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Bigmike89

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Learn about ALS
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Ny
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Bronx
Like everyone else I have so much anxiety from this. About 7-8 months ago my left arm started to twitch usually it goes away but it took 2 days to go away. Then the twitching moved to my calfs where it still is today. The twitching moves when it wants to feel it all over my body. But only feel it when I'm at rest meaning if my calfs twitch if I stand on them it goes away and I don't feel anything same as if it was in my arm, once I move the muscle that twitches it stops or goes away. But no matter what I feel it in my calfs when I sit down. I went and still go to the gym no weakness at all can push 250 pounds on the calf machine. I still can run 4 miles on the machines. It scares me so much so I finally went to a Nero.
He did a lower emg test, and said it looks like little nerve damage and wants to do an emg test on my upper body with X-rays of lumbar and cervical of spine and then do a muscle test.

Before all this happened 3-4 months before the twitching started I had pain in my upper back. Out of know were my left arm got warm and numbness a little. The days after I had pain in my left shoulder and arm. My doctor said sounds like you pinched a nerve. Will this happen no muscle twitching until 3 months after that. I so scared I'm only 25 male with my whole life hopefully ahead of me can away explain or help me with this. I twitch at rest ? I have read that als twitching is all the time? Can someone help me out?
 
MIKE, thanks for writing. We can set things straight pretty easily. There is a lot of misinformation our there and many people erroneously believe twitching means ALS. It doesn't.

First, the pain in your upper back: Note that ALS doesn't cause pain.
Then your left arm got warm and a little numb. ALS doesn't feel warm or numb. In fact, there is no feeling associated with ALS.
Sounds like you pinched a nerve.

HEY! Your doctor got it right!
25 years old is way to young for ALS. ALS is an old person's disease, with the average age of 65. My wife was young for ALS, at 50!

ALS is about paralysis. ALS destroys the motor nerves in the brain that tell each muscle to contract. When the nerve is being destroyed, sometimes its corresponding muscle might twitch. Then the corresponding muscle lays limp, paralyzed and useless. You're still running and lifting, so you don't have paralysis.

Twitching can be anything, or nothing at all. People often begin to twitch at about your age. Overall body twitching like yours usually points to anxiety, but never to ALS. You see, in ALS, a single muscle will twitch because the nerve is destroyed and the muscle is paralyzed, limp and useless. Over all body twitching, like yours, is usually unconscious nervousness. Possibly some sort of temporary damage, but not ALS.

Follow your doctor's advice and let him investigate, but don't worry about ALS.
 
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