Hi all. I lurk around daily. I love to see what Al is posting, but as far as I know I don't have ALS. I have, however, done 100's of hours of research on this subject and seen a doctor.
I don't pretend for one second to know what some members on here know, but wanted to let you know some things doctors have told me.
I started twitching all over my body one day at work and I have been twitching daily for over 4 months (which is why I found this site), and muscle twitches alone do not indicate ALS. Weakness is 'normally' the first calling card of this horrible disease. There is a much, much bigger chance of twitching being caused by something other than ALS.
Also, perceived weakness is not the same thing as clinical weakness. Feeling like your arms are tired is not the same thing as not being able to hold a pen. My dr told me, "If you had clinical weakness you'd know it. You wouldn't have to describe it to me, because I'd see it, too.." My weakness came on quickly too. That also is not the norm for ALS.
Since I've been typing this I've had twitches in my right thigh, left calf, left foot, eyelid, and my butt. My legs felt weak today, but I went grocery shopping, got down on my knees and cleaned baseboards, and helped my hubby with yard work.
My point is, if I had ALS I couldn't do this. Weakness would be weakness. Please don't torture yourself with possibilities (that are pretty unlikely btw) and spend months glued to the internet looking up symptoms and then convincing yourself you have them like I did.
By all means go to the doctor and have everything checked out - and when they tell you that you're fine, believe them!