Worried :/

[AsterPho]

hi
i am 20 years old male, with no family history of ALS. On november 1st i had an accident and i thought i had rabies so i was very scared, waiting for the symptoms to come on december to january.. I started feeling anxious and on 28th of december i had muscle twitching at night, and i couldnt sleep.. I was so stressed out that time.. in 4 days it went away, but my stress was accumulating over time. In 17 of January, being convinced that i hadnt rabies, i started searching about ALS. and from that moment i begun to have all these symptoms. My symptoms are:
1. muscle twitches
2. difficulty moving joint fingers
3. involuntary movements
4. anxiety ( a lot and other times less)
5. insomnia and lots of sleep
6. brain fog and poor concentration (sometimes cant even follow a complete conversation)
7. muscle weakness ( not a lot, just like 2-3% less than my normal xD)
8. my jaw becomes weird after eating a lot ( it feels like my muscle is cramped or smt)
9. my tongue feels swollen and it feels like it s not moving good sometimes
10. slurred speech cuz of my tongue (it just stops moving and then again it moves)
11. poor memory and some short term memory loss
12. cold hands
13.lightheadness

I also went to the neurologist and he checked my reflexes (normal) and my nerve movements ( he told me to put strenght so that he wont open my arms, put them down, to my fingers etc) and i didnt have problems with that. my balance was also good. i also tried walking on my toes and i can do that easily.

so my question is, can stress cause all these symptoms? if i had ALS wouldnt the doctor notice it with all these symptoms? I also asked him about my speech (thought i had nasal speech and he said i sounded normal). He told me to go to a psychologist and take some relaxation pills...

PS. my symptoms get worse when i am really anxious and tend to go away (except muscle twitching) when i am generally relaxed ( not completely)... didnt have MRI or other tests, just a regular visit to a neuro... I am afraid i have ALS and its symptoms are begining to come to me, and as i am anxious these symptoms are made worse along with other anxiety symptoms... Someone tell me should i do anything further than that? i also felt my armpit in pain, and i have a family history of thyroid disorders. Doctord found TSH (3.75) 2 months ago and a little high cholesterol level... help?

 

[AsterPho]

PS,2: i started searching for ALS cuz i had twitches and ALS was the first thing i saw

 

[oscar1]

From what you said I dont think you have anything physical to worry about . No ALS
But you are very anxious and clearly suffering form health anxiety. Try a counsellor first to control this. Try not to take pills unless you really need them . You are very young
Stay off the internet.

good luck oscar

 

[AsterPho]

thank you a lot Oscar... I ll try to relax, although my oversensitivity and my alertness about my physical symptoms dont let me do it.
Best of luck!

 

[Tokahfang]

Yes, anxiety can cause all of that. Get help for the anxiety, and any remaining physical symptoms you may have will be that much easier to treat.

 

[Ms. Pie]

Yup, health anxiety rather than ALS. Trust what you doctor said. Good luck to you!

 

[vickim]

Maybe you could try some relaxation excersises, like deep breathing, or meditation. Get together with friends and do something you all like. Stress and anxiety can do terrible things to your body. No more dr g o o g l e! I wish you peace.