Bulbar Concerns

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Scotsman

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Learn about ALS
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Good evening

Been following this forum for months and you guys help is remarkable

I am hoping you can help me.

I am a 29 year old Male who has worries of ALS, I have had these worries for 9 months now, more specifically Bulbar onset. I have read the stickies attached to the forum.

I have no slurred speech, I can swallow solids and liquids fine and have no choking, however i feel i need extra effort when swallowing saliva and have for the past 3 months, I am a very anxious person and understand this may be the reason. I have also been nasally congested for months and have had a cough for 6 week and have slight dry throat which I think is due to mouth breathing. My question is can ALS present in the form of difficulty with saliva but not liquids or solids? I am not choking on saliva but it feels like it takes more effort to swallow.

In the past 8 months I have seen my GP who felt it was down to stress and anxiety and carried out blood tests which came fine. He also advised he didn't think I needed an EMG or neurologist referral, since then I have spoken to another 3 GPs on the phone who also don't think it is ALS but have not examined me due to phone consultation.

I have also worked with my physio who carried out a neurological evaluation and found no muscle weakness and also felt it was not ALS and he has a neurological background.

Does my swallowing issue sound like how ALS would present?

Thanks

Sorry forgot to add, the reason I went to my physio was that I was having body wide twitches which I still have however he advised there is no muscle weakness and reflexes are fine

Any advice on the swallowing issue of saliva would be appreciated
 
You've pretty much answered yourself. There is no reason to worry about ALS.

You can see that if saliva is an issue because of weak muscles, that liquid or food would be harder, not easier.

My bet is on GERD, allergies and/or dry mouth. When there is GERD, saliva can be more acidic. When there are allergies, there can be dripping from the nose that mixes a little mucus with the saliva. If you are a regular mouth breather, of course, your throat will be dry and the saliva can get sort of backed up to where it's harder to swallow. Again, especially when asleep, mouth breathing suggests congestion. You can also record yourself sleeping and see how your breathing is.

Anxiety also dries out the mouth and you may not be drinking enough liquid.

You might try a natural throat spray or a nasal steroid. And it's getting drier -- stay hydrated.
 
Thank you for the response lgelb I appreciate you taking the time out to help me, your advice is very detailed and makes total sense

I am definitely mouth breathing when in bed but I think that's because I am congested and I am much more aware of my breathing but I think that may be anxiety related, in that once you fixate on something you start looking for problems then done trust your rational thoughts.

Would it be safe to say that my symptoms don't sound like ALS?
 
Thank you for the reply

I have recorded myself sleeping and noticed I have been snoring, been waking myself up the last few nights from either snoring or sucking/gasping air, does this sound like ALS?

I am not waking up with shortness of breath but have on my recording I have been snoring with the occasional large intake of breath which has disturbed sleep/ not sure if it would classify as gasping as when I have woke up I have been able to breath but it has been a big deep breath I have taken when sleeping.

I have noticed white lines/ saliva/ mucus at the back of my throat basically all day.

Does any of this sound like ALS ?
 
No. Tell your gp. sounds like a sleep study is needed To rule out obstructive sleep apnea which is not an ALS symptom
 
Ok will contact my GP. I really appreciate your help
I'm also having issues getting back to sleep, when I'm about to fall asleep I feel like I stop breathing and wake up/panic then I'm super observant of my breathing which again doesn't help me sleep, not sure if this would be anxiety related or if it sounds like how Bulbar or respiratory onset would present?
 
Not like ALS. Anxiety or a sleep disorder or both. See your GP and get the ball rolling. Meanwhile, try a fan near your bed, angled toward you/the ceiling/in between, for a little circulation, and make sure you are not too hot or too cold.
 
Ok, just to confirm even with the twitching, swallowing issues and breathing issues during sleep that none of of this is ALS, Bulbar or Respiratory onset ?
 
Correct. I think we have answered this repeatedly. Closing thread. Please do not start another
 
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