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jenn_

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Mar 27, 2010
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Learn about ALS
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US
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Alabama
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Montgomery
I woke up yesterday morning with a tight throat, it is easy for me to swallow things but I always feel there is something in it. I also woke up with similar feelings in my throat this morning. My throat also does this 'clicking' thing. I haven't noticed any weakness in my neck though. My right hand's reflexes are brisk compared to my left-hand. I also have some wrist pain on my right hand when I hold it in certain positions. My upper right-arm hurts too. I have been dropping things with my right-arm more than with my left-arm. It's funny since I am right-handed and my right-side should be the stronger-one. I have also noticed my balance being a bit funny! When I was in the kitchen earlier prepping dinner I lost my footing. I didn't fall but I felt off-balance. I am sitting at my desk now and my right-leg is twitching. I am worried my right-side is wasting away and I may have the bulbar onset. I don't want to wither away and die of this evil disease. I am only twenty-two years old. Last night I was laying in bed and I noticed my hip twitching, again on my right-side. I did pinch my sciatic nerve a few weeks ago & it is still in the process of healing. My jaw has also been twitching & I woke up with the right-side being numb. I have never been graceful honestly but every moment I find myself off-balance I think I have ALS. I am under a lot of stress at the time and I heard stress can trigger ALS in some cases. I hope it doesn't trigger it in me. I used to play on a soccer-team as a kid and was exposed to some pesticides and other chemicals. I wonder if ALS has been waiting dormant in my system, waiting to be triggered off. I eat fairly healthy, though I heard ALS strikes regardless of diet. It scares the living daylights out of me. I almost don't want to fall asleep at night because of this paralyzing fear. I am sorry if I am wasting your precious time since I am sure your this particular sub-forum of your forums gets flooded with hypochondriacs such as I. I also have a dry cough, though it can just be due to seasonal allergies. One spring my allergies were so bad I coughed almost constantly and ended up with a sore chest by the end. I was outside earlier mowing the lawn. Now if I really had ALS or even the early onset I wouldn't have been able to maneuver the lawnmower around the lawn would I have? I have coordination problems and I think I always have but they seem worse recently. My mind has been kept hostage by my ALS fear for the past week or so. It could just be my anxiety and me underestimating the power of my mind. When I focus on a certain region of my body or a certain bodily function those functions are magnified. My lack of balance lately can be due to my pinched sciatic nerve and the fact that I have absolutely horrible posture. Not to mention I sit at the computer ten plus hours a day and sometimes sit in funny positions, mostly on my legs. I also think I have hemorrhoids developed. Sorry if that is too much information. I also have joint pain, mostly on my right-side. I hope it is just due to the pinched sciatic nerve and not something more sinister like ALS. :-(
 
Woah, I thought I was anxious about my symptoms! I am not an expert in ALS, but I've been doing some research just because I was worried about some symptoms.

-First thing you gotta realize is that age is on both your side and mine. It is very rare for people in their 20's to be hit with this disease.
-Your throat issues can be explained by allergies (since you mentioned you are prone to them) and guess what Season it is? Yep, allergy season.
-I also get wrist pains when putting my wrist in certain positions. I think this is normal and you are making it worse by putting unnecessary strain on your hand. You could also have some sort of repetitive strain on your wrists from sitting on the computer "ten plus hours a day".
-Pinched sciatic nerves and other back problems can cause leg weakness and have even been known to cause foot drops, which are one of the possible ALS signs as well as MANY OTHER THINGS.

You need to try and relax and take a breather because you're stressing yourself out. I'm sure you have heard it before, but stress can make you experience a variety of strange neurological symptoms (believe me I know). "Pscyhosomatic thoughts originate with emotional stress or damaging thought patterns, but has physical symptoms that are real and can harm you as much as symptoms that originate from other means. (In fact, it's been estimated that over 90% of doctors visits are due to health problems influenced at least in part by stress, so psychosomatic illness is more common than people realize!)"

