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The reason I mentioned my physician is because a number of years ago I had discoloration on my tongue and he just said to forget about it as most tongue issues are benign.

I will tell a few more stories. When I was younger, I lived at one time with 2 other guys. One of them was a manager at a storage facility. Three men were storing drugs in one of the units, which my friend did not know about. In the middle of the night, 2 of the men came and removed the drugs and left. My friend at the time was newly married and had a 9 month old baby. The remaining man came in the next day and of course found his drugs were missing and confronted my friend and accused him of taking them. My friend of course knew nothing about the contents of the unit, but was shot and killed over the missing items. He was only 29 at the time. I went to the funeral and it was horrific and his wife really never fully recovered and passed away years later at 46 from lung cancer and never smoked. Other family members took care of the child. The family who lost there son had another son who passed away from a brain tumor as a teenager. My wife had a sister who passed away from a brain tumor at the age of 6. Her mother never recovered and used to check my wife's eyes all of the time as her daughter who passed away became cross eyes from the tumor. I had a client of mine who had a benign brain tumor come back twice and he thank goodness is fine. I had another client of mine who got run over by a tractor trailer as he was getting out of his van and after extensive rehab, he is much better now. It is amazing he survived at all and they never caught the person who ran him over. So again,. it is best to try to put things in perspective, as things could always be worse.

You are fine and don't have anything to worry about. That amoeba is found in lakes and rivers etc...and the chance of contracting it is so so so so small. You would have a better chance of being struck by lightning. I have stayed at a condo a few times at fort walton beach! Please, please, go on your balcony.. take a deep breath.. look out at the stunning view and give yourself a hug. You are okay. Have a fun time and don't let an irrational thoughts ruin your beautiful vacation!!!!

I try to put things in perspective. Everyone feels beaten up and down sometimes. Some more then others. I have a client of mine who has an organization that helps people with disabilities. I was there last year and saw a young man with no arms and had fingers coming out of his shoulders. When he went to eat, he would stick his head in the plate and eat like a dog would. He drank out of a straw. He has a decent attitude and has a job. Another woman there is blind and is a dwarf. She takes the bus everyday to a job. Her attitude is pretty good also. There is a person I know who has MS. He is in his 50's. He used to be a workout guru and was a tough guy. Now he used sticks to walk and wobbles like a top. He swims everyday and credits that with keeping him out of a wheel chair. His attitude is pretty good too. I could go on and on. When I see these people, my problems don't seem near as bad as I think they are.

I had a friend of mine once who attempted suicide but failed. He told me that the psychiatric nurse in the hospital told him it will aggravate people more if you are alive as if you are not around, you will be forgotten pretty quickly. This guy had a real string of bad luck. He lost his job, his wife cheated on him, which he actually witnessed and then he got in a car accident. The pressure got too much for him, so he tried to hang himself, but someone walked in on him and stopped it. He got the proper treatment and is doing OK now.

Please don’t do anything. A friend recently lost her daughter to suicide and it was devastating. I know it can be hard we are living in such stressful times but you are a blessing and you will be a blessing to someone else I promise you. Put one foot in front of the other it’s not much but it is enough, you are enough.

Yes I agree that your Dr looking at it is enough to let the worry go. She would have known if something was wrong right away. I always find trouble when I look for it lol. Stop looking at your tongue. It's okay and your have Dr confirmation all is well. Hugs.

I appreciate your input. No ALS fears. I kicked those long ago and realize how stupid they truly were. My worries are more cancer of the mouth. The funny thing is I have literally no symptoms. I feel like I am grasping at straws for "white sores" when really this is likely just normal abrasion from my teeth on the back of my tongue. If there was something there though I assume the doctor, who looked at my throat and tongue, would have noticed something and pointed it out. In fact, she said "it looks fine, I don't even think it looks more red than it should." She wasn't looking at these spots specifically but would have seen them if there was a concern. I will try to ignore it and see if I can just find peace again. Funny thing is that as I have focused on the back of my tongue, (which I can't feel by the way, I just see it in the mirror and started freaking), the inflamed feeling on the tip of my tongue is mysteriously absent. I HATE ANXIETY.

Hi!!! Okay. I had to look in the mirror and I have those too and my tongue looks identical to yours. I feel that yes... You are over analyzing. I had a mouth fear (bulbar) and it was by far the worst of the ALS fears usually mine was leg related... But when I went to the mouth.. oh my goodness. I don't think your fear is als related... I was just using that as an example as to why I went to my mouth during that anxious time period. That one almost drove me completely mad! I felt like my tongue was huge and it made it hard for me to eat because I was focusing on my tongue. If I focus on my tongue now. It's a strange strange feeling!!! It's just something that supposed to be involuntary and when we start messing with that with our minds we can do some wild things. I really think you had a small issue months ago and it went away but your focus didn't and it's causing issues that aren't truly there. I would absolutely trust your Dr. Your dentist will also confirm all is well... Sometimes when I have upcoming appointments to check on something I've been off and on worrying about it ramps up my anxiety so bad and I start focusing on that area again..maybe that's what is happening with your dentist appt? Hugs. I see nothing wrong and I agree with your Dr. ! You are okay.

