fred_dakota
Member
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2009
- Messages
- 17
- Reason
- Learn about ALS
- Country
- US
- State
- ND
- City
- Fargo
Hello All,
My name is Fred. I am 28 and am from Fargo ND.
I apologize in advance for the length of this post, but since I feel it may all be related I think it's important to not disclude anything:
I've seen a couple people on this board have mentioned that using the street drug Ecstasy may have caused them to develop ALS-like symptoms.
I believe I may be one of those people.
On February 28th, at a friends birthday party I was given a small, white tablet of Ecstasy called a White Dolphin. This was the third time I've done X in 10 years.
The pill did little more than keep me up a couple extra hours and I had no adverse effects from it at the time.
Two weeks later, beginning March 15th, after eating breakfast I had an intense chest pain, coupled with near-fainting and anxiety that forced me off the job and into the ER. I was given a EKG, a chest X-Ray and several blood tests and discharged as healthy. The listed my admission for "Chest Pains-Unknown Causes"
My work allowed me to take a few days off and by that Thurs (Mar 19th) I still didn't feel any better. I had a persistant dizzy-lightheadedness that didn't quite feel real, almost like I was a bit detatched from reality.
I know that sounds strange, but that's the only way I can describe it.
I think now that dizzy, disconnected light-headedness may have been a delayed affect of the drug.
I returned to the ER. They did another EKG, a CT scan, more blood tests and a Stress Test. Everything came back negative. The Doctor who treated me was very nice and said it may be due to stress (I recently had a friend pass away due to a drug overdose) but it was his opinion that I was healthy and was not in any real danger from whatever was causing these symptoms.
Two weeks passed. I had a couple dentist appointments, one where they extracted a tooth using local anesthetic. We had the Great Flood that week. But during this time, between rest and work, I felt like my old self again.
During the two weeks where I felt "back to normal" I noticed my left hand wasn't as coordinated as usual, pressing buttons, picking up things, etc. Just little things but enough to notice.
On Friday, March 3rd, after a month of no fast food or candy (I gave them up for Lent) I went to Hardee's (Carl's Jr. for some of you) and got a Western Bacon Burger. Shortly after eating the meal the dizzy, lightheadedness, disconnected feeling came back and persisted for the next few days.
I went out drinking Friday and Saturday night, probably not the smartest move due to my dizzyness, but I am from Fargo.
Then Sunday (Mar 5th) I awoke with a slightly numb left leg/foot and left arm/hand. Not the whole hand. Mostly in the pinky and ring finger. This threw my gait off. When I walked I felt as if I was pulling to the left.
After a couple days with no change I went to a Walk-In Clinic and the Doctor there, reviewing my currrent medical history of chest pains with no known causes, believed it was all in my head and made me an appointment with a counselor.
I hoped it was all in my head but reading symptoms online I started to worry that I may have had a stroke or a mini-stroke, so before I went home for Easter that weekend I went to the ER again. The doctor did another CT Scan and blood tests. Said I did not have a stroke and said hopefully whatever was causing my symptoms would go away on it's own.
After Easter it seemed the numbness had gone away, but the left-favoring gait remained. By trying to force myself to walk straight, my big toe on my right foot has gone numb.
My left leg and arm slowly became weaker and weaker over the course of that week (Apr 13th-17th). My left hand had also lost some coordination. This was very apparent when I would wash my hands. It just felt like the left one was not reacting correctly or... I don't know.. it just didn't feel normal.
Then about the middle of the week my limbs started to feel hyperflexic; feeling like they were too light and/or rubbery. I also got this feeling in my right arm and leg, along with some slight weakness. That was frightening because that meant it was spreading.
The last straw came when I noticed spasticity in my chest. When I would wash my hands my the left and right of my chest would dance up and down in unison with my arms, like you see in those body builders with over-developed pecs who can do it on impulse.
My voice has also deteriorated. I feel like somthing is in my throat or my throat is tighter than normal. I also get hoarse easily when I talk at length. I can still sing though, although my voice seems more shakey.
So that Friday (Apr 17th) I set up a Doctors Appointment with an Internist. I went to see him this Monday (Apr 20th). And detailed my symptoms, saying I feared it might be a neurological condition such as ALS.
