When the MRI Stays the Same but Symptoms Get Worse

One of the hardest parts of living with multiple sclerosis (MS) is feeling like doctors do not fully understand or appreciate the extent of your symptoms. This is especially true if they consider only your MRI results. Sadly, this experience is common. Many people living with MS have worsening symptoms even when their MRI results stay the same.

To find out more, we reached out on the MultipleSclerosis.net Facebook page. We asked community members, “Have you ever had an MRI checkup that showed no noticeable changes, however you felt as if your MS was worsening?”

Nearly 400 community members responded! Here is what they shared.

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Signs of an MS Flare

Living with multiple sclerosis (MS) means dealing with flares. Flares occur when symptoms worsen for at least 24 hours. To be considered a flare, it also must occur 30 days or more after the last attack.

We wondered what cues your body gives you about flares. We asked our community on Facebook, “How can you tell that you are experiencing an MS flare?” We got more than 250 responses, so it is clear that there are many ways flares affect you.

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Ask the Expert – Cognitive Issues

Featuring Barry A. Hendin, MD
MSAA’s Chief Medical Officer

Headshot of doctor Barry Hendin, chief medical officer for MSAA
Barry Hendin, MD

Question: What strategies can you recommend to help with cognitive issues? 

Answer: First, let’s define cognition. Simply, it is all of the processes involved in learning, remembering, and expressing knowledge. It involves how we perceive, how we think, and how we convey knowledge verbally and nonverbally. 

Although many people with MS, and at all stages of MS, express cognitive symptoms or problems, they are generally mild in nature. The most common complaints that I hear involve difficulties in memory, multitasking, learning new information, and processing speed.

Some cognitive changes may be due to MS itself. Often, however, the problems are due to, or are compounded by, other factors such as poor sleep, medication effect, pain, or depression. The first strategy, therefore, is to assess the contribution of mood, pain, medications, and sleep – and then treat them appropriately. 

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You Know You Have MS When . . .

The day you receive a multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis can feel surreal. It is common to be in denial and want to ignore it. But over time, you start to see that your symptoms match what the doctor explained would happen.

For most people, there is a moment when they cannot deny their symptoms or their diagnosis anymore. And life goes on.

To find out more about what that moment looks like, we turned to the MultipleSclerosis.net Facebook page. We asked the community to fill in the blank: “You know you have MS when _____________.”

More than 250 people in the community responded. Here is what they said.

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Ask the Expert – Numbness and MS

Featuring Barry A. Hendin, MD
MSAA’s Chief Medical Officer

Headshot of doctor Barry Hendin, chief medical officer for MSAA

Question: Does new or increased numbness indicate a worsening of MS, and is this symptom typically permanent, or can it subside on its own?

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Surprising Causes of My MS Flares

Learning how to live with MS takes time. Only through experience can someone learn which things in their environment trigger an MS flare. Many of these triggers can come as a total surprise.

To find out more about your experiences, we reached out on the MultipleSclerosis.net Facebook page and asked the community to fill in the blank: “I was surprised that ______ causes my multiple sclerosis to flare.”

More than 400 people responded. Here is what they shared.

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Community Views: Aging Fears with MS

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a progressive disease. This means symptoms worsen as time goes on. Thinking about the future can cause anxiety. You worry about what happens in the future. 

We recently provided space for sharing those concerns on the MultipleSclerosis.net Facebook page. There, we asked community members to tell us: “What’s your biggest fear about aging with MS?” 

More than 600 responses revealed several common threads.

This is an illustration of a female figure thinking about aging and progression and anxiety

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Ask the Expert – Differences in the MS Experience

Featuring Barry A. Hendin, MD
MSAA’s Chief Medical Officer

Question: Why does each person with MS experience different symptoms?

Answer: It shouldn’t surprise us that everyone experiences their MS differently since we are all unique, but the individual factors producing that uniqueness are worth considering in some detail.

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Community Views: What Only We Know

Multiple sclerosis (MS) impacts the body in many ways. Is difficult for those on the outside to understand. There are certain things only other MS warriors fully comprehend. Connecting with others living with MS feels affirming. 

To learn more about these unique issues, we turned to the MultipleSclerosis.net Facebook page. We asked community members to complete this prompt: “Fill in the blank: _____ is something that only someone with MS would understand.” 

One of you captured it well: “When we say, ‘I don’t feel good,’ this has an entirely different meaning.”

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Community Views: An Accurate MS Commercial

Are they for real?! Most multiple sclerosis (MS) commercials feel completely disconnected from your experiences of living with the condition.

We wondered how you would improve them, so we turned to MultipleSclerosis.net and asked community members to get creative! We asked our community to fill in the blank: “If you directed a commercial about MS, it would include ___.” 

With more than 300 comments, they had some great ideas! 

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