llwlpn
Active member
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2011
- Messages
- 63
- Reason
- PALS
- Diagnosis
- 07/2011
- Country
- Uni
- State
- AZ
- City
- Show Low
Hi Everyone ! My name is Laura and I have been lurking here off and on since January. I was diagnosed with ALS yesterday at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona. I didn't want to post until I had a diagnosis and I was trying not to panic. I am also a licensed practical nurse.
Last summer I started having weakness and loss of fine motor skills in my right hand. At first I thought that I just crocheted too much or somehow injured it. I could still work so I didn't really worry about*it. Then since December it has gotten much worse. I have lost movement and a couple of my fingers are starting to curl. I also started getting twitching and my whole arm is weak. I broke my ankle at the beginning of January and was seeing an orthopedist. I showed him my hand and he ordered an Emg. I didn't realize it until he pointed out that I also had atrophy. I made the mistake of researching emg online and came up with ALS. However, I thought that if I had ALS they would look at the emg and diagnose me (yes I was naive). That didn't happen. My emg was abnormal but they didn't say ALS so I thought I was off the hook. I quit worrying about it and kept trying to figure out what was going on. I ended up having an MRI of my cervical neck and my brain. I also saw a neurosurgeon and a neurologist, both who said there was nothing that could be done but they didn't know what the problem was.
I decided that I owed it to myself and my family to figure out what was going on. I made an appointment at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona. They sent me an itinerary and I was scheduled to see a neurologist, have an emg, and a pulmonary function test. Being scheduled for the pft made me think that they were thinking ALS. I saw Dr. Ross on Tuesday and after he examined me he told me that he thought I had ALS. I had a bunch of bloodwork done also. The first emg was just of my arm/upper back. The new emg was of my arm, leg, and back. There were abnormalities in all areas. I also have upper motor neuron symptoms all over. So he gave me the diagnosis yesterday. It's not what I wanted to hear but at least I know what's going on.
I am 46, married and have 2 kids. My kids are 21 and 12.
Last summer I started having weakness and loss of fine motor skills in my right hand. At first I thought that I just crocheted too much or somehow injured it. I could still work so I didn't really worry about*it. Then since December it has gotten much worse. I have lost movement and a couple of my fingers are starting to curl. I also started getting twitching and my whole arm is weak. I broke my ankle at the beginning of January and was seeing an orthopedist. I showed him my hand and he ordered an Emg. I didn't realize it until he pointed out that I also had atrophy. I made the mistake of researching emg online and came up with ALS. However, I thought that if I had ALS they would look at the emg and diagnose me (yes I was naive). That didn't happen. My emg was abnormal but they didn't say ALS so I thought I was off the hook. I quit worrying about it and kept trying to figure out what was going on. I ended up having an MRI of my cervical neck and my brain. I also saw a neurosurgeon and a neurologist, both who said there was nothing that could be done but they didn't know what the problem was.
I decided that I owed it to myself and my family to figure out what was going on. I made an appointment at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona. They sent me an itinerary and I was scheduled to see a neurologist, have an emg, and a pulmonary function test. Being scheduled for the pft made me think that they were thinking ALS. I saw Dr. Ross on Tuesday and after he examined me he told me that he thought I had ALS. I had a bunch of bloodwork done also. The first emg was just of my arm/upper back. The new emg was of my arm, leg, and back. There were abnormalities in all areas. I also have upper motor neuron symptoms all over. So he gave me the diagnosis yesterday. It's not what I wanted to hear but at least I know what's going on.
I am 46, married and have 2 kids. My kids are 21 and 12.