Worried that I might have ALS.

[Ruby711]

Hello,

My name is Lauren and I'm 24 years old. First of all, my heart goes out to anyone suffering from ALS, and any family members as well. I admire how truly brave all of you are.

The reason I'm posting is that I have been noticing some strange symptoms over the last couple months, and I wanted to ask if these sound similar to early symptoms of this disease.

Full disclosure on a few things:
1. I have dealt with depression, anxiety, and OCD since being a teen. I have had similar health worries in the past too that have come out to be nothing.
2. My health (both physical and mental) is admittedly not in the best shape, especially as of recently. I rarely exercise, with my last real workout having been several months ago. The little exertion I was getting from my job is now gone as I've been not working since early October of this year. I've been pretty depressed, and I spend a lot of My time laying in bed. My diet is also terrible, as I consume fast food almost everyday, and drink plenty of soda. Needless to say, I'm really out of shape, and slightly overweight..

Here are my symptoms:

- Frequent muscle spasms in inner side of my left foot.
- Muscle spasms all over my body at random times, but not always.
- Hand tremor, especially while doing fine motor activities like texting.
- Tremor in thumbs, mostly when in use.
- Shaking and weakness in legs when trying to do things like get up and down from sitting, or climb stairs.
- Weakness in arms and hands. Small actions like pumping out some soap, or holding my phone, are harder than they should be.
- Feeling tired and weak after a small amount of exertion.
- Difficulty swallowing, and I have slurred some of my words.
- My coordination seems bad, too. I have a hard time keeping my balance when walking, especially it I had been sitting/laying down prior.

I know most answers will be, or at least include "Go see your doctor, we can't diagnose you." The thing is that I currently don't have health insurance, and I'm broke so I can't visit a Dr so easily. Therefore, I'd thought I would ask here first, and see if anyone thinks these symptoms sound alarming enough to warrant an out of pocket doctors visit.

I greatly appreciate any and all responses. Thank you in advance to anyone who writes back. Wishing you all well

 

[KarenNWendyn]

Lauren,

You are correct that this is not a general health forum and we can’t diagnose you. However nothing in your post suggests ALS, so you’d do best to let go of that worry.

I can tell you that you will feel significantly better by taking care of your emotional health and getting a proper diet and exercise program. I recommend checking to see if there are low-cost community health clinics in your area. Many of these clinics have state or federal funding and can provide care on a sliding fee scale. Similarly, there may also be a county mental health clinic in your area. Good luck!

 

[KimT]

I would immediately clean up my diet. You don't have ALS.

Have you watched Supersize Me on Netflix? It's about the damage fast food can do on the body. A steady diet of fast food can give you all kinds of diseases. You are still very young. Change your habits now and you can look forward to a long life filled with your heart's desires.

Mental health is part of physical health. It's taking care of your brain. Depression, anxiety, and OCD can be caused by brain chemicals being out of balance. Once that happens it becomes a vicious cycle of fatigue, fear, eating too much or not enough, and hopelessness.

If you don't have enough money to see a doctor, go to a counselor at the local college and find out about community resources that can help. Don't be afraid to share your fears and your condition with your parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. The people who love you want you to be well.

Again, you don't have ALS but you need to get to a doctor or clinic for help.