These symptoms sound like the ones I get when the "hug" is especially bad.

I guess it's different for everyone.....like MS is. My symptoms can last several days or as long as a month or more. There's no predicting how long it will stay.

It can be scary, especially if you don't know what's causing it. I hope your biopsy comes back clear and you feel better soon. When you have MS it's easy to blame annoying symptoms on it but always be aware that it could be other things, too.

Omigosh Kelly

That describes it pretty much for me too - and Synnoves's comments are similar to my experiences as well. When it first happened to me, I went to a doctor, described it and she referred me to a cardiologist who found nothing (although I certainly did experience an arrhythmia which was probably due to panic when I was having breathing difficulties).

I told my neurologist about it at my next routine visit and he told me that in the absence of another diagnosis it was most likely the 'hug'.

Soooo.....thanks for the arms up idea - I didn't know that one but I will certainly try that next time.

Cheers

Lyn

That sounds exactly like what happens to me! I get it up to my throat as well like a spasm and sometimes causes me to have to concentrate very hard on swallowing. It's usually accompanied by a burning sensation in my throat. For me it really comes and goes a lot throughout the day but will hang around for weeks and then disappear.

Variations of the hug are too many to count! It's an individual thing. Which makes it hard to decide if it's "just the hug" or something else that might require medical intervention.

Very good point Kelly! A little over a year ago I had not only my usual hug on my left ribs but it extended up to the center of my chest. I definitely went and had it checked out. The muscles were so spastic that it caused costochondritis. But, they kept me overnight at the hospital and did some cardiac testing just to be sure it was not my heart. Some minor things showed up in the testing, nothing that warranted medication at this point (PVC's). It's always better to get it checked out than assume it is from MS.

Hi Kitty.
For the past twenty years I have learned to live with M.S.
The understanding that each person has different challenges is paramount within my limited experience with this condition.

Regarding the M.S. Hug may I share my experience with you.
The Hug is frightening.
For me it was extremely hard to breath.
It was painful in the center of my chest.
At one point I almost passed out due to the inability to breath effectually.
Once in Hospital after the normal heart scans had given me a "Heart as strong as an Ox" I was then informed that I had what I call a M.S. heart attack.
After this I experienced for the first time the M.S. Hug, which was in simple terms a reduced copy cat symptom of the M.S. heart attach.
With the M.s. hug I have pain with the reduced ability to breath effectively.

The M.S. Shortage of breath is different in my experience to the M.S. Hug.
With the M.S. Shortage of breath I find breathing becomes very shallow.
It tends to last about 30 minutes, after which normal breathing resumes for a while, then the shortage of breath starts all over again.
The M.S. shortage of breath tends to last longer in each eposode than the M.S. Hugs.

This has been my experience.
I understand that it may be different for each other M.S. person.
I trust that this will help in some way.

Best Regards
Mike

I don't have those symptoms anymore, but I recall my experiences being
similar to yours Mike, in as much as the Hug and Shortness of Breath
being two different symptoms. Not that they both can't happen at the
same time, for others and do.

Thank you and welcome to our little club.

I have had the hug on the left side of my rib cage for almost six years. You could draw a line down the center of my stomach around to my spine. And that is where I have the hug. It is right below my bra line. My neiro calls it a girding effect instead of hug.

It feels like my ribs and back are being squeezed or crushed depending on the day. That is also the area where I first experienced numbness -- my left side of my body. Most of the time it tolerable. I would estimate the pain in the 3 to 4 range. But for the last two days it has been horrible. I have tried taking advil and rubbing a pain relieving gel on it that has menthol it it. The gel helps for a few minutes. I have tried epsom lotion in the past, but it has never helped. Muscle relaxants do not have any effect. The only thing that relieves the pain a bit is lying on my left side with my ribs against the mattreess. You would think that would make it hurt more. But I do not want to spend all of my time in bed I had a bit is a crying episode a few minutes ago. I have not cried in months because of pain. But I have discovered that crying just makes the pain worse.

Barb - I have been where you are today many times. I took have a "funnel" line that follows right along the dermatones. I get the muscle spasm along that line as well as nerve pain. It is not fun. I too find that laying on my left side, the side of the hug, helps some. But, if I lay on it too much, like all day, it makes it worse. The area also gets numb and I have no feeling in those areas. Hang in there and let us know how you are doing.

Just went to the drugstore and bought some icy/hot back patches. Trying that and tylenol.

Trish -- do you always have that feeling of pressure/ squeezing in your rib cage? Mine never goes away. It is just worse at times.