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Originally Posted by BethU  Hi, Tom ...I'll answer but I don't know what kind of help I can offer.
I started with bulbar symptoms, and what you've got going on does not sound at all like what I experienced. I've never had any sensations in my tongue or jaw at all of being weak or tired; I had extensive facis covering the surface of my tongue, and now have serious atrophy. My speech is 90% unintelligible, but I still don't feel any sensations in my tongue of "tiredness."
Other people were the ones who told me my speech was slurring. I could not detect it myself for many months after the slurring started.
From what you describe, I don't think you have any "bulbar issues." Also, from what you describe, your twitches, etc., do not sound like ALS.
You say you exercise: I don't know if you are a body builder or not, but it seems in my limited experience here on this forum that many of the people who are needlessly worried about twitches are either body-builders or heavy exercisers. My theory is that too much exercise and "bulking out" of muscles may induce benign twitching. That is, people are trying to "sculpt" their muscles, and pushing their muscles past their normal configurations, and this stresses the muscles, and they develop some "protest twitches," perhaps from overstimulation. Then the anxiety starts, and produces anxiety twitches, and it keeps building.
Of course, I don't know if that's what really happens  or if it is just that bodybuilders and heavy exercisers may be more aware of their bodies and more inclined to worry about their bodies than others.
Anyway ... my crackpot theories aside, I hope you get your anxiety under control again. Nothing you describe sounds like "bulbar symptoms" to me.
Take it easy! |
Im with you on this one;
Sometimes muscle twitch because they are telling you that they are TIRED of working. Allot of weird stuff is getting produced when you are stressed or have anxiety.. so your muscles will twitch even more because they are in fight/flight mode all the time.
Anxiety can cause so many issues :
- Swollen tongue feeling
-Difficulty swallowing
-Persistent yawning
-Feeling nauseus / dizzy for no reason.
-Sometimes a overactive gag reflex in combination with the nauseus feelings
-Constant feeling that one side of your tongue is going to one of your cheeks.
-The feeling that your tongue does not fully co-operate with you and it will seem like you talk with a slurred speech
-Hoarse speech, or you crack more often.. this is usually only perceived and not real
-Your voice seem weaker.
-Emotional instability; you may cry or laugh in situations that are not even remotely close to being funny or sad.
-A lump or 'pressure' in your throat.
-Burning / crawling / itchy tongue sensations.
With the fear of having bulbar
ALS, you will find yourself constantly standing infront of a mirror and doing silly tongue 'agility' or strenght tests. Every tongue is assymetric..
You will ALWAYS find dents if you look for them. I have dents from my teeth aswell.. this is normal! The right side of my tongue is slightly flatter then the left, because i chew there allot ( well, i assume
). When i slightly stick my tongue out, i can see 100 littles twitches because the muscles are constantly in relaxed / used state. Do not get freaked out by this!
Not convinced? Use Google image and search for human tongue and see if you can find one symmetric tongue
But since you have come on these forums because you are worried ( by twitching and
ALS ), i assume that you have got some underlying anxiety. Most people with BFS think they have bulbar after they got a clean EMG and the anxiety created these symptoms.
Your problems with breathing can be a sign of chronic hyperventilation ( You have no idea what is going on and this will create stressful thoughts, it can sometimes develop into a full blown panic attack). Including the pain you have there. Hyperventilating will make it feel like breathing becomes really heavy; but in reality.. you are still breathing normally. The problem is that once you get these sensations, you start to breath faster and faster.
Sometimes anxiety can cause the small muscles between your ribs to go spasm so breathing will feel 10 times heavier, or create painful sensations that you might start to think that something is horrible wrong with your lungs. Anxiety and stress has also been known to cause intense chronic back pain.
The 'perceived' weakness or muscle fatigue is a common symptom with BFS. Same with exercise intolerance, false cramp sensations ( you feel there is a cramp going on but physically, no cramp takes place ) and false sensory sensations ( pain, hot / cold spots, pins and needles etc ). Widespread twitching is the main problem with BFS
Sometimes your muscles will feel weak for no apparent reason, but when a emergency takes place, you will still have ALL your strenght. This is very common in BFS. I suggest you to read this post on aboutbfs.com. It helps allot
BFS in a nutshell
http://nextination.com/aboutbfs/foru....php?f=3&t=200
Last thing, but it has to be said :
We twitchers are like so many other hypochondriacs. We search for a common symptom that can be found in so many diseases.. Yet, we look at the very bottom of that list. The worst case scenarios only.. and we are so convinced we have it that we make the doctors feel outcasted sometimes. For example; go search for fatigue. It is caused by more then 1000 diseases / disorders .. but people will always look for the serious ones like cancer or something, instead of thinking about something common like the flu or stress
Anxiety can destroy you if you do not take any actions against it ( By seeking help! dont be ashamed )
I hope this answers some of your questions.
Any support I can get ... 
