Potentially Bulbar ALS?

[MautDota]

Hey folks, I read the Stickies before posting this and I think that helped me a little bit but I just wanted to get some thought on what I have been freaking out over for the last week. Just a few things - I'm a 29 Year old male with no family history of the disease.

A few months ago, I was stricken with a small bought of Bronchitis, Eventually this bronchitis went away but I noticed that I still could not take a full deep breath (I was still at 96% PulseOx though so everyone thought I was fine). Fast forward a month later and I start experiencing CRAZY eye lid twitching in my Right eye (my eyelid would twitch thousands of times a day). This happened for months until it finally went away last month.

Everything has been going swell until this week, My breathing is still not 100% but I'm doing fine but all of a sudden, I can't swallow properly. I can get the food down everytime but I feel something is wrong each time I swallow. Sometimes I have excess mucus/saliva in my throat that I promptly spit out, other times it's not there. On top of that I am cramping a TON for seemingly no reason, all over my body and my body is just fatigued as well. The other big thing is that my neck is super stiff and is cracking all the time. My voice is hoarse and scratchy but I have had no tongue symptoms yet. I went to the Emergency Department yesterday at my Hospital and they took Blood and did an MRI, they found nothing on either test which worried me. I'm going to see a Neurologist next week but wanted to see what you guys had to say first. Thanks for all that you do. You are all amazing people.

 

[KarenNWendyn]

Please read this if you have not already done so

Important - READ BEFORE POSTING! Answers to common concerns about possible symptoms

We will try to answer reasonable questions. We are not here to argue with you. If you announce that you ”know” you have ALS when the doctors say otherwise, or you have not bothered to see a doctor, your thread will be closed. It is not our place to try to convince you you are wrong. Neither...

www.alsforums.com

You are not describing ALS at all. The first sign of bulbar is usually slurred speech that others notice. Difficulty swallowing is common, nonspecific, and can be caused by a variety of other conditions such as reflux as an example.
Twitching is common, nonspecific, and meaningless in the absence of muscle function failure which you have not described. Stiff muscles and cramping are also common and nonspecific.

Consider seeing an ENT physician for your scratchy throat, hoarse voice, and trouble swallowing. But the good news is that you don’tneed to be here.

 

[MautDota]

This makes me feel better. One thing that bothers me is that people tell me that ALS can start with Respiratory issues (trouble breathing). Is this true or is it usually the slurred speech part? Thank you very much for replying to me by the way.

 

[lgelb]

Respiratory onset is very rare and not as you describe.

Respiratory infections and the antibiotics that may be given to treat them can both have lingering effects, including depletion of energy and muscle tone. Nutrition, hydration and sleep are all important. But there is no reason to worry about ALS.

Best,
Laurie