I met Jen on-line many moons ago when I was searching for other people who blogged about their Multiple Sclerosis.  Jen is a strong advocate for those who have MS and works hard to spread awareness of this disease to the larger community.  Jen does not hesistate to share her knowledge and provide information about Multiple Sclerosis to whomever needs it.  She is a good person to know and especially if you are newly diagnosed with this disease. 

I present to you....Jen!

Type of MS Jen has:  relapsing-remitting MS for nearly 11 years

Website: MS Strength

About Jen:  I am currently working from home as a part-time writer while also being supplemented by Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI.) I volunteer at my local library system a couple of days a week as a volunteer program assistant and as an English conversation group leader, where I assist foreign-born patrons with their speaking skills (I absolutely love doing this!) I am a member of my local MS Society and I work at their annual walking and biking fundraiser events.

When were you given your official multiple sclerosis diagnosis and did it take a long time?

I was officially diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS in May of 2005, after having seven years of vague, increasingly debilitating symptoms.

Did you have any gut feelings that you might have this disease before your official diagnosis?

I was working full-time as an ultrasound technologist in 2002 when I had a more severe attack. My right hand became dysfunctional and clumsy, making writing, combing my hair, and scanning very difficult. I still wasn't clear about what was going on, but I knew it was serious. One of the radiologists I worked for immediately said, "It sounds like you might have multiple sclerosis. Let's do an MRI." This started the process of me consulting with a neurologist and getting a "probable MS" diagnosis.

What tests did they do to get the diagnosis?

My presenting symptoms were analyzed by the neurologist. There were also several MS signs--- Babinski's sign, Lhermitte's sign, hyper reflexes--- that were evident during the neurological exam. I had serial MRIs every six months from 2002 until 2005.  I also had two lumbar punctures (spinal taps) to rule out other nervous system disorders. I'd had a bout of Lyme disease in 1997, so the second spinal tap was to rule out any traces of residual Lyme bacteria. Blood work ruled out other problems such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

 Can you tell us more about the Lyme disease you also had during the time of your diagnosis of MS? Do you feel sometimes MS is hard to diagnose because of these other diseases which can mimic the symptoms of MS?

I contracted Lyme disease a year before I experienced what might have been my first MS attack: numbness and tingling in a small area of my lower back. New Jersey has a large deer tick population and I had been working outside in the springtime. I developed the tell-tale "bull's eye" rash on my stomach, accompanied by a high fever, stiff neck, throbbing headache, and general weakness. I was treated immediately with a high-dose antibiotic, but the Lyme disease made the whole process of diagnosing multiple sclerosis more difficult since symptoms such as tingling, numbness, fatigue, and cognitive impairments can be present in both illnesses. My general neurologist did not want to classify me as a case of definite MS because he wasn't sure what was going on. My MS attacks were still somewhat vague at that point.