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Chicago_Dude

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First- 20 year old male.

I know ALS is rare. I know that it is even more rare in someone young, such as myself.

But I fear I have ALS after reading about it a week ago.

I have had twitching in muscles for quite some time. But my doctor told me it was nothing about 3 years ago. Recently though, I have had weakness in my leg. I went to the doctor and she put her hand on my knee and told me to push my knee up. I was able to. And she did the same things with my other leg and arms. She told me I was fine. HUH? :confused:

Anyway, I left thinking it was nothing. A couple of weeks later, and the weakness is still here. My legs were even shaking as I was walking. The twitching is also still there.

I went online and typed in my symptoms and found ALS.

I am terrified now.

by the way, I know it's not vitamin D/B or anything like that.
 
Chicargodude, firstly you need to stop worrying about twitching, it's common in many people and not usually symptomatic of anything, infact really fit exercising people have twitching. You have also had it for 3 years. If it was caused by ALS, those areas would probably be totally paralysed by now!

Try not to got searching on the Internet, it puts people into a state of anxiety, where they are needlessly worried. Real weakness is not a perception. It's when your muscle is unable to perform eg grip something, or you can't walk up stairs. Many things can cause a " feeling of weakness". Viruses, poor calorie intake, etc.

If things get worse you can always either go back to your doctor and ask for a more thorough examination or get a second opinion.


Aly
 
Chicargodude, firstly you need to stop worrying about twitching, it's common in many people and not usually symptomatic of anything, infact really fit exercising people have twitching. You have also had it for 3 years. If it was caused by ALS, those areas would probably be totally paralysed by now!

Try not to got searching on the Internet, it puts people into a state of anxiety, where they are needlessly worried. Real weakness is not a perception. It's when your muscle is unable to perform eg grip something, or you can't walk up stairs. Many things can cause a " feeling of weakness". Viruses, poor calorie intake, etc.

If things get worse you can always either go back to your doctor and ask for a more thorough examination or get a second opinion.


Aly

Thanks for your reply alyoop!

I'm actually not worried so much about the twitching because I've had it for a while, like I said. It's just the weakness that has me worried. I've never felt weak more than a couple of days unless I had the flu or something. But my leg has been weak for over 2 weeks now! :mad:

I know... it could be 100 different things.

but one thing that has had me worried that I forgot to mention in my first post is that the leg that feels pretty weak [right leg] is also smaller than my left leg. So I was thinking atophy maybe?

and.. my brother has been making fun of me lately [past few months] because I drop things a lot.

when I saw that was a symptom of ALS, my heart dropped. =/
 
Pick your heart up and enjoy your life. The doctor said no weakness, and no weakness, NO ALS!
 
but one thing that has had me worried that I forgot to mention in my first post is that the leg that feels pretty weak [right leg] is also smaller than my left leg. So I was thinking atophy maybe?

Your legs have always been different sizes -- everyone's are, unless you specifically train the muscles to be the same size, like serious bodybuilders do (and they have lots of trouble doing it). You are just noticing it for the first time because you read about ALS on the Internet and you are now "symptom-chasing" to try to prove that you have ALS.

and.. my brother has been making fun of me lately [past few months] because I drop things a lot.

There is a difference between simple clumsiness or carelessness and a weak grip caused by a neuromuscular disease.

With ALS, it's not how your body feels, but how your body fails. ALS is a progressive degenerative neuromuscular disease, which means that, over time (and a short time at that), more and more nerves and the muscles that they control will fail -- permanently. It starts in one part of the body -- a hand, a foot, your mouth or tongue -- and spreads through the body from there.

If no muscles are failing, it's not ALS. If the muscle failures aren't spreading -- from the fingers up the arm, from the foot up the leg, or from the tongue to the rest of the mouth and throat -- it's not likely to be ALS. If your problems come and go, it's not ALS.
 
your legs may FEEL weak, but when your doctor placed her hand on your knee and had you lift it up against it- that showed that it isnt clinical weakness. if it were, you would be unable to do it- not just FEEL like you cant do it.
I would say forget about als. i cannot tell you that you dont have something going on, but i can tell you pretty positively that you most likely do not have als.
 
