Twitching
 

Hey Cinder, happy new year :)

I had the eye twitch for months. It eventually in my case progressed into my cheek/nose area and then into my mouth/chin on the right side.

It can happen when you get overtired, if you're looking at a computer/TV too much (eye strain) or from stress. It can also be a legitimate (in my opinion) MS symptom.

When I had mine, I was limiting my PC time, I don't watch television, and I was sleeping 12-14hours a day. So I can't see how, other than MAYBE stress, it could have been anything but the MS.

It's really annoying I know! You may want to mention it to your neurologist.

Hello Brat,

I have had the exact same thing going on but with my left eye. It started last January and has not stopped. It is funny but I described it to my neuro the same way you described yours. It is like my eye has its own heartbeat. My twitch is so strong that it actually pulls my eyeball up and to the side. It is also very noticeable to other people and they ask me about it. It drives me crazy.

My neuro and neuro-ophthalmologist both said it could be due to my brain lesions but first they tried to rule out other causes. Just as Laura said, they tried to blame it on lack of sleep, stress, overuse of computers, etc. They did send me to get blood work because low levels of certain minerals(especially magnesium) can cause this problem as can electrolyte imbalances. I already take magnesium every day and my levels were fine. Both docs said that eye twitching is normal even in people that don't have brain lesions but I said, "For 11 months straight?" They didn't have an answer for me once I said that.

I was given eye drops and they did not help. I am convinced that it is my brain. I already have a lovely case of double vision for the last 5 years caused by my lesions so why not a twitching eye. One of my lesions caused 4th cranial nerve paralysis so maybe one is causing my eye to be gimpy.

Definitely let your docs know and maybe they can help you get to the bottom of this. I haven't been able to get my twitch to go away but I keep hoping that is just going to stop one day. Good luck and I wish you a Happy Twitchless New Year!

You are SO not alone here Pacifica. Only my pulling was the right side of my mouth upwards. Some doctors said it almost appeared as though I had Bells Palsy :rolleyes: ... but it wasn't drooping!! It was like hyperactive spasming facial muscles out of control!

To this day, I can see the asymmetrical aspects on the left and right sides of my face. :cool:

I had the same thing, but it turns out the twitch wasn't actually IN my eye. That was how I described it to the eye specialist though.

He explained that it is in the eyelid, and that more people with MS get it (then the general population), but others do as well. He said stress can exacerbate it.

I haven't had it in many months now (it comes and goes, usually for weeks at a time), but when I do get it, I put pressure on it for about 10 seconds to stop the immediate twitch. It will come back later, but I just do the same thing.

Cherie

Yes, this has also happened with me. Just the twitching in my right eye. It lasted for several weeks this last time. I can remember it happening on and off several years ago even. I guess it was the ms back then. Like most other symptoms, it's now happening more frequently and for longer periods of time. Sounds like it's much worse for some of you. I hope you get relief from this. Is there actually anything they can do or does it just have to run its course?

Here too. It comes with stress for me. I notice it more when I have been spending too much time on the computer and bad lighting. Also when I have a lot of pain, like right NOW! It's my left eye which is my dominant eye so it makes matters worse - that darn jerky twitching eye! I do the same thing that LE44 does, I put pressure on it and it seems to go away for a while but it comes back.

I haven't found anything that really makes it go away completely. It just sort of disappears on its own.

Sorry, Brat, no real help for you but I would definitely tell your doc about it.

...stands up and states:

I AM A TWITCHER!

Yes on the eyelid, below the eyelid, down the cheek, upper and lower lip, all on the right side. There's been times when I was relapsing that I had right-sided facial spasms because of it or with it? It always starts with the eyelid twitching. Sometimes I don't move to worse twitching, because now i know that heat will exacerbate it and I am more careful.

The first time the face spazzed I was in a nice hot shower (before I knew what that does to me while relapsing!) and it happened. I leaped out of the shower to look in the mirror and it was like a caricature, all twisted up and high up compared to the left side! I sort of pulled on it to get it back to where it belonged and just held it down. Once I cooled down, it was back to normal! It scared me until I talked to the doc and he reassured me that it wouldn't stay like that. After that when it happened, I could laugh about it and show it off to the fiance.

I also find that if I put a fingertip on it and apply pressure for a few minutes it will sometimes calm it. It doesn't always work. It feels like there's an electrical current running through it, even when it's not outwardly visible. I can still feel it and so can others when I put their fingertip on the spot.

It's annoying, but it does go away.

As you can see, I haven't been here in awhile but was going to ask a question about "twitching eyes". You beat me to it!!! My left has been doing it's thing for about a week now and I was wondering if it was MS related. After reading all of these posts, I'd say YES. Suppose I tried to be too "normal" during the holidays and do all the things I did in my previous life, which caused alot of stress = twitching.

And yes, it does seem to be my eyeLID rather than the actual eye. This too shall pass! :)