27 yo looking for answers

[ucla2004]

Hi there,

I would like to first thank everyone for all the advice and support. I am in search of answers because the medical community has fallen short of this. I have not been diagnosed with ALS, but I am experiencing similar symptoms to the one everyone describe in these forums. Please could you help me ease my anxiety. I am a 27 yo male in search of what is causing my widespread twitches and perceived weakness (not clinical weakness yet). I mostly have them in my abdominal area, but I also have felt them on my biceps, triceps, quads and eyelids. When ever I try to do a situp my entire body shakes like crazy. Whenever I try to life an object my proximal muscle will shake, followed by twitches. I do not know what to do anymore. No one believes me, docs won't do anything about it. I do not know if these related to anxiety, but I am having difficulty taking a deep breath. I feel as if I have to think about each breath I take. However, I am able to sleep well without waking up at night or experiencing any headaches when waking up. Your advice would really help.

Thanks

 

[brooksea]

ucla-

Have you been evaluated by an ALS specialist? Most neurologists are not well versed in ALS, as it is a "rare" disease. That would be the first place to start. Get an appointment with the nearest ALS clinic. There are many tests that will have to be performed in order to rule out anything else.

hope you don't have it!

cj

 

[kman543210]

hang in there

How long have you had all these symptoms ucla, the twitching and weakness? All I can say is hang in there buddy because from what I've heard about any neurological disease, it takes a while to diagnose. I've been going through my ordeal since July 2004 without any diagnosis or treatment whatsoever. I am 30, and it's taken over the last 3 years of my life. I'm 6' 7" and only 130 lbs now. I have definitely abnormalities in my motor neurons in my legs, muscle weakness from my legs, hands, arms, jaw, swallowing, and now breathing. I also just started getting twitching in mid February of this year, but it isn't that bad and is the least of my concerns. What's frustrating about any motor neuron disease is that not only does everyone have different symptoms at different times, but it takes so long to diagnose.

 

[GodIsGood]

Check this OUT!

Hi Hon..

My experience..have you talked to your General Practioner. What you sound like that you are describing is a benign syndrome. A lot , PRACTICALLY MILLIONS of AMERICANS experience it...some just dont pay attention to it. The best thing I can offer you is google it and check it out. I dont want to break the rules here and post a web site...so all I can say is google... It will pop up. Your symptoms do not coincide with ALS in my opinion however I am no doctor. Have you been to a doctor at all? I would start with a NEURO before you go searching for a ALS clinic hon. Its a good place to start to get a baseline.

I think You are FINE! God Bless!

 

[Sammantha]

Hope i can help

Okay i have all that too and i am two years into it and still have full use of everything. Neurologists will first put you on an anti anxiety med because that may cause the twitching and possible tremors. They will not even consider ALS until they visibally see muscle wasting, my first neuro almost diagnosed me with carpal tunnel on the spot, but i said my GP noticed wasting in my foot and ankle also. So he set up a NCS and EMG not expecting to find anything on the EMG... The NCS turned out normal but the EMG did not, now hold on because a EMG done at a university hospital was normal. I can relate to the shaking during sit ups, that is how i first noticed weakness in my left hip and leg. I always thought that side was weak because i used it less so i would excersize it twice as much with no results. I would go to the secluded part of the gym for woman to do my abdominal excersizes because i would shake so bad it was embarassing. Come to find out i think it is more of my lower back weakness than just abdomen because when i am hunched over i takes a few minutes to straighten up and it is painful. I think there is a subset to the whole ALS thing because so many people are having the same experiences. I know that i was working eight hours a day at a high stress job without so much as a water or pee break.... That can do a lot of damage to your body, being physically active and not hydrated. So dont get mad if the docs reccomend cutting back and drinking lots of fluids, it certainly cant hurt. Keep in touch with your symptoms... Lots of luck, Sammantha........ PS>>Anxiety medication has been very helpful to me but i cannot take anti depressants not only am i not clinically depressed (situational) i have the exact opposite response with even one anti depressant I become very depressed and experience panic attacks.... So if you do start new medications take a day off to see how they will react.... Best Wishes, Sam

 

[doctorbecky]

Mind Body Connection and anxiety ...

Hi you all,

I am on this site doing research on behalf of my sister who was just diagnosed with ALS. When I'm not being a sister, mom, daughter, friend, etc., I'm a psychotherapist, more specifically, a Marriage and Family Therapist -- you can see my web site at .

Anyhow, I was just thinking of silently passing through like a Stealth bomber, but then I noticed all of the threads and posts of people who have not been diagnosed with anything, yet who are visiting here talking about their symptoms and fears that they have ALS or some other serious neuromuscular disease. Many of these people have been to doctors and nothing has been uncovered, or more minor and treatable things have been uncovered. I urge those who have been checked out physically and nothing serious found to visit a mental health professional who can help them ... many times symptoms of depression, anxiety, panic attacks are the same sorts of things that might make one think of a neuromuscular disorder ... but they are not, they are instead a treatable mental disorder as mentioned above.

If you go to a therapist, he or she is going to want you to have a thorough physical checkup to rule physical causes out ... but if you check out fine then it's time to perhaps look at whether the fearfulness and "dis-ease" (ill at ease) in your mind is being mirrored in disease-like symptoms in your body. I see this a lot in my practice. Chronically ill patients who doctors can find no physical cause for what is occurring. A good therapist is going to point out what a waste of time and energy it is to worry about something that hasn't happened yet -- like a dreadful diagnosis of some sort, for example. And, what is also important to know is that worry, fearfulness, and anxiety compromises one's immune system and can eventually lead to physical problems that wouldn't have come around otherwise -- so there is no positive purpose for it.

For those of you who can't take anti-depressants or whatever, know that there are other ways of dealing with depression if you have it. The point is, don't avoid treatment for it because you can't take pills ... a therapist will have all sorts of tools to help you. You must know that you don't have to sit around with obsessive worrying sorts of thoughts ... if you are having such thoughts then know that something is not right, NOT with your body, but with your thinking and mind, and there are many people who can help you, and in most cases it doesn't take that long to get someone feeling much, much, better.

Many years ago I was on my way to becoming a physically unhealthy person. I had all sorts of symptoms including back pain and numbness and tingling, carpal tunnel, anxiety, and like some others who have written here, I went to the doctor and no physical cause could be found. I was referred to a therapist, and it changed my life so much that I decided to become a therapist! By the way, I really never feel the symptoms I once had, and even if I do have an ache or pain, it usually goes unnoticed whereas I used to focus and obsess about it.

Thanks to all who post here, to the ALS patients and their families, and to those who struggle with undiagnosed physical issues ... I wish you all the best and know that you are all in my family's thoughts and prayers.

 

[Al]

Points well taken and we have urged many on here to seek professional help. Thanks for the input but we don't allow advertising here which your link was doing for your practice so it was removed.
AL.