(See, I had been to a Neurologist in 2004 about a tremor in my left hand. They said it my just be a non-progressive essential tremor as my MRI was normal and sent me on my way.)
He did a full exam. He didn't get a response from the Babinksi test on my feet, nor did he get a reflex from my arms. He set up a EMG/NCV test for Wed (Apr 29) with an MRI/MRA to follow.
I asked if a neurological disorder could spread this fast as it had only been a matter of weeks. He said it could.
He ran a battery of blood/urine tests. The only oddity that has come back so far was a CK Test that showed "slightly high seratonin" which could be indicative of a neurological or muscular problem.
Now just this week the muscle behind the knee on my left leg has overdeveloped to compensate for the majority leg not working properly. It has done the same to a smaller extent on the right leg. My left arm feels much weaker than the right. It gets tired fast if I hold it up too long or use it too much.
My calfs cramp up, my lower back aches, my ankles hurt (again favoring the left). My leg and arm muscles feel strained. I get aching pains in my feet and fingers.
I've also had fasiculations all over, although mainly after working the affected muscles. I also have them in my face, mostly around the my mouth when I attempt a small, slow grin, but also had some on my scalp today.
Also today my right hand has gotten worse at typing.
My tounge also tremors, but only when I stick it out, that's been like that as long as I can remember.
Oh. Also, my lymph node/tonsil on the right side only of my neck has been swollen for almost as long as these symptoms have been around.
I didn't even think about the Ecstasy relating to all this until I read skydogs posts on this forum.
I got in contact with the guy who gave me the Ecstasy. He said the guy he got it from had taken one and got a migrane from it but nothing else. I have found out that the White Dolphin is considered a "dirty pill" which means it's been Red Flagged by the raver community and not advisable to take because of bad trips/side effects and questionable ingrediants.
A couple of sites that track and test Ecstasy state that the White Dolphin may be made with meta-chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) which is a chemical used to induce migranes. It also might be made with MDxx, which is methyldioxyl combined with a mixed bag of chemicals which may include neurotoxins.
And as I'm sure many of you have read, neurotoxins may have some relationship to people developing ALS.
So I'm pretty much terrified. Any ideas?
My name is Fred. I am 28 and am from Fargo ND.
I apologize in advance for the length of this post, but since I feel it may all be related I think it's important to not disclude anything:
I've seen a couple people on this board have mentioned that using the street drug Ecstasy may have caused them to develop ALS-like symptoms.
I believe I may be one of those people.
On February 28th, at a friends birthday party I was given a small, white tablet of Ecstasy called a White Dolphin. This was the third time I've done X in 10 years.
The pill did little more than keep me up a couple extra hours and I had no adverse effects from it at the time.
Two weeks later, beginning March 15th, after eating breakfast I had an intense chest pain, coupled with near-fainting and anxiety that forced me off the job and into the ER. I was given a EKG, a chest X-Ray and several blood tests and discharged as healthy. The listed my admission for "Chest Pains-Unknown Causes"
My work allowed me to take a few days off and by that Thurs (Mar 19th) I still didn't feel any better. I had a persistant dizzy-lightheadedness that didn't quite feel real, almost like I was a bit detatched from reality.
I know that sounds strange, but that's the only way I can describe it.
I think now that dizzy, disconnected light-headedness may have been a delayed affect of the drug.
I returned to the ER. They did another EKG, a CT scan, more blood tests and a Stress Test. Everything came back negative. The Doctor who treated me was very nice and said it may be due to stress (I recently had a friend pass away due to a drug overdose) but it was his opinion that I was healthy and was not in any real danger from whatever was causing these symptoms.
Two weeks passed. I had a couple dentist appointments, one where they extracted a tooth using local anesthetic. We had the Great Flood that week. But during this time, between rest and work, I felt like my old self again.
During the two weeks where I felt "back to normal" I noticed my left hand wasn't as coordinated as usual, pressing buttons, picking up things, etc. Just little things but enough to notice.
On Friday, March 3rd, after a month of no fast food or candy (I gave them up for Lent) I went to Hardee's (Carl's Jr. for some of you) and got a Western Bacon Burger. Shortly after eating the meal the dizzy, lightheadedness, disconnected feeling came back and persisted for the next few days.
