Twitching for about two weeks - concerned

[ML217]

Hi all --

Sorry to add another "twitching" thread to a forum full of them, but I suppose everyone's experiences are different and hopefully everyone deserves a chance to be heard. Here's mine:

For about two weeks, I've had a twitch in one spot in the middle of my forehead. Same exact spot, every time. It varies in frequency, sometimes it fires regularly throughout the day, and sometimes nothing. It happened a lot on Friday, then hardly at all over the weekend, then a lot on Monday, and hardly at all today.

The interesting, or strange - thing about this forehead twitch is that I can sometimes draw it out with a voluntary movement. Like if I raise my eyebrows/scrunch up my forehead, it will cause the muscle to react about 90% of the time. Otherwise, it will happen on its own very intermittently.

That's been the only issue except for tonight, just as I was sitting down to post this, I finished my nightly run and noticed my calves were twitching. The left calf is a very slight, quick twitch while the right calf is a bit more pronounced. I can feel the right calf twitch; the left one I can only see if I stare at it, but can't feel.

So, that's really it thus far - twitching forehead and twitching calves. The forehead twitch hasn't happened much today, but the calves are going maybe once every 20 seconds since I returned from my run.

I know there are a lot of data points out there about exercise causing muscles to fasciculate, but the timing of this - shortly after the forehead twitch began - seems odd to me.

I HAVE been under an immense amount of stress lately, which I feel could be a factor - but on the other hand, I'm kind of always under stress. I'm just a tense person in general, but this has never really reared its head until now.

I've got no other issues - no weakness, pain, numbness, etc. Just the twitching. I've read the sticky and realize this is a very miniscule, unlikely chance to be how ALS begins, but I'm still worried. I don't have insurance so seeing a doctor right now, at least until things (God forbid) get worse, isn't an option.

I know nobody here can diagnose me, but I'm hoping maybe someone might have some insight/similar experience, or maybe someone just needs to talk me off the ledge and tell me I'm crazy.

Thanks for listening/reading.

 

[lgelb]

The timing is not odd at all. Twitches often congregate, depending on their cause. In your case, we can hypothesize about stress, diet, hydration -- and a run that can irritate muscles/nerves, as could wrinkling your forehead.

A fruit smoothie, a good night's sleep, getting all your stretches in before and after your run/day -- and a dab of magnesium lotion or moisturizer on your forehead could do no harm.

A heating pad on your calves and/or a low voltage mattress heating pad for your bed couldn't hurt, either.

I don't think you think you're crazy, but if you want the perspective of how easy it is for random twitches to get established for a while and then take off, you have it. It's very common and not ALS.

So I don't think you need to see anyone at the moment, but there are a few things that could send the twitches off sooner, as per above. Rule #1 is live your life without worrying about them, which is quite the waste of time, so do what seems possibly helpful and leave the rest to the "tincture of time." If anything completely new develops, of course, you'll be the first to know.

Best,
Laurie

 

[ML217]

Thank you so much for such a quick reply.

I appreciate your words. I just need to try to relax and hope this calf twitch goes away. The right calf is going crazy right now.

Just to add to this. As I sit here this morning, the forehead twitch is gone and the calves are still twitching - this is now some 15 hours after my nightly run. My right calf twitch is much more pronounced than the left calf.

Is this any reason to be concerned?

 

[lgelb]

Not to me.

The thing to focus on is that ALS always involves much more than twitching. So the longer you have twitching while still being able to walk, talk, etc. normally, the more certain we can be that this isn't ALS.

 

[ML217]

Thank you for taking the time to reply. I really appreciate it.