Bras make it much worse, so off it goes when I am at home and I also do lots of stretching by tucking in my shoulder blades, opening my arms, head back like I'm looking up to heaven, being grateful I've been given another day and by all means I do this close to a wall. I lose my balance if not looking down. So for me, everything I do is always safety #1. If it doesn't feel safe---I don't do it or try to find a safe way to do the best I can.

Basically at least for me it is like someone/something wraps around your stomach. Not hard but just enough that it uncomfortable and it makes me feel like I cannot breathe, constricted. It can last few hours to a few days, AWFUL feeling. (It is like taking a rubberized bandage wrap it around your stomach and leave it on for a while.)

Because of my level of spasticity, this is my worst symptom. I've had the MS HUG for 6 years now. It ia wrapped around me 24/7. I have no answers. I do know that for me personally sitting for any length of time in the heat makes it worse. So I would keep your head (which fires signals to your spine) and mid area cool. I have a liking to cold ice packs intermittently and freezing cold showers. It relieves the tightness very temporarily. Deep breathing and stretching also help very temporarily. Plain sitting in the same position for too long increases it for me too. Doing any kind of sit ups is crazy and working on any free weight machines at a gym only intensifies it quickly so I have to work out in small increments. I hear taking high doses of Baclofen (which I can't attest to because I get dizzy and nausea above 50mg)if you can tolerate it and Tizanidine may also help a little I'm sure it may help more with the 9 pills a day(but it makes me so sleepy0 I am not functional at high doses so it is a catch 22 for me. I wish I could fix it for you and me both...I really do. People have all suggested good things to try

@DanielleSlav Tightening in the chest but lower and towards the front it is not that heart attack feeling and I have only spoken to a few MS patients that get it. I am one, have had it off and on since day one. The only thing that has worked for me is reduce stress. It is also kind of handy as it is a warning I am over doing it as it is always the first symptom to act up if I am over doing it.

@June I just had to have my heart checked because of a tightness feeling. When I first went to the dr about it ,I casually mentioned it might be a new MS symptom. It lasted a long time and my heart tests checked out ok. So I guess that is what it was. I'm glad I know this now, thanks.