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With rms symptoms and other chronic illness symptoms. Is the tightening band like pain in legs particularly lower legs a common thing

A MyMSTeam Member asked a question 💭
NSW Australia

Have had rms since 2020 diagnosed apart from burning legs muscle spasms feet numbness and shock like waves from thighs down developed band like tightenings in liwer legs which doesnt stop until i take a pain killer. It is very difficult to walk sometimes when an attack occurs i may have to be quite still for a day or two. Have had two falls in past years that caused spine injury but also have scoliosis and bone problems thought to be osteoporosis but in 2025 prevention osteo porosis meds… read more

July 21
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A MyMSTeam Member

@Marr22, yes I have tight bands round lower legs, ankles and chest - MS hug. I also have burning. It’s not easy but the reply above gives some good suggestions to try to help. I take Baclofen for the hug and Gabapentin and Duloxetine for the burning. Sending gentle hugs, take care 🤗💜

July 21
A MyMSTeam Member

Thank you yes i will ask for escalation of referral i may have to ask GP to find another as this pain is getting worst hence being up all night trying to research stretch walk the dog just to feel relaxed. Im worried about so much medication and im not taking it all my GP knows that. Feel the lyrica which previous GP raised so high i started with 25mg now 150mg i know this is still low dosed compared to others but im tiny tiny person i feel the lyrica is not working just making me tired and my head feels like im whacked. I take palexia slow release when i cant do legs anymore. Your answer is validating to me. I also may ask GP to research more. I feel like a complete idiot sometimes but here im making sense. Why wont Drs help ???? I really do not understand.
Thanks so much you have no idea what this answer means.
Mar22

July 21
MyMSTeam

What a journey you've been on — and asking the right questions while managing so much at once takes real strength. That doctor who laughed? Good riddance. You are absolutely not imagining this.

The band-like tightening sensation you're describing is indeed a recognized MS symptom. It's commonly called the "MS hug" — though Show Full Answer

What a journey you've been on — and asking the right questions while managing so much at once takes real strength. That doctor who laughed? Good riddance. You are absolutely not imagining this.

The band-like tightening sensation you're describing is indeed a recognized MS symptom. It's commonly called the "MS hug" — though it more often affects the torso, it can absolutely occur in the legs. It's caused by spasms in small muscles, triggered by nerve damage from MS disrupting signals between the brain and body. The burning and tight-rope sensation you describe also fits what's known as paresthesia — abnormal sensations caused by demyelination (damage to the protective coating around nerve cells). When those nerve pathways are damaged, the brain can receive random signals it interprets as pressure, burning, or tightening.

Many MyMSTeam members describe very similar experiences:
- Feeling wrapped tightly, like adhesive tape around the legs
- Burning combined with tightness
- Sensations that disrupt sleep and make walking very difficult Since you're already on Baclofen (a muscle relaxant) and Lyrica (for nerve pain), you're on treatments commonly used for exactly these symptoms. Some additional management strategies that MS patients find helpful include:

- Gentle stretching or physiotherapy targeted at spasticity in the legs
- Heat or cold packs — though be cautious with heat, as it can worsen MS symptoms for some people (this is called Uhthoff's phenomenon)
- Mindfulness techniques to help manage persistent pain
- Positioning and cushioning when resting or sleeping to reduce pressure on affected areas
- Tracking your symptoms — noting triggers, duration, and what helps — to share with your GP or neurologist Given that your neurologist appointment isn't until 2027, it would be worth asking your kind GP to consider a neurology referral escalation given the severity and 24/7 nature of these symptoms. Persistent, sleep-disrupting spasticity and pain is something that deserves timely neurological input — you shouldn't have to wait that long with symptoms this disruptive.

You are being proactive, not difficult. There's a real difference, and any good doctor knows that.

July 21

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