samwell1908
New member
- Joined
- Aug 29, 2022
- Messages
- 4
- Reason
- Learn about ALS
- Diagnosis
- 00/0000
- Country
- US
Hi all,
First - to anyone living with this disease, caring for someone with it, or in any other way involved, my heart goes out to you. Thank you for your involvement in this community and I wish the best for everyone here.
I'm a 36/M with some concerning symptoms which have been 'building' over the past few months. My primary concern is with my right arm/hand not working like it should/used to. It feels 'clumsier', for lack of a better term. I'm an athlete, but feel like if I went out and threw a baseball or football, it wouldn't go where I wanted it and would look funny. I also think I notice my right leg being a little 'heavier'.
I first noticed there may be a problem a few months ago, when my handwriting felt a little bit labored/off. I'm still able to write, but my right forearm seems like it gets tired/fatigued so quickly. I am also a pianist, and a song I learned/mastered just 3-4 weeks ago I'm now unable to play - because my right hand simply will not strike the correct keys. Left hand is fine.
I have seen neurologists 4x since July, with varying levels of physical exams at each. I will be going in for an EEG tomorrow, and an EMG on Friday.
It just feels like this is progressive, and getting a hair worse every single day. And I'm concerned that the neurologists couldn't detect anything in their physical examinations because I'm in the very early stages of ALS. There was no clinical weakness observed, but I did a test to see how much I could lift with both arms, and my left arm - which should be weaker since it is not dominant - can lift more weight than the right. This had never been the case before.
Any thoughts?
To clarify - I've seen 2 separate neurologists, 2x each. The first visit, in July, was due to primary complaint of pain spreading through the right side of the body with no apparent cause. At that time, I mentioned that my right arm felt 'off' - almost like it was a plug that was halfway plugged into an outlet -- still working, but not quite right. The 2nd vists were 2 months later, where I presented with declining fine motor skills in my right hand, and my arm feeling even more 'unplugged'.
First - to anyone living with this disease, caring for someone with it, or in any other way involved, my heart goes out to you. Thank you for your involvement in this community and I wish the best for everyone here.
I'm a 36/M with some concerning symptoms which have been 'building' over the past few months. My primary concern is with my right arm/hand not working like it should/used to. It feels 'clumsier', for lack of a better term. I'm an athlete, but feel like if I went out and threw a baseball or football, it wouldn't go where I wanted it and would look funny. I also think I notice my right leg being a little 'heavier'.
I first noticed there may be a problem a few months ago, when my handwriting felt a little bit labored/off. I'm still able to write, but my right forearm seems like it gets tired/fatigued so quickly. I am also a pianist, and a song I learned/mastered just 3-4 weeks ago I'm now unable to play - because my right hand simply will not strike the correct keys. Left hand is fine.
I have seen neurologists 4x since July, with varying levels of physical exams at each. I will be going in for an EEG tomorrow, and an EMG on Friday.
It just feels like this is progressive, and getting a hair worse every single day. And I'm concerned that the neurologists couldn't detect anything in their physical examinations because I'm in the very early stages of ALS. There was no clinical weakness observed, but I did a test to see how much I could lift with both arms, and my left arm - which should be weaker since it is not dominant - can lift more weight than the right. This had never been the case before.
Any thoughts?
To clarify - I've seen 2 separate neurologists, 2x each. The first visit, in July, was due to primary complaint of pain spreading through the right side of the body with no apparent cause. At that time, I mentioned that my right arm felt 'off' - almost like it was a plug that was halfway plugged into an outlet -- still working, but not quite right. The 2nd vists were 2 months later, where I presented with declining fine motor skills in my right hand, and my arm feeling even more 'unplugged'.