26 years old and stressed out.

[mamaoftwoboys]

Hello, I apologize in advance if I am in left field with this anxiousness I'm feeling. For the past month or more I have been having a LOT of muscle twitches. I have always been a pretty active person and I guess I've never really paid any attention to them until now. I had a brain MRI which looked normal recently. My twitches are body wide and don't seem to have any pattern. My GP assured me that ALS is not a worry so to forget about it.

I have to say, I'm generally a pretty level-headed person and I'm able to control my stress really well. Well...maybe not. Since "googling" my symptoms I have been a little less level-headed. One arm has had cramping in all of the fingers, primarily the thumb but I've noticed it in all of them. At first it was just the fingers but then I would feel this 'cramping' in my forearm, in my elbow, and even sometimes in my shoulder. Then of course the twitching multiplies. I don't know if I would consider them cramps or not. It almost feels like the funny bone feeling you get, but all over my fingers and arm.

I have not noticed ACTUAL weakness yet, but my thumb and fingers just feel off. They feel stiff and tight. They FEEL weak but I'm still able to type, text, and carry my toddler. I am still working out but my arm and hand feels exhausted afterwards. My shoulder will burn at times too.

I went to the chiropractor and he said he found some nerve bundles in my thumb and elbow. I was relieved but then I also have gushed all of my anxiety about ALS to him so now I'm worried that he was just trying to comfort me and calm me down. I have read some posts as well as the stickies and understand that weakness is primarily the first symptom. But can weakness progress slowly like my thumb and hand are showing? And can the cramping/weird pain feeling I'm experiencing be a preceding symptom to actual weakness? I've now written a book. Thank you so much for your time...

 

[Atsugi]

Welcome, Mom, you’re in a good place, here. And you can relax, too. First of all, twitching is so common to many conditions that it is not diagnostic of anything. Even healthy people twitch. So forget about twitches.
The weakness you describe is not the kind of weakness ALS has. In ALS, when a muscle gets weak, it gets worse, never better. And it doesn’t feel weak, exhausted, or burning. It just doesn’t go.
So I agree with your GP.

 

[mamaoftwoboys]

Thanks for the reply! I originally thought so too but then I read a few other threads that mentioned slow weakness and muscle cramps prior to clinical weakness so my brain started running with it. I can't explain the weird feeling in my thumb. In fact my whole arm feels 'dead' sometimes but I have no actual loss of strength. I really appreciate your response and I will attempt to take a chill pill.

 

[mamaoftwoboys]

So Mike, ALS would not present with slow onset weakness in an arm? Where I feel like it could possibly be getting weaker? And cramps aren't a symptom with perceived weakness initially? I've read conflicting posts so that was where my stress stemmed from..Thank you!

 

[lgelb]

Oly,
Perceived weakness is subjective and not a sign of anything. Clinical weakness that is noticed by a doctor or other people around you before you mention it is much more important than whether it is with cramps or not. Body-wide twitching most commonly stems from some combination of stress, lack of refreshing/uninterrupted sleep, poor diet, dehydration and/or lack of stretching/elongating the muscles in bodywork or other exercise.

From what you have described, you have nothing to worry about in reference to ALS. Allow me also to caution you that chiros vary quite a bit in terms of competence and honesty. If you have any reservations about yours, knowing that chiro can cause nerve damage when applied incorrectly, I encourage you to bounce.

Best,
Laurie

 

[mamaoftwoboys]

Thank you for the reply Laurie, I really appreciate it. I have been iffy about going back to the chiropractor, not really sure if it's actually helping. He seems to be very knowledgeable but doesn't make me feel any better every time I leave his office. I do have one question though...
Can ALS present with the weakness because of the cramping that some may experience? I feel like the weakness I'm experiencing in my hand (primarily my thumb) is a direct result from the mild cramping I experience. It's almost as if my hand is just clumsy and I have to concentrate hard on typing to ensure I'm not making mistakes. The cramping is not constant but it is often. It also feels like my hand is sore at times like I could massage the pads of my hands and they are tender. My hand as a whole just feel WEAK and it seems harder for me to bend my fingers quickly as opposed to my other hand. Could a pinched or compressed nerve really present this way? I'm not convinced that he is right...
Thank you again, I realize I'm blabbering.

 

[affected]

mum
I'll try to explain it really plainly so that you can see the difference.
The nerves that make the muscles work die when a person has ALS.
By the time weakness is perceived, 70% of the impulses from the neurones has been lost.

This is the ONLY thing that causes clinical weakness in ALS.
It is the important symptom - twitches and cramps and feelings mean nothing. People with anxiety get hung up on twitches, cramps and feelings. People with ALS find they just suddenly cannot do things. The difference is huge.

 

[ashleybutcher]

Thank you for explaining that. I do believe I understand that, I guess I just don't understand whether or not you can slowly become weaker and weaker and realize it as its happening? Is it always that one day you just can't do it anymore? Or do things slowly become more difficult due to oncoming weakness?