I labeled this muscles to include spasticity, weakness, pain, etc. Anything to do with our muscles.

Like a lot of MSers, I get muscle spasms all the time. I very rarely get them in my arms or back. It's mostly my legs. Sometimes when I sit in a chair I can feel my left quad in a tight spasm when it hits the edge of the chair. It's not always painful but I can feel discomfort. My left leg has more spasms than my right. I also get random twitching in my thighs. It's really strange. It's like there's something in there moving.

My muscles get weak fairly quickly and many times I feel like I ran a marathon when all I did was walk from the bedroom to the kitchen or something simple like that.

I try to stretch my muscles every morning and evening as well as throughout the day. This does help. I take a small dose of Ativan to help with the spasms. This really helps the hug (which will be a whole new thread) as it seems to help keep the intercostals calmed down some. I used to take Epsom salt baths and that really helps too, but I can no longer get myself in and out of the tub. There is Epsom salt lotion but I haven't tried it yet. It's my understanding that it works quite well.

I have gone through times where limbs have gotten stuck in a certain position due to spasticity. My hip got stuck in a 45 degree angle. It was very difficult to move it. It eventually eased up within a week and I did some PT as well. My right foot likes to do the same thing and gets stuck turned in. Again, it takes a while for that to work itself out.

Discuss your muscle issues due to MS . . .

The big beef I have with my muscles, is that the MS keeps them so weak.
They don't have a mind of their own, and the nerve conduction to the muscle,
is out of whack. So, if I don't force my muscles to work each and every day,
they go right back to their weak stage.

But it's a Catch 22, because if I do too much, I have to take a nap and start
all over. AARGH!!!

This is almost a word-for-word description of how I am affected, except it's usually my right leg. I take Baclofen now, which SEEMS to help some. Tight clothing and bedclothes trigger tightness and spasms, and YES to sitting on hard surfaces (car seat, piano bench). I tend to sit on the edge of a chair so the backs of my legs don't touch anything, which destroys my posture and causes other pain. I also can't have anything on my lap, such as the cat. Boo, hiss.

I think my only problem with muscles is the general weakness. Sometimes my left leg is weaker than the right, some days it's the opposite. I do know that with my losing weight and exercising more I have gained a lot more stamina in the legs. I'm not sure if that's the same as gaining strength in the legs or not. I know when it comes to cutting up food my arms don't have the same kind of strength they used to.

Great thread...

It's the one major sx I deal with every single day. Spasticity, fasciculations, pain in the muscles...I take baclofen, but sometimes it doesn't do a thing to help.
Good idea about sitting on the edge of a chair! And Trish, thanks for the reminder to stretch out during the day. I always forget...

After my surgery, a PT came to the house to do physical therapy with me. I never realized that I had slight foot drop in my left foot. She did these massage/exercise type thing and I asked her about it. She said she was trying to release the muscles in my calf. Everytime after she did that, I was able to fully flex my foot. It was amazing.

I think sometimes we get used to something and don't even notice those little things. We also tend to overcompensate and end up hurting ourselves more. I now include ankle exercises in my stretching routine.

Thanks Trish, that was great info. I too have a slight drop left foot and do ankle/calf
stretches and exercises. I'll pay even more attention now, with your new info.

What particular did the PT do?