Drummer with worrying symptoms, feeling very uneasy

[mkmk4]

Hey guys, so I'm a drummer. 20 years old. About a year ago I noticed some problems with my right foot and being able to play the bass drum with it cleanly. I couldn't execute successive strokes the way I wanted to and at first I was worried I had focal dystonia. Playing the bass drum was always something I was able to do with ease and now it wasn't happening when I tried to play this one pattern, which eventually progressed into me not being able to play a ton of patterns. I saw a neurologist who took a bunch of blood tests and an MRI, all of which came back fine, and I wasn't even officially diagnosed with dystonia. My right foot has only progressively gotten worse since so I'm trying to learn how to play with my left.

Anyways a couple months ago when school started back up again I noticed that every once in a while I would have trouble gripping my pencil. I feel a tickle (not a tingle) in my wrist and am unable to grip it with any sort of control needed to write. A few minutes later it usually returns. Additionally I've been having more minor troubles with twitching in the drumming leg and also twitching/tremor in the index finger on my writing hand.

I'm looking up symptoms as to why this could be happening (big mistake) and eventually stumble on ALS. I do some research about it which only has me mildly concerned, but then I read this story about a drummer who has it and his first symptom was the exact thing I'm experiencing, so I'm freaking out.

Drummer remains upbeat in face of deadly disease ? GMNews Archive

It also mentions sluggishness, which I feel like I've been experiencing more fatigue in my ankle and leg area, so I'm really really concerned about this. I have a follow up with my neurologist in a month and I'm already terrified about what he might discover. Thanks for reading this and providing any information/feedback.

 

[affected]

When you had the MRI - was that of the entire spine?

It must be quite disconcerting for you. I'm steering away from ALS, but as I'm not a doctor I can't offer what else it could be.

If I read about brain tumours I bet I could match symptoms I get with that and freak out too.

So what did your neurologist say? It's truly best to leave the research and interpretation of test results to them.

 

[Nikki J]

Those are concerning symptoms and I am glad you are getting checked. I encourage you to pursue it until you get an answer this time. There are lots of potential causes so please don't focus on ALS. Your symptoms started a year ago? So you were 19? ALS is incredibly incredibly rare at your age without a family history of early onset. The guy in your link was 47. The off and on hand symptom does not sound like ALS either. ALS does not do that

You are right to be worried but think this is going to turn out to be something else. Please do come back and tell us what the diagnosis is.

 

[mkmk4]

It was a brain MRI which he said came back perfectly fine. As for other symptoms, they seem generally fine but I think anxiety has skewed my impressions of them. Like I don't *feel* like my voice is any different but I don't know for sure. I don't *feel* like I'm walking any differently but I don't know for sure. A couple months ago I tried a new pair of slip on shoes but I kept kicking the back of my heels so I changed them out. Was it because they were a little too big or because of ALS? I dunno. I walk 2+ miles each way to class a day and that walk isn't any harder than it used to be or anything. I can play basketball and bench press and all the things I always do at the gym just fine. The only thing I straight up *can't* do is play the drums, and I can even fudge that, I just have to avoid doing certain things.

Still I just can't help but feel lately like I'm waiting around for the worst day of my life

 

[Atsugi]

OF the thousands of members here, I don't think any of them is under 25. The norm is 50-60. Not sure I've ever seen anyone under 30 with ALS.

My wife's experience was very different than yours. One day she just fell over. A muscle in her foot didn't work anymore. That's it. Just doesn't work anymore. Forever. No feeling of any kind.

I don't think you've got ALS to worry about. Good luck.