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electricworry

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Sep 10, 2015
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Learn about ALS
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Illonis
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Chicago
Hello all, first want to thank those who reach out to everyone on here and support both those who deal with ALS and those who fear having it.

To be honest, I am and have been a hypochondriac over my health my entire life- but the fear of ALS has been affecting my daily life so much so that I want to reach out and hear your opinions. I am a 20 year old male and have been in good health my entire life.

My symptoms first began 2-3 months ago, when I experienced body wide twitching that seemed to be localized in my left calf. My entire legs would be sore after simply walking up a flight of stairs- something that was very unusual to me. However, after reading the sticky, I did not post in here as twitching and soreness are not indicative of anything in particular. I had an EMG done in both legs and a neurologist looked me over- both came back perfectly normal.

Fast forward to two weeks ago, after reading about symptoms of Bulbar ALS, of course those symptoms starting popping up within me. I feel as if i slur my speech consistently and always have excess mucus that causes me to clear my throat. My relatives and friends have not said anything or noticed it, but i'm almost positive my slurring is real.

My question is this : Do you think its possible my mind can actually manifest these symptoms that mimic ALS? My relative advises me to take anxiety medicine but i'm convinced my symptoms are not anxiety related. Anyways, thank you very much for taking the time to read this and getting back to me.
 
The good news is that yes it is completely plausible that your mind is causing you to develop symptoms you are scared of. It's very common.

You have pretty much zero chance of having ALS.

Please stay away from this forum it is unhealthy for you and the members here need to spend their time on those with a terminal illness.

All the best - your problems CAN be treated so start taking medications prescribed for your mental health issues.
 
I see you're still here. Perhaps you're hoping for a second opinion.

You write: "My question is this : Do you think its possible my mind can actually manifest these symptoms that mimic ALS?"

Absolutely. In my 60 years, I've seen the unconscious mind make the body do some incredible things. You can make yourself ill pretty easily.

You already know that twitching is so common it's not diagnostic of anything. And being sore after exertion points AWAY from ALS. Your ability to speak doesn't sound so bad. In ALS, slurring is very noticeable to all, as the tongue, or part of it, lays limp in the mouth, paralyzed.

Finally, there's your age. I recently saw a database of 1800 ALS patients, and the youngest was 27.

As Tillie said, you should stay away from ALS websites. You become what you focus on.
 
Thank you both very much for your answers and reassurance.
 
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