I went out drinking Friday and Saturday night, probably not the smartest move due to my dizzyness, but I am from Fargo.
Then Sunday (Mar 5th) I awoke with a slightly numb left leg/foot and left arm/hand. Not the whole hand. Mostly in the pinky and ring finger. This threw my gait off. When I walked I felt as if I was pulling to the left.
After a couple days with no change I went to a Walk-In Clinic and the Doctor there, reviewing my currrent medical history of chest pains with no known causes, believed it was all in my head and made me an appointment with a counselor.
I hoped it was all in my head but reading symptoms online I started to worry that I may have had a stroke or a mini-stroke, so before I went home for Easter that weekend I went to the ER again. The doctor did another CT Scan and blood tests. Said I did not have a stroke and said hopefully whatever was causing my symptoms would go away on it's own.
After Easter it seemed the numbness had gone away, but the left-favoring gait remained. By trying to force myself to walk straight, my big toe on my right foot has gone numb.
My left leg and arm slowly became weaker and weaker over the course of that week (Apr 13th-17th). My left hand had also lost some coordination. This was very apparent when I would wash my hands. It just felt like the left one was not reacting correctly or... I don't know.. it just didn't feel normal.
Then about the middle of the week my limbs started to feel hyperflexic; feeling like they were too light and/or rubbery. I also got this feeling in my right arm and leg, along with some slight weakness. That was frightening because that meant it was spreading.
The last straw came when I noticed spasticity in my chest. When I would wash my hands my the left and right of my chest would dance up and down in unison with my arms, like you see in those body builders with over-developed pecs who can do it on impulse.
My voice has also deteriorated. I feel like somthing is in my throat or my throat is tighter than normal. I also get hoarse easily when I talk at length. I can still sing though, although my voice seems more shakey.
So that Friday (Apr 17th) I set up a Doctors Appointment with an Internist. I went to see him this Monday (Apr 20th). And detailed my symptoms, saying I feared it might be a neurological condition such as ALS.
(See, I had been to a Neurologist in 2004 about a tremor in my left hand. They said it my just be a non-progressive essential tremor as my MRI was normal and sent me on my way.)
He did a full exam. He didn't get a response from the Babinksi test on my feet, nor did he get a reflex from my arms. He set up a EMG/NCV test for Wed (Apr 29) with an MRI/MRA to follow.
I asked if a neurological disorder could spread this fast as it had only been a matter of weeks. He said it could.
He ran a battery of blood/urine tests. The only oddity that has come back so far was a CK Test that showed "slightly high seratonin" which could be indicative of a neurological or muscular problem.
Now just this week the muscle behind the knee on my left leg has overdeveloped to compensate for the majority leg not working properly. It has done the same to a smaller extent on the right leg. My left arm feels much weaker than the right. It gets tired fast if I hold it up too long or use it too much.
My calfs cramp up, my lower back aches, my ankles hurt (again favoring the left). My leg and arm muscles feel strained. I get aching pains in my feet and fingers.
I've also had fasiculations all over, although mainly after working the affected muscles. I also have them in my face, mostly around the my mouth when I attempt a small, slow grin, but also had some on my scalp today.
Also today my right hand has gotten worse at typing.
My tounge also tremors, but only when I stick it out, that's been like that as long as I can remember.
Oh. Also, my lymph node/tonsil on the right side only of my neck has been swollen for almost as long as these symptoms have been around.
I didn't even think about the Ecstasy relating to all this until I read skydogs posts on this forum.
I got in contact with the guy who gave me the Ecstasy. He said the guy he got it from had taken one and got a migrane from it but nothing else. I have found out that the White Dolphin is considered a "dirty pill" which means it's been Red Flagged by the raver community and not advisable to take because of bad trips/side effects and questionable ingrediants.
A couple of sites that track and test Ecstasy state that the White Dolphin may be made with meta-chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) which is a chemical used to induce migranes. It also might be made with MDxx, which is methyldioxyl combined with a mixed bag of chemicals which may include neurotoxins.
And as I'm sure many of you have read, neurotoxins may have some relationship to people developing ALS.
So I'm pretty much terrified. Any ideas?