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Katly

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Hi,

I truly hate that I'm here and bothering anyone with my fears. It's only because I'm falling apart emotionally that I ended up making this post. I'm a 41 year old woman with 3 children to care for and I am terrified I may have als. About a month ago I had what I thought was a panic attack where I thought I was having a heart attack. It passed, but the tingling/mild pins and needles sensations remained. I went to my doctor and she checked my heart with an ekg (no heart attack) ordered blood work (all fine) and sent me on my way. Tingling sensations remained (hands, feet mostly, sometimes calves). Went back to doctor who said anxiety and prescribed me Prozac. The day I started taking that my right arm felt heavy/numb. Over the course of the next few days I still have tingling, numbness/fatigued feeling in my right arm and now started with muscle twitches. These are happening all over my body and I appear to notice them when I am resting or not moving. They seem to happen periodically throughout the day. I went back to the doctor to tell her about the tingling and now twitches who basically told me I need a psychiatrist, not any scans. I thought I was doing the right thing going to her again (especially after starting the Prozac which I had never taken any kind of medication before) and she sent me to a psychiatrist instead of looking into my physical symptoms further. I feel shaky in my legs and hands and still my right arm feels weaker/tired. I'm not sure what to do. Can this be als and yet I'm being dismissed by my doctor with a diagnosis of OCD? I am so terrified of these symptoms and what they are pointing at. I did read the sticky, but it seems like there is conflicting information by other posters and I'm confused. Thank you for listening, god bless all of you. My heart is heavy for all who are suffering with this.
 
It really does not sound like ALS. I think twitching ( which is a very common symptom especially if you are stressed) can also be a rare side effect of prozac. And the sensory things are not the way ALS starts. When you read about people who say it started with twitching you will find that they will also say I also had something else generally weakness or a functional deficit. I am sorry you feel that your doctor did not take you seriously. Have you had any previous problems with anxiety or ocd? See what the psychiatrist thinks. If they believe you have valid concerns they would say so
 
Thank you so much Nikki for taking the time to reply. It was beyond kind of you. I know I can't be diagnosed over the internet by anyone, I'm just so glad that you shared your thoughts with me. The more time I have between now and the psychiatrist appointment, the more I dwell on what's going on with my body. I haven't noticed I can't do something, but it's more like a feeling of fatigue and weakness than actual weakness. I have no idea how to test my strength (clinically). The on and off tingling and now twitching are beyond terrifying, along with the shakiness and the feeling of fatigue in my right arm at times. Again thank you for answering and giving me some hope. The awareness I now have for als has caused me to recognize how devastating it is to those affected. My plan going forward is to be an active contributor towards a cure, regardless of what my situation turns out to be.
 
Re-read the stickies. There is nothing in what you wrote that even puts ALS on the table at this point. You are obsessing about a terminal disease that it doesn't even appear you have in the slightest. You need to follow up with your psychiatrist. Every single one of your symptoms you described fall in the category of stress and anxiety. Stay away from the internet for your diagnosis. You don't belong on this forum at this time anyway. You may have something physical going on as well as the anxiety. But, it isn't ALS. Dr's would be running more tests on you if they even thought it was a remote possiblity. It isn't at this point. So, for your own health. Log off the computer and do something to relax yourself. I have had shaking like that in my teenage years and it was all anxiety related. If you google anything at all on the internet. Look up relaxation technigues and see if any of that helps. Best of luck, Kim
 
Thank you again for your replies. I am so appreciative and very grateful to you. I'm so concerned because this morning when I woke up, I felt the twitching in my back below my right shoulder. It has been coming and going (in the same spot) for the last few hours. I think I was more at ease when the twitching was random throughout my body. The area that is twitching also has the sensation of feeling numb/weak although I'm not demonstrating to my knowledge any actual weakness. I keep telling myself it's the anxiety or the Prozac I started 11 days ago, but it's getting harder to convince myself. I have to wait for my psychiatrist appointment (5/14) or the follow up with my gp (5/7) to voice my concerns. Last week when I was at the doctor she dismissed my concerns about the continuous tingling/pins and needles sensation and the start of the random twitching as me basically having OCD/anxiety or possibly the Prozac. She was not overly concerned, but I am sick with worry. Now that the twitching has seemed as of this morning to be settled in the area I described, I am a mess. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this.
 
It doesn't matter whether the twitching is all over or in one spot, twitching is not an important initial symptom of ALS. It is, however, an important initial symptom of health anxiety. But I think you already know this. (Pins and needles is also not a symptom of ALS.) So settle down, go for a walk, watch a good move and turn the internet off. Relax, you do not have ALS. Being "sick with worry" is exactly the problem. Stop worrying and you'll be fine.
 
I agree with all the posters and the doctor, your twitching is stress related. Even though it is now suddenly in one place does not change the fact. Your other symptoms are not ALS either....numbness, tingling, pins and needles, heaviness, or "feeling" weak or tired. ALS is about "failing", not "feeling". See your psychiatrist and good luck.
 
Thank you again for commenting, it is beyond kind of all of you to do so. I have to wait for my follow up with my gp next week and for a psychiatrist appointment the week after to make any further progress with what is going on with me. Just yesterday I was overall feeling better with a few occasional twitches in random spots. I almost had myself convinced it was the Prozac or the anxiety/stress. Until last night and continuing through today, pretty consistent twitching which is now in my right calf along with various random twitches in other spots. I am truly frightened and getting more so as each day goes on and the twitching continues along with the buzzing/tingling feelings that come and go in my feet, legs, arms and hands. Again, I appreciate so much from the bottom of my heart all of your comments and thoughts while I wait for the next appointments.
 
Hi Katly,

I went back and reread the stickies and I noticed after twitching about "BFS Forum" I went there today and there are a lot of people with similar symptoms to us. I too have the tingling feet and hands on right side that seem to turn on and off. In addition, 5 weeks with twitching. Wednesday I barely noticed any but Friday and today I notice more, but from my understanding anxiety can cause a huge unbalance in your body. You can pump so much adrenaline through you. From my research on BFS the twitches can disappear or stay for a long time.

I thought I had weakness, because Google says weakness for ALS, they don't talk about clinical weakness like the sticky says. Anxiety can cause our body to become jello and fatigued. Believe me a week after I got out of hospital, I could barely get my right hand spoon to my mouth, but now I can eat just fine. I mean when my right hand goes tingling or feels like it has socks on it, it feels funny, but if push comes to shove I can do what I need to do with right hand.

It is a viscous cycle that is hard to get out of. I told myself I wouldn't post a thread again here and I did on Monday, because I freaked out about my twitching. Like Skipper advised, to look up relaxation techniques, they do help
 
KATLY, since you're still here. I'll give a word. Clearly, your symptoms are not related to ALS. I echo others' suggestions that you leave this website for your own good. Frankly, it's really sad around here, and being here contributes to anxiety. Plus, it takes some effort on our part to maintain the site and answer the queries, and people without ALS are a drag on our time and efforts.

IN76: I understand and empathize with your desire to contribute, but it can be confusing when someone who doesn't have personal experience of ALS chimes in to help others on this ALS website. With respect, I think you should avoid the ALS forums so as not to contribute to that confusion.
 
Katly, you "almost had yourself convinced?" And now you're thinking what? .........that you have ALS? You aren't listening. YOU DO NOT HAVE ALS. You need to stay off this forum, see your psychiatrist and get your ANXIETY treated.
 
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