Is There Pain With MS?

by Anonymous
(USA)

I have MS... I went many years not diagnosed, but have been diagnosed for 5 years now. Montel mentioned he has a electrical shock pain that goes down his leg. Then he takes medicine to help the pain. What is the medicine?

I have a shooting pain down my arm. My Neurologist said that Pain is not normal with MS and it must be a problem with my neck. If you can give me info I would appreciate your help.








REPLY:


Hi Anon,
Here is a page on our site which explains a little about the "pain" that you as an MSer might have - MS Pain - It lists medicines that may help the different types of pain, depending on their origin. I'm not sure which one(s) Montel takes, but Cir, my husband and the one with MS takes a couple different medications. One is Klonopin and another is Baclofen.

Both of these help with neurological pain. I'm not sure why your neurologist says that pain is not normal with MS, but I live with a person who has pain almost everyday of his life. Some of it may not be classified as "normal" pain when you talk about burning or tingling. But depending on the severity of the sensation, I think many MSers would say they are experiencing pain.

You may want to consider looking for a neurologist who specializes in multiple sclerosis, or at least one who deals with it regularly and is willing to learn more about it.

The "electrical" shooting pain you feel going down your neck and arm is a symptom that used to be used to determine if someone had MS. It's called Lhermitte's Sign - - and it is very common in people with MS. I hope this bit of information helps.