If you were able to push your leg up with her hand on your knee then you do not have weakness. I was not able to do that when I was diagnosed. Listen to your Doctor and do not try and convice yourself that you have a rare terminal disease which you obviously do not have.
 
Thanks for your responses everyone!

Just a couple of more questions.

After pushing my legs/arms against my doctors hand, she told me that I wasn't weak. But I really do feel weakness in my leg. Just because I was able to push my leg against her hand doesn't mean that my leg hasn't gotten weaker. It's probably still strong enough to push against her hand, but what if it just keeps getting weaker?

Does "clinical weakness" happen suddenly with ALS, or does it slowly get there?

Can muscle twitching with weakness be something other than ALS? I know you guys aren't doctors, but mine didn't really say much.

Sorry to be annoying!
 
After pushing my legs/arms against my doctors hand, she told me that I wasn't weak. But I really do feel weakness in my leg. Just because I was able to push my leg against her hand doesn't mean that my leg hasn't gotten weaker. It's probably still strong enough to push against her hand, but what if it just keeps getting weaker?

If you keep getting weaker, go back to the doctor.

Does "clinical weakness" happen suddenly with ALS, or does it slowly get there?

In larger muscles, weakness comes on slowly. But with ALS, slowly is a relative term. 50 percent of ALS patients are dead within 28 to 32 months from the onset of first symptoms. That's about 2 and a half years from "Why can't I button my shirt or zip my trousers?" to the grave. And, of the remaining 50 percent, virtually all of them are severely crippled in one or more limbs.

Can muscle twitching with weakness be something other than ALS? I know you guys aren't doctors, but mine didn't really say much.

Yes, quite literally dozens of things. That's why we go to the doctor and not depend on the Internet.
 
Hi,

Do you have a history of snoring and/or have been made aware that you suffer from sleep apnéa, i.e. brief episodes of stopping to breathe during sleep?

Do you smoke?

Do you have a weight problem?

BR,
DrG
 
If you keep getting weaker, go back to the doctor.



In larger muscles, weakness comes on slowly. But with ALS, slowly is a relative term. 50 percent of ALS patients are dead within 28 to 32 months from the onset of first symptoms. That's about 2 and a half years from "Why can't I button my shirt or zip my trousers?" to the grave. And, of the remaining 50 percent, virtually all of them are severely crippled in one or more limbs.



Yes, quite literally dozens of things. That's why we go to the doctor and not depend on the Internet.

Thanks again for your reply!

I'm late... busy with school hahaha.

So do you think that if I wait about a month and it isn't getting worse or even improves, I should be fine?

This whole thing is just very frustrating. And the twitching is so annoying. I feel it in my right calf constantly! even when I don't feel the twitching, I can see it twitching.
 
Hi,

Do you have a history of snoring and/or have been made aware that you suffer from sleep apnéa, i.e. brief episodes of stopping to breathe during sleep?

Do you smoke?

Do you have a weight problem?

BR,
DrG

1. No

2. No

3. I'm 5'10, 135 pounds.

Is that supposed to mean anything?
 
You're likely fine. If the doctor had felt anything abnormal, you would have been referred to a neuro. You're just simply too young to have ALS. Hope you can let it go.
 
You're likely fine. If the doctor had felt anything abnormal, you would have been referred to a neuro. You're just simply too young to have ALS. Hope you can let it go.

Didn't that stephen Hawking guy get ALS when he was 21?

I also heard of a 16 year old girl who had ALS.

I don't think people can be too young to get ALS. It's just rare... from what I have read.

And I shouldn't have said that a doctor has seen me.. she was a PA. w/e that is. :confused:
 
Yes, young people get it, but its Ultra, ultra rare!. If you are still anxious after al this time, go and get a referral to a neurologist. But you have to promise to BELIEVE what is said to you. Theres absolutely no point in going if you still remain on the DO I HAVE merry go round.
 
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