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28AndWorried

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I need to post here because i am having some more problems.

My main issues are my swallowing and my breathing.

Just turned 29 two weeks ago.

Symptoms.

>Feel short of breath a lot of the time.
>Chest pains for about a month.
>Feel as if something is stuck in my throat.
>Occasional Leg cramps.
>Widespread twitching & tingling.
>Frequent headaches.
>Frequent Yawning.
>Frequent Sighing.

I'll be honest and straight with you guys, I am worried about PBP & Respiratory Onset or that i might have progressed from one to the other already.

Been having problems for around 7 months now with the throat and recent problems with the breathing.

I have enlarged tonsils, I have had enlarged tonsils for quite along time.

I always feel tired during the day and always feel like i have not had enough sleep even when i have.

I have read a lot of posts on here and in the PBP section a few people suggested that they had frequent yawning, leg cramps and a feeling of something stuck in the throat for sometime before getting MND, That concerns me.

So what do you guys think?
 
Forgot to mention i have had Asthma for years but it doesn't seem to be that that is causing the shortness of breath and the feeling that i am not getting enough air or oxygen.
 
Oh and i was diagnosed in November as having a B12 Level of 180 which was low.

I also have suspected Crohn's Disease and have had Asthma for over 25 years.
 
I would start by seeing a ENt. or your family doc. I would put PBP at the end of a long list of possible causes. Really relax, could be a ton of other things. Sure would not ever jump to that conclusion until a ton, I mean a ton of other things are ruled out or in..
 
I would start by seeing a ENt. or your family doc. I would put PBP at the end of a long list of possible causes. Really relax, could be a ton of other things. Sure would not ever jump to that conclusion until a ton, I mean a ton of other things are ruled out or in..

Thankyou, It's respiratory onset & PBP i am worried about, I am seeing the ENT very soon (within the next 2 weeks.) But i don't really know what to say to them apart from my swallowing problems as obviously they only deal with the throat and ear side of things.
 
I'd be more worried about the shortness of breath and the chest pains being caused by a possible cardiac problem if I were you.
 
You should give him all your history, including being SOB. He can refer you on or give you advice about what to do, even if it's outside his field of expertise.
Best wishes
 
I'd be more worried about the shortness of breath and the chest pains being caused by a possible cardiac problem if I were you.

It has crossed my mind, What about my swallowing problems?
 
I have also emailed a local Neurologist who is willing to see me as long as my doctor accepts my request to go and see them so hopefully the doctor won't object.
 
You should give him all your history, including being SOB. He can refer you on or give you advice about what to do, even if it's outside his field of expertise.
Best wishes

I will do, Thank you.
 
It has crossed my mind, What about my swallowing problems?

First things first. ALS kills slowly. A heart attack can take you instantly.

If you get a reason for your chest pains and your shortness of breath, your swallowing difficulties might not seem so important. When a person gets worried about one aspect of his health, he often becomes hypervigilant about everything happening in his body, especially if he is worried about a serious illness. Relieve the anxiety about a serious illness and symptoms like a lump in the throat often resolve themselves.
 
I did have an ECG and a Chest X-Ray 5 months ago which was fine and i don't smoke or drink, That's what makes me think my heart is ok and that is the reason i am worried about Respiratory Onset MND/ALS, I yawn and sigh very regularly sometimes every 5-10 minutes and i am getting almost daily headaches recently.

Like i said Bulbar onset concerns me too because of the fact that it feel like food gets stuck in my throat and everytime i swallow it feels like there is some kind of obstruction there and sometimes i struggle to swallow normally even when i am just swallowing generally when i am not eating or drinking.

I can move my tongue around properly and everything and no-one has commented on my talking so that must be fine.

When people look at me they say i don't look out of breath but i feel like i am struggling to breath, I feel like i breath shallowly all the time.

I was on Lexapro between 2004 and 2010 for panic attacks but i don't suffer from Depression or anything like that.
 
