Jenny Like many people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), I have suffered from spasticity. And when I say suffer, I mean suffer! It is worst in my left leg – the thigh and calf muscle – but spasticity can also contort my feet and toes. My left leg is almost always stick-straight, making it difficult to walk and to get up and down from chairs or in the car. I am currently waiting for botox injections to help me deal with the pain, but they seem to have been placed on the backburner as a result of Covid-19.
Research reports that between 60% and 90% of people with MS will be affected by spasticity at some point. Most people will only experience occasional symptoms. About one in five people reported that spasticity and spasms frequently affected their activities and one in eight described their symptoms as severe.
From: MS Trust
I am pleased to say, though, that over the past month or so I have managed to sort myself out with a little routine that I use through the day to help me lessen the spasticity – and it works! I am feeling the difference and sleeping better… here’s what I find helps:
1. Magnesium
I realised recently that I had run out of the magnesium that I used to take daily and, as soon as I got some more and took it before bed, I noticed the difference in my levels of spasticity. Research suggests that oral supplementation of magnesium can really aid spasticity in some people with MS:
The effects of magnesium glycerophosphate oral therapy on spasticity was studied in a 35-year-old woman with severe spastic paraplegia resulting from multiple sclerosis (MS). We found a significant improvement in the spasticity after only 1 week from the onset of the treatment on the modified Ashworth scale, an improvement in the range of motion and in the measures of angles at resting position in lower limbs.
From: PubMed
The amounts required are covered in my blog post about magnesium:
Read: Boosting You Winter Body with Magnesium
I use oral supplementation and then this spray on my legs and feet before bed.
2. MS Gym
I have been using the MS Gym for the past year to try and maintain my MS health and lessen my spasticity and, when I carry out the exercises and muscle releases, it really helps. The MS Gym is run by Trevor Wicken, an exercise practitioner who specialises in neurological conditions and particularly MS. I started out using his free sessions on YouTube but have now paid for full access to his programmes and try and do some every week.
Click here for some free resources that can be found for the MS Gym on YouTube:
MS GYM
3. Yoga
I’ve mentioned yoga before in this blog and I have to say that it is one of the go-to activities that I use to keep healthy – mentally and physically. As I can no longer do balance-heavy practices due to my MS symptoms, I have started doing more restorative yoga (i.e.close to the ground!) According to Beth Gibson, Physiotherapist:
Daily stretching of muscles to their full length will help to manage the tightness of spasticity, and allow for optimal movement. Keep in mind that moving a spastic muscle to a new position may result in an increase in spasticity. If this happens, allow a few minutes for the muscles to relax.
Source: Stretching for People with MS – National Multiple Sclerosis Society
Yoga helps me because the more I practice, the deeper I can get into the stretches; even if I can’t do a move perfectly, even having a go helps. I notice that my walking is better (with better bend of my spastic leg) and my legs just feel ‘looser’ after a session. This practice is an example of one that I have been using recently, concentrating on my breathing and relaxing into the stretch:
Source: Jessica Richburg
4. Vape
Perhaps not for everyone, but I have to say that my vape – which I fill with cannabis dried herb – is the one thing that is guaranteed to stop my late-night restless legs and the cramps that I can get in my feet. I don’t need a lot and don’t use it every night, but knowing that it is there if I wake up in pain really helps. I have this one.
5. Hand-Held Deep Tissue Massager
One of my most recent purchases in a quest to find something to further help my spasticity is a hand-held massager. I’ve used a shiatsu back massager before, but these can be somewhat limited in use for other areas of your body. The one I ordered is portable, comes with different heads for various intensities and I can even use it on the bottom of my feet; this is similar to the one I have.
6. Baclofen
I have been using baclofen (a muscle relaxant medication) for a number of years now. I take 40mg a day and have to say that I didn’t think it was doing much – until I was late picking up my prescription one week… then I realised it was working! Medication-wise, I am still keen to have a look at other alternatives or add-ons to help further, such as the botox injections that I am waiting for. My MS nurse also mentioned a baclofen pump, but I need to learn a bit more about it first.
