beyondwhatisnormal
Member
- Joined
- Jul 4, 2008
- Messages
- 11
- Country
- US
- State
- IL
- City
- Chicago
This is the first time I've ever participated in a forum of any kind...so bearwith me. I am no stranger to the devastations or problems of life. Actually, I am a better person as a result of some of my hardest life lessons. But I must say that in all my 50+ years of life this trial is by far the most heart wrenching for me. I have faced death in my life on more than one occasion and in fact I am presently disabled.
I joined this forum today because I am in search of answers. I suspect that my daughter has ALS. Falling down, slurred speech, tremors, cramping, weak muscles, upper and lower limb twitching are all things she has told me about.
She has had an MRI and some other testing trying to see if it is MS. The doctors were not able to find anything. In fact, they started to tell her that it was "stress" related
(even though she has no history of any emotional problems). After dealing with that on top of being frightened by all the things her body is doing (and getting no help or answers), she has become depressed and is giving up...I can hear it in her voice and conversatiion.
She has ceased going to doctors and has no faith or hope in them. I have finally convinced her to get an appointment with either Mayo Cllinic or Johns Hopkins Hosp. The first serious episode happened almost a year ago and it has been progressing steadily.
I don't want to diagnos anything because I am not a physician and many illnesses mimic other illnesses. But for the sake of my child I have been doing research so that I can get her some help. Honestlly, of everything that I have come across, this ALS seems to fit everything she has said. I want to be wrong.....but of all the things that I've read, when I read those things I just got a really horrible gut feeling. It felt like a cold quiet wave went through my body. I cried and screamed and cried.
My plan at this point is to get my kid (she's an adult by the way) to John Hopkins Hospital for proper testing and to try not to be any more frightened than I already am.
Even if it turns out not to be ALS ( I'm still optimistic even though I may not sound like it)I know that whatever it is is life-changing.
Thanks for your listening ear. beyondwhatisnormal
I joined this forum today because I am in search of answers. I suspect that my daughter has ALS. Falling down, slurred speech, tremors, cramping, weak muscles, upper and lower limb twitching are all things she has told me about.
She has had an MRI and some other testing trying to see if it is MS. The doctors were not able to find anything. In fact, they started to tell her that it was "stress" related
(even though she has no history of any emotional problems). After dealing with that on top of being frightened by all the things her body is doing (and getting no help or answers), she has become depressed and is giving up...I can hear it in her voice and conversatiion.
She has ceased going to doctors and has no faith or hope in them. I have finally convinced her to get an appointment with either Mayo Cllinic or Johns Hopkins Hosp. The first serious episode happened almost a year ago and it has been progressing steadily.
I don't want to diagnos anything because I am not a physician and many illnesses mimic other illnesses. But for the sake of my child I have been doing research so that I can get her some help. Honestlly, of everything that I have come across, this ALS seems to fit everything she has said. I want to be wrong.....but of all the things that I've read, when I read those things I just got a really horrible gut feeling. It felt like a cold quiet wave went through my body. I cried and screamed and cried.
My plan at this point is to get my kid (she's an adult by the way) to John Hopkins Hospital for proper testing and to try not to be any more frightened than I already am.
Even if it turns out not to be ALS ( I'm still optimistic even though I may not sound like it)I know that whatever it is is life-changing.
Thanks for your listening ear. beyondwhatisnormal