On that note, I leave you with this piece of information. Try a stress reliever like Yoga or exercising to take your mind off your fears.
 
No, it does not sound like you have ALS. Buy yourself a pair of Sketchers Shape Up shoes. They do wonders with helping your posture. I always feel better after I go shopping! Then go for a nice walk and get your mind clear. Lori
 
I think you are an extremely anxious person and I am guessing that this is not the first time that you have had obsessive thoughts about your health. You sound so very uncomfortable and I am sorry that you are having such a hard time. While your symptoms do not sound ALS related to me (although I am not an expert nor do I suffer from ALS) they do sound like symptoms of anxiety.

Look up anxiety symptoms, in particular Generalized Anxiety Disorder. If you do suffer from anxiety, it is very treatable. You do not need to be this uncomfortable.

Again, I am not a doctor but I have been around a lot of anxious people and know a bit about it. I also have a dear friend with ALS and know a bit about that, as well.

I really hope you feel better:):smile:
 
No, it does not sound like you have ALS. Buy yourself a pair of Sketchers Shape Up shoes. They do wonders with helping your posture. I always feel better after I go shopping! Then go for a nice walk and get your mind clear. Lori

Thank you Lori. I actually got a new pair of sneakers that have excellent support, but I've only worn them once and to go to the gym to exercise. So I haven't really benefited from them yet. They're not exactly the Sketchers you recommended since I am on a budget at this time. But I guess only time will tell. :smile:
 
Woah, I thought I was anxious about my symptoms! I am not an expert in ALS, but I've been doing some research just because I was worried about some symptoms.

-First thing you gotta realize is that age is on both your side and mine. It is very rare for people in their 20's to be hit with this disease.
-Your throat issues can be explained by allergies (since you mentioned you are prone to them) and guess what Season it is? Yep, allergy season.
-I also get wrist pains when putting my wrist in certain positions. I think this is normal and you are making it worse by putting unnecessary strain on your hand. You could also have some sort of repetitive strain on your wrists from sitting on the computer "ten plus hours a day".
-Pinched sciatic nerves and other back problems can cause leg weakness and have even been known to cause foot drops, which are one of the possible ALS signs as well as MANY OTHER THINGS.

You need to try and relax and take a breather because you're stressing yourself out. I'm sure you have heard it before, but stress can make you experience a variety of strange neurological symptoms (believe me I know). "Pscyhosomatic thoughts originate with emotional stress or damaging thought patterns, but has physical symptoms that are real and can harm you as much as symptoms that originate from other means. (In fact, it's been estimated that over 90% of doctors visits are due to health problems influenced at least in part by stress, so psychosomatic illness is more common than people realize!)"

On that note, I leave you with this piece of information. Try a stress reliever like Yoga or exercising to take your mind off your fears.

Thank you so very much LatinoLoco. Your response has put my mind at rest already. :) Last summer actually I was convinced I was dying of a brain-tumor. Four-weeks ago it was pancreatic cancer. Two-and-a-half weeks ago it was Ovarian cancer. This week it's ALS. I wonder what I will be dying of next week. I have been exercising actually, went for half an hour yesterday, didn't make it today, but I plan to go tomorrow. I feel positively euphoric once I am done exercising. The rational part of my mind wants to admit these sensations as of recent have been caused by seasonal allergies, the pinched sciatic nerve, hemorrhoids, bad posture and all but the hypochondriac in me wants to believe it is something far more severe.
 
You are very welcome. It is perfectly normal to be concerned about our own health. I think all of us are, but unfortunately some take it to another level and make things unnecessarily worse. I have had my share of scares and many visits to the Doctor (I think my family doctor wants to strangle me). Seriously though, try to take your mind off this fear because if you don't, you will just start to notice more and more symptoms manifesting. Get on that treadmill, get those endorphins pumping and enjoy your youth! :)
 
Jenn ~ My brother used to feel anxious about various possible diseases as well..............for many years as a matter of fact. He used to tell us that we can laugh all we want but when he dies (and for sure it has to be by one of these diseases he is focused on) that his tombstone was going to read....................."See I told you I was sick !" BTW , he is still around !
 