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Those are my top 6 things that I find help my MS Spasticity – I would love to hear your experiences, particularly if anyone has used acupuncture to help? It is something that I am very keen to try but perhaps need to save up a bit first!
Love and light
Nice blog and post. I use various forms and strains of medical marijuana to relax and calm my spasticity. I can transfer from wheelchair to my lift chair where I sleep or my NuStep recumbent bike. I try to exercise on it at least 3x a week. I can get 30-45 mins but not without my rt leg doing it’s dance. I keep going. I also have PT 2x a week and massage 1x a week for 2hours. They come to my house which I could not do without.
I have done acupuncture with 2 different people at 2 different times early on in my 12+ years of my MS but my bladder won’t allow me to be that patient or visit their studios. I found the effects to wear off rather quickly.
Thanks for this Dave, and for telling me your experience of acupuncture. I was wondering if it was something that acted just as a short term relief. The massage sounds brilliant, I always ask for massage vouchers for my birthday/Christmas – would love weekly ones 🙂 Thanks for sharing your routine 🙂
Fantastic suggestions! I imagine what helps will be different for everyone and it’s always good to get new ideas of things to try. I don’t get spasticity but I get restless leg syndrome that affects my thighs and problems with my lower legs because of nerve damage in my back, so I wouldn’t mind trying exercises to target the areas and getting back into yoga (which I’ve been saying for what feels like forever!) I’d actually be really curious to try the vape but in the UK I wouldn’t be able to get medicinal cannabis legally given the restrictions. I have heard from plenty of people who’ve found it beneficial though, which is very promising to know! xx
Hi Caz, I definitely have restless legs, especially in the evening and at night, alongside my spasticity. It can be difficult to get into something when you haven’t done it or a long time. What helped me get back into yoga was literally doing the 5 minute bedtime ones on youtube to see if they helped me to feel relaxed for bed. And it helped, so I try and concentrate on the benefit to make me do it again. Easier said than done though! I have to say that I don’t get medicinal cannabis either, I have heard that MSers still have to jump through hoops for it (I’m in the UK too) xxx
Great suggestions! I love my dry herb vaporizer. It gives me control over how much cannabis I need/want without chemicals. The best part is that since there is no combustion, we are basically decarboxylating the flower which is the first step to cooking with cannabis. I save mine and make homemade oils and butter for making my own edibles.
That’s so great to hear Cynthia, I should read up on how to make the oils, am I right in thinking that I can just use the leftovers in the chamber for edibles? I need to learn more 🙂
Great tips! I had spasticityin my left leg for the first time this summer after a very stressful personal situation. It was so horrible. I do now take magnesium which also helps me sleep better. I like the idea of the restoritive yoga. I struggle with normal yoga because of the balance and strength that is required. I have tried MS gym and really need to do more. I have not tried vaping, very interesting for sure!
Thanks Kat! I really struggle with my balance too, the restorative yoga is great as it gives a much-needed stretch but no balance needed. Vaping does help, but not for everybody, I know. Hope that you are OK and serving this lockdown 2.0! x
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Hi Jen again a great blog about exercise and all its forms. I thought the national MS exercises were excellent and useful for anybody at any stage. As a trained massage therapist and sports therapist in my past I had devised my exercise routine 20 minutes in the morning. I add a CHImachine (Japanese make) it moves your feet to make you swim like a goldfish sounds weird but really very effective on many fronts. I cannot move except a little arm and head movement so it is a superb passive muscle exerciser PME for lymph drainage(swollen tissue) Muscle exercising , improves circulation &for me it moves the curvatures in my spine. I was lucky to borrow one for three months to check out its use as they are rather expensive only on sale in Australia but I managed to get a secondhand one here in the UK. It has been good value for me not being able to do in regular exercise .
I hope you saw my other post on One of your other pages About the baclofen pump.
Hi again Marjorie,
I am so glad that your CHImachine is helping, I’ll check that out too :). I definitely find that if I don’t move, my body just seizes up. The worsening mobility gets me down but I also know that I am so lucky to be able to still be able to do some adapted movements 🙂 xx
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