I've only been a member for a few days now, but this seems to be a good place to find advice from people who are successfully managing the effects of MS on their daily lives. From the messages I've read, you all seem to be a very caring group of people who do a great job of supporting one another and new members through the daily trials of this disease.

I was diagnosed in January of this year after having paralysis in my left eye which resulted in double vision. I had an MRI done to rule out tumors and found multiple lesions instead. i met with a Neurologist (Dr. Wynn in Northbrook, IL) and was put on Copaxone right away.

As the months have progresssed, I've been trying to learn about MS, but the list of things to know seems endless and sometimes very daunting.

I've experienced additional symptoms since the eye episode in January, but I don't know how to classify them - are they just daily symptoms that are the result of the autoimmunity or are they full blown exacerbations that I should be more concerned about. In my mind, the daily symptoms have been harder to incorporate into my life than the idea of the MS.

To date, I've had lots of leg pain - stabbing, burning, assorted cramping - foot numbness, exreme fatigue, depression/anxiety.

How do you know if what you are experiencing is an exacerbation vs. daily symptoms? i don't want to be the hysterical patient who calls the Dr. with every little thing, but i also want to catch things early enough to do something about them.

Any advice?