NimbusRider
New member
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2022
- Messages
- 1
- Reason
- Learn about ALS
- Diagnosis
- 00/0000
- Country
- US
- State
- WA
- City
- Bellingham
Hello everyone, I am a 47 year old male who started noticing strange symptoms about six months ago. It started off with sporadic episodes of having liquid go down the wrong way. This happened maybe 3 to 4 times a week but only once per day. When this started happening I quickly began to think that maybe it could be the very earliest beginnings of bulbar onset. Since then, that has not gotten any worse and actually does not happen as often. However, now I am experiencing some strange sensations in some of my neck muscles. I feel very slight cramping that maybe last a couple of seconds to a few seconds and seems to be worse after I have hiked for 2-4 hours. Everyday I do a swallow test in which I consume about 5-6 oz of water and then wait about a minute to two minutes to see if I cough or feel any water stuck in my throat. I seem to do fine with my self administered swallow test. I do not seem to have any difficulty swallowing but I do notice that after having drank or eaten, I will feel some slight congestion as if there is mucus in my throat and find myself having either cough find a way to release it. I was diagnosed with GERD about 10 years ago and have not really had that treated. The fact that I have some very faint sporadic cramping in my neck muscles and the feeling as if there is some mucus in my throat plus I've noticed a that my neck lines are just the very slightly out of place when I have been taken selfies lately has me worried that I have the very earliest stages of Bulbar onset ALS. I also feel as if there is a very slight lump in my throat. I do not have any slurred speech or difficulty with regular speech but I do notice some very very slight irritation when I intentionally scream really loud or try and project my voice in various tones. When I do notice these irritations, I will cough once or twice. I'm still able to hike and cycle on my days off for a few hours or more each day, but the fact that I'm experiencing strange sensations in my throat area has me very anxious.