Re: Thanks for the welcome!!!

[Guest guest]

My youngest was born with a very small

Arnold Chiari malformation (named after

the physician who discovered the condition),

and has never had any trouble. I do not have

this.

Don't forget, , that one way to obtain

better medical care is to get a chronic condition

and then take really good care of YOU!

Love to you,

n, 71 wMS and a host of other plagues and pestilences,

still here!

To: MSersLife Sent: Saturday, November 15, 2008 12:50:54 PMSubject: Thanks for the welcome!!!

Hi all-I just logged on to my computer and was so surprised to see the welcome messages!!! Thank you all so much for the support. I thought I'd introduce myself and explain the long, strange trip I've had!My name is and I'm 29 years old. I was diagnosed (as you all know) with MS on November 13th of this year. It took a while and several doctors to come to the diagnosis. I also recently found out that I have a Chiari Malformation. It started out back in July of this year when I finally made an appointment with my primary doctor after about a year or so of persistant numbness and tingling in my left arm and left side of my back. I thought I'd pinched a nerve or something and kept putting it off. When it didn't go away, I saw my doctor. She didn't know what it was, so she ordered x-rays and a nerve conduction study. The x-rays didn't really show much, but the NCS showed decreased nerve

activity in both sides. My pcp referred me to a neurologist, who ordered even more testing. He wasn't going to do an MRI, but I mentioned that I had some family history of MS and was concerned about my lack of balance and coordination, speech and memory issues. He did the MRI, a VEP and an SSEP. The MRI showed the white matter lesions, plus an 8mm Chiari Malformation. VEP and SSEP were both abnormal. The neurologist wasn't sure if it was MS and didn't really know how to treat the Chiari. That's when he got me set up with a Neurologist at Mayo. He confirmed the MS diagnosis, but isn't really sure how to treat it yet. I think we both are at the "wait and see" stage. Long story short, I'm not sure what is going to happen. It's kind of strange...I' m not that upset by the diagnosis even though my family and friends are. It's what I've been handed and I'm just going to live with it. I'm glad I found this

group and look forward to getting to know everyone. Thanks again!!Cheers to all,