Status
Not open for further replies.

arhivaLeitz

New member
Joined
Aug 28, 2018
Messages
2
Reason
Other
Country
EU
State
-
City
-
Hello everyone,

First of all, I would like to mention I took into account the "Read before posting" thread and also, to thank anybody in advance that might read or reply to my message.

25 years old, male, caucasian:

1) A few years ago (maybe 2-3) I noticed a weird tremor in my hand when trying to put coffee into my cup from a bigger filter cup (around 1 liter maybe in weight). That appeared only when turning my wrist in a specific angle and it seemed like a reaction similar to this one: [removed- no purpose]
I didn't really minded it and went further with everything.

2) A few months ago I started noticing some mistakes I was making while typing on my phone or on my keyboard. I do work quite a lot on a computer and attributing these just to the speed I was writing and categorising them as simple mistakes seemed weird, but I did it anyhow. E.g. writing "enxt" instead of "next".

3) My fingers (not hand, different than 1) shake in some situations when I am stressed or I feel I haven't eaten in a while. The shaking in this case has just a small impact into my activities and sometimes can be seen by other people. I've had this for a long time now.

4) I usually run without any muscle issues around 10-12 kilometers. Around one month ago, I noticed a pain in my calves after just about 5 kms of run, which made me take a pause or even stop the run earlier. Haven't run since and I plan to test it in the next days.

5) One and a half week ago I had a trip logistic issue, which made me sleep 4 hours in a night and start an early morning at work just with that. In this day at work I noticed that my body had some twitches, in muscles, and that occasionally I would have a very quick and short spastic reaction in different parts of my body. I attributed this to the lack of sleep, but this is the moment I started to Google and would later come to fall into the ALS fear.

6) The muscle twitches continued for 4-5 days in the entire body and then I stopped actually feeling all of them. When I was examining my body, I noticed that the twitches are still present in my left calf in a resting position. Occasionally I would feel them in other parts of my body (other calf, higher leg muscle, arms, right hand).

7) At this point, I scheduled a visit in the same day to my GP, which referred me to a Neurologist. After an EKG, I also am suspect of Tachicardya, with a higher than normal heartbeat.

I started to have really bad sleeps at night and worry all the time, my work got affected and as I read more about ALS I started either noticing or thinking I have other symptoms too.

8) I did was I was not supposed to, checked my tongue for twitches and I can spot some twitches with the tongue inside, trying to relax it. More twitches with the tongue outside.

9) Tested the reactions of my muscles, I cannot find a source of losing strength anywhere. The only thing I was able to discover else, beside what I have observed in point 4), was that I was trying to spin a pen through all my fingers and test them. When it comes to the pinky and the ring finger, they seemed to tremor in certain positions, similar to 1) and looking like something through which the muscles are being forced to much and I cannot control them. This tremor I can see in both my hands in certain, tensed or targeted and slow actions. This is not present if I drink a normal glass of water or do normal activities.
The same tremor I can sometimes see in my ankles, when testing them, if I move up-down very slow and with the muscle more tensed.

What chills me, a little bit, is that I think I've had this tremor for a while now and if it stayed the same I should not worry. But, maybe anxious, I noticed other elements:

10) Sometimes I feel my speech is harder when I do no speak in my native language.

11) The anxious side of me tells me there is a few millimetres difference in the width of my left/right arms, from the part starting below the elbow, the right arm being the one a little bit wider. Very small difference. I am right handed.


I haven't got to talk to anybody so far due to frighten and I am scared to tell my family or my girlfriend so that I do not put them under the same stress or make them worry.

My neurologist appointment is only 9 days from now on and I do not know what do to while I wait. I feel really sad and scared, I even dream about this. And what scares me most for now is the uncertainty.
I think my EMG will be scheduled only after this.

Do you see anything characteristic in these symptoms? I did tried to be rational about it when testing or looking for them, and put my anxious side apart. There is also a high chance that, if I would have not read about this, I would not notice these things and they might've been overlooked.

Can that hand/fingers tremor, that might mimic a not well functioning muscles, be related to this?

Can particular symptoms be noticed before, like the sometimes trouble when typing (e.g. can fingers be affected instead of the arm/hand muscles)?


Thank you.
 
Please refer here: https://www.alsforums.com/forum/do-...-common-concerns-about-possible-symptoms.html for forum position on sensation, tremor, twitching and shaking. Word recall and ease of speech when switching between languages has nothing to do with ALS. Please note that self testing is not helpful or accurate for anything. Doctors look for very specific patterns of response that people are unable to detect/assess for themselves.

If you read the link I have provided you thoroughly and carefully, you will see nothing you have posted in your giant list of concerns has anything to do with ALS. I hope you find that reassuring and will not feel the need to post here further. Best of luck at your doctor's appointment.
 
Thank you, ShiftKicker.

I have visited today a physiotherapeut to check my muscles and regarding the small difference between the forearm muscles he mentioned it should be normal due to being right-handed. He did noticed, though, a lot of tension in my forearms muscles, which might not be so normal. My reflexes seemed normal.

I have tested for my tremor in rotating my right wrist, and if I press forearm muscle hard, the hand doesn't appear to shake anymore when rotating it. I know it's not a muscle loss, but it is still scary for the tremor being linked to the muscle...

I'll wait for my neuro appointment...
 
No ALS. You have no reason to think of ALS.


See your doctor. I don't think there is anything wrong with you, but you should see your doctor anyway.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top