Hi Sarah,

I don't recall having any of these symptoms before hand, and if I did clearly they weren't as prominent as they are now. To the best of my knowledge no one in my family has MS, which decreases my risk but doesn't eliminate it. I just think I'll feel better when I talk to someone who understands doctor speak better than I do. My MRI was read by the on-site radiologist where i had my testing done, but she's not my actual doctor so I didn't get to speak to her or ask any followup questions. They just emailed me a report and suggested I follow up with a neuro. But your medical hypothesis does make sense.

I'm sorry to hear your won't be playing, although like Mark in Idaho suggested I am currently evaluating what role the sport might play in my future. I've been skating for two years and I was just starting to get good when I got hurt. It's really an amazing sport populated by a whole host of awesome people, and I miss it something fierce. If you're interested in getting involved I highly suggest you look into refereeing, since the refs get to skate but don't get hit, or working as a non-skating official (time keepers, penalty monitors, etc.) It really takes a village to host a roller derby bout and there's lots of room for participation if you're interested.

Oh, and I'm just outside Chicago.