That is called ruling everything out before actually saying MS. Back in the day - 1960 - they put you in a tub of hot water. If you could get out without help you did not have MS. If you couldn't, well...

Haven't heard of the disease. Is it bad?

Found this
http://www.msrc.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=show&pageid=736

The blood disease that mimics MS - Hughes Syndrome

Could you have been given the wrong diagnosis?
By Judy Graham

Up to 5% of those diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis don't have the disease at all. They have something called Hughes Syndrome, a hidden blood disease which in some ways mimics MS. It is also known as "Sticky Blood Syndrome".

This finding from a study by a leading team of British researchers at St Thomas Hospital in London. Instead of having MS, these patients could be suffering from this relatively new disease which mimics some symptoms of MS.

Like MS, Hughes Syndrome can affect mobility, memory, the speech and the nervous system. But the differences. Hughes Syndrome is easy and cheap to treat.

What is Hughes Syndrome?

Hughes Syndrome is the common autoimmune disease that makes blood more sticky or thick and therefore more prone to clotting in both veins and arteries. Lack of awareness of this condition means it is often missed or overlooked.

Sticky blood can affect old and young, men and women alike and is found in all countries. No one knows what causes it although there is evidence that there is a genetic link.

Current research shows Hughes Syndrome is responsible for a fifth of strokes under 45 years, a fifth of cases of deep vein thrombosis, including so-called economy class syndrome. It is the cause of 1 in 5 recurrent miscarriages. Hughes Syndrome can also mimic Alzheimer's disease, ME, and is linked to migraine. If it is left untreated sticky blood can kill.

THERE IS A LOT OF INFO HERE
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/antiphospholipid.htm

If they put me in a tub of hot water, I would just sink to the bottom like a wet noodle. I can barely managed a lukewarm shower without getting nauseated and weak. I guess that means if I traveled back in time to the 1960s there would be no doubt... lol Anyway, thanks so much for the info! I guess my point about getting the blood test NOW, is that he could have ordered that test back in June when I first made contact with him and then moved on to the bigger, more expensive tests. It seems we climbed to the top of Mt. Everest and now are going to crawl back down and go look on the other side of an ant hill... Who knows.

At any rate, my PCP is fed up with him, so he asked me today if I would like to be referred to a different neuro. Of course I said yes!

Thanks again. ~J