I did have an ECG and a Chest X-Ray 5 months ago which was fine and i don't smoke or drink, That's what makes me think my heart is ok and that is the reason i am worried about Respiratory Onset MND/ALS, I yawn and sigh very regularly sometimes every 5-10 minutes and i am getting almost daily headaches recently.

Things can change in five months. Have you been back to your doctor with these new symptoms -- chest pain, shortness of breath, excessive yawning, headaches -- and what did the doctor say about it?

Like i said Bulbar onset concerns me too because of the fact that it feel like food gets stuck in my throat and everytime i swallow it feels like there is some kind of obstruction there and sometimes i struggle to swallow normally even when i am just swallowing generally when i am not eating or drinking.

I can move my tongue around properly and everything and no-one has commented on my talking so that must be fine.

You've obviously read enough around here to know that you don't have bulbar ALS symptoms, so why do you continue to worry about it? If your tonsils are enlarged enough to be an obstruction to swallowing, the ENT doctor will let you know what to do about them. If something else is causing swallowing problems, the ENT will figure that out as well.

When people look at me they say i don't look out of breath but i feel like i am struggling to breath, I feel like i breath shallowly all the time.

I was on Lexapro between 2004 and 2010 for panic attacks but i don't suffer from Depression or anything like that.

Did you have these symptoms while you were on the Lexapro? Why did you stop taking the Lexapro? Is there a relationship between when you stopped taking the Lexapro and when all your other symptoms started?
 
Things can change in five months. Have you been back to your doctor with these new symptoms -- chest pain, shortness of breath, excessive yawning, headaches -- and what did the doctor say about it?



You've obviously read enough around here to know that you don't have bulbar ALS symptoms, so why do you continue to worry about it? If your tonsils are enlarged enough to be an obstruction to swallowing, the ENT doctor will let you know what to do about them. If something else is causing swallowing problems, the ENT will figure that out as well.



Did you have these symptoms while you were on the Lexapro? Why did you stop taking the Lexapro? Is there a relationship between when you stopped taking the Lexapro and when all your other symptoms started?

I am seeing my doctor next week and i will be mentioning my chest pain/discomfort, shortness of breath and headaches and frequent yawning.

So i definitely do not have Bulbar symptoms then? That's good if that's the case.

I think i have had frequent yawning for some time although it seems to be quite excessive now, Tracing my posts back on a panic attacks/anxiety forum i was complaining about some bouts of yawning back in 2006.

I stopped taking the Lexapro because they were no longer benefitting me and the panic attacks stopped along time ago so i made the decision to come off them.
 
ISo i definitely do not have Bulbar symptoms then? That's good if that's the case.

You haven't listed any bulbar ALS symptoms in this thread. At least none that I've heard of or have been warned to watch out for by my doctors.

I think i have had frequent yawning for some time although it seems to be quite excessive now, Tracing my posts back on a panic attacks/anxiety forum i was complaining about some bouts of yawning back in 2006.

If your yawning had been due to ALS, starting in 2006, you wouldn't be here to write about your symptoms. According to the respiratory therapists at my ALS clinic, the average decline of respiratory function in an ALS patient is six percent of normal function per month until supportive intervention is applied -- external ventilation, either invasive (tracheostomy) or non-invasive (BiPAP).

Do the math and you'll see the biggest reason why the average lifespan of an ALS patient is 28 to 34 months from the onset of the first symptoms. For everyone who lives 50 months after symptom onset (like me), there are a couple of guys/gals that never saw the two year mark. For every Al or JoelC, there are even more that didn't make two years and the occasional one that didn't make even a single year.

Slow motion ALS is the rare exception, not the rule. The rule is quick crippling, with changes coming at you too fast to understand or to prepare for. Those PALS never show up on forums like this because they've got all they can handle just trying to get through each day. They don't have the time, energy, or capability to spend time searching the Internet. Sometimes, we hear from their caregivers or their friends who manage to find us and the desperation and pain in those posts will break your heart.

Now you know why we're so skeptical when people say they've been twitching or yawning for years. Sorry to have unloaded this on you, but it was something that has been needed to provide some some perspective in this "Do I Have ALS" forum.

Good luck at your ENT appointment.
 
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