Jenn,

ALS is a serious issue and not to be trifled with. If you fear you may have it, set an appointment with a good neurologist. Otherwise, suffer the consequences of driving yourself crazy with an attempt at self-diagnosis.
 
You are very welcome. It is perfectly normal to be concerned about our own health. I think all of us are, but unfortunately some take it to another level and make things unnecessarily worse. I have had my share of scares and many visits to the Doctor (I think my family doctor wants to strangle me). Seriously though, try to take your mind off this fear because if you don't, you will just start to notice more and more symptoms manifesting. Get on that treadmill, get those endorphins pumping and enjoy your youth! :)

Exactly! I know it's a vicious cycle. I remember when I was fixated on having a brain tumor last summer. My aunt even called her friend a famous neurologist to 'diagnose' me as much as she can over the phone. I even had her call her again this week about the possibility of ALS, and she told me it sounds like BFS (Benign Fasciculation Syndrome). I don't think my family doctor is at the point of wanting to strangle me though I suspect he will soon. I just have to learn to trust the doctor's diagnoses. I have a clean bill of health, it's almost as if I need it dangled in front of my face to let it sink in. I will do just that tomorrow, except on the elliptical machine.

I'll just think of it this way, with the small chance, probably like 0.00002% I do have of getting ALS I will know just where to come. Here.

Jenn ~ My brother used to feel anxious about various possible diseases as well..............for many years as a matter of fact. He used to tell us that we can laugh all we want but when he dies (and for sure it has to be by one of these diseases he is focused on) that his tombstone was going to read....................."See I told you I was sick !" BTW , he is still around !

:) Sounds like me at times. I was literally convinced I was dying of a brain tumor last summer. I was planning on what my funeral was going to be like and all. I know brain tumors, ALS and the such are incredibly serious and dreadful issues. I just thought I'd come here since people here know more about ALS/MND more than most people on the Anxiety forums I frequent..

Your symptoms do not sound one bit like ALS.

Thanks... my aunt who knows a famous neurologist seems to think I have BFS. I probably should believe her. But the obsessive/anxious part of me wants to believe it's something far more severe, like ALS. I feel bad for wasting everyone's time who replied to this thread. You probably get a lot of hypochondriacs like me in this subforum to begin with...

Jenn,

ALS is a serious issue and not to be trifled with. If you fear you may have it, set an appointment with a good neurologist. Otherwise, suffer the consequences of driving yourself crazy with an attempt at self-diagnosis.

I know it is a serious issue. I take it seriously. I actually went to a neurologist last summer and he told me there was nothing that concerned him. Still, a part of me wonders if ALS or something similar has developed since last summer. Part of me wants to say it's just the anxiety/hypochondriac in me that believes I have ALS. I mean I think it's normal for one to be concerned with their health, but I admit I am more on the obsessive side of concerned. Thank you for the answer though Zaphoon.
 
Isn't it about time for you to go back under your bridge now?
 
Isn't it about time for you to go back under your bridge now?

I am sorry if I came off that way. It was not my intention. My anxiety was at an all time high. Again, sorry for wasting everyone's time. I feel better today. :sad:
 
I am so incredibly sorry if I upset anyone here. It was never my intention. I came here with my anxiety at an all time high and never considered the outcome of what I posted. I never intended to provoke or make anyone feel bad. I would hate to do that really. :sad:

I am not trying to garner up sympathy since I was simply idiotic and wasting the precious time of everyone who replied. If I just sat down and thought through every thing I am experiencing rationally I would not have posted in the first place. Anyway I went to the doctor this morning and asked if I should go to a neurologist, and he said No. He said I just have a few pinched nerves and should stop sleeping on my side, and start sleeping on my back. He did suggest a chiropractor though. :sad:

Anyway I am not going to post any more since I only made a fool of myself the other day. :sad:
 
THANK YOU! I applaud your integrity and your good sense!
 
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