Very Worried...Help

[Landau]

23 year old Man... no major health problems other than about to be described...

about a year ago I started to feel weird feelings in head, tightness, headaches, dizziness etc. So I went for an MRI, everything came back fine... blood work, fine... that kind of went away, almost totally...

but now since August, I've begun to feel spasms & twitches in legs and arms ...suddenly really really stiff shoulders, back, and hips... and now (of course after reading abou it) I'm having thick swallowing (like there's always a lot of stuff there - feels like molassus down my throat...) AND my tongue looks different, I think.

Question: if I just felt this stuff back in August, can all parts of my body already feel weak and stiff, and would my swallowing all feel hard, tongue look weird etc.?

I brought up the stuff that happened last year just to illustrate how I've already had a brain scan and blood work, so that's why ALS or some MND is worrying me... I shouldn't be feeling so weak and stiff, and definitely shouldn't be having twitches all day...

 

[Landau]

also is there any evidence that ALS can be caused by germs? I've done some very suspect things in the past...

just curious.

also, how many of you (ALS sufferers, caregivers, educators, random people on the boards) have actually come across those in person who have ALS under the age of 30? as in outside of this forum. again, just curious! because i've never encountered it. yet now i'm reading about it tons online. freaking me out.

 

[planningguy]

Landau,

Welcome to the forum. I neither have ALS, nor know anything near as much as others on the forum. I would say though, that global symptoms point away from ALS. Contrary to what the internet tell you, twitching is not a hallmark symptom of ALS. Difficulty swallowing can be caused by a lot of things, including stress. I don't know if you are like me, but I bet you didn't stare at your tongue much before your symptoms. In ALS tongue atrophy is accompanied by difficulty speaking.

Yes, I have heard of people under 30 getting ALS (including a tragic recent example posted on these forums), but it is extremely extremely rare. Keep in mind that the internet is a place where anyone with a story can post information. We as a people tend to fixate on painful stories. When a young person gets a rare terminal illness it gets a lot of press. Most people who suffer form ALS are middle aged and older. Keep in mind that ALS is a rare disease to start with.

I'm not exactly sure what you mean by suspect things, nor do I need to know, but no one really knows for sure what causes ALS. From everything I have read or heard, ALS is probably a lot like cancer in that you are looking at risk factors rather than one specific cause. Genetics, exposure to things in the environment, certain types of injury all may play a part but are not "the cause" of ALS.

From the title of your thread, you are, "Very worried..." Anxiety and stress can cause muscle twitching, soreness and fatigue. Talk to you doctor specifically about your concerns and let him or her walk you through different possibilities and options. Do try to stop reading stuff online. There is a lot of really crappy information out there. Even (or especially) on the sites with the ad for the smiling doctor...

Best wishes,

Robert

 

[Landau]

Wow. That was a really awesome response. Thanks a lot, Robert! I'll just wait 'til I go see my physician to ultimately put my mind at ease. And you're very right about fixation on terrible, painful stories. I've skimmed the net, and the amount of "incidents" of ALS in people (typically men) under 30 seems astonishing, yet you're right, the net is kind of an avenue to focus on said painful stories, so it seems more prevelant than it actually is. I know that there are a few factors I'd like consider as far as contributing to this rare disease (where the factors are usually vague to begin with), but you're right, there's no knowing for sure, so might as well just accept that. As far as the tag "rare" goes, most sites cite ALS as actually not being very rare, with a slew of cases popping up every year. Is "rare" meant to denote the fact that there's no known cause or cure, and that it's undeniably rapidly progressive? I just have these twitches, weakness, etc., that really shouldn't be happening, because I'm not the overly stressed person to begin with. I'm so stressed as a result of these symptoms.

anyway, thank you.