapist the other day about back pain and leg issues. He pointed out that almost every patient he sees has tight hamstrings. He showed me how the hamstring affects the back muscles which in turn can cause leg pain, back pain and headaches. When my wife was getting regular massages, participating in yoga and stretching, she didn't seem to have the headaches and leg issues. The PT explained that this is one of the major muscles that needs to be stretched regularly to keep the body functioning properly. These are just a few ways that a my wife has kept her ability to walk and run.
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