ALS cases per year in the USA, less then 20,000. Cancer cases per year in the USA over 1.7 million. ALS is a very rare disease. I once worried about carcinoid syndrome as I knew 2 people who had it. When I asked my physician about it, he said I have a better chance of being struck by lightning.

I've been doing a good job of squashing my ALS fears these last few months as I've noticed very occasional breathing/speaking/swallowing issues, but it's just exploded for me in the last 24 hours and I spent all night crying and refusing to speak. I think I can feel soft palate inadequacy. It's called velopharyngeal dysfunction and it's really just associated with a few structural issues that are much more common in kids and motor neuron disease. I am beyond panicking. I am crying for my son who won't have a mother and fearful because I won't let anyone spend money on my care. Help. I appreciate anything anyone can contribute. I have a background in ALS fears and spent a very long time convinced I had limb-onset ALS, until a clean EMG showed I did not. I am a teacher and have a lot of stress about next year, both for me and my son. I generally feel ok and everyone I know says I am not slurring my speech at all, but I can feel it.

We are not symmetrical. Just because you can’t feel it on the other side doesn’t mean the right one is abnormal. Four ultrasounds in eight months should be enough to reassure you. I would not push for a biopsy. Your doctor would know if any follow up was warranted. Trust them.

Time will heal this fear also.. stay strong ❤️

I have only had therapy once , but I got off my anxiety meds and started a beta blocker because I actually do have an arrhythmia. I’m feeling so much better!!

You don't have als. Not at all. You can relax. I had the ALS fear a few years ago and my worry was my left thigh. It twitched and buzzed for months. Mine was only at rest as well. I had perceived weakness too. Mine was triggered by anxiety... And it was from anxiety and anxiety only. Stress, and anxiety and over use is what causes twitches. Twitches in als are completely different. They twitch after muscle loss and death... So you are going to have significant symptoms by that point, which you absolutely do not have.

Oh yikes... I went down the bulbar hole and it was a deep deep one..you have a history of als worry so of course you are overanalyzing your body and your true anxiety is about school starting . But it latches on to an old fear... Dreaded ALS.. you don't have als. You have anxiety about Als. Hugs hun, you are okay. By the way, thank you for being a teacher. You are absolutely fine.

I just asked him and he said 15 years! Ha! His was constant and debilitating. He really had no relief. Ever. We were constantly trying different things. The Invisalign has helped but he still deals with clicking in his jaw but the worst of the symptoms have ceased. Maybe start with your dentist or ENT? I’m so sorry and I hope you get relief soon!

I'm in my own personal hell spiral right now....over something else. I see you are there as well. I'm sorry about that, truly. Spiraling is dreadful. I don't wish it on anyone. I can't help but wonder for both you and me, (and others) if spirals are a coping mechanism...a way to concentrate on something other than what is bothering us for real. You mentioned having a lot of stress about the next school year. That's more than understandable as a parent and a teacher. I mean who isn't freaked out right now and as an educator and parent that's a double whammy. Is it possible that it's easier to worry about ALS than what happens next year? Just a thought....something I'm thinking over myself as well...to see if I can stop my own awful spiral. Sometimes ...esp in the middle of a spiral...it's difficult to discern what's truth and what isn't. Anyway, sit with that for a while and I'd be interested in learning what conclusion you come to....it might help us all. Hang in there.

Hi! I’m sorry you are struggling with this. My husband also suffers from TMJ and went on to develop tinnitus. He tried everything. Mouth guards, klonipin, he went to a lady who would literally manipulate his jaw and cheek to try to get relief. He suffered with these same issues! Stress definitely can make it worse! The tingling, numbness, constant pain around whole side of face. He eventually went to an oral surgeon who recommended he get braces. He did Invisalign for a year and it helped move is jaw a bit and that’s brought him some relief. Another option for him would be jaw surgery which we want to avoid! They have determined that his issues are from his jaw not lining up correctly. I’m so sorry you’re suffering and I hope you find some relief soon! We had to try several different things over the course of several years!

Very well put! I did a screenshot of that Bec you are absolutely right! You are fine and I hope any fear you had regarding your lower back pain are gone and you back pain will leave soon too.

I’ve been having mild back pain for a few weeks now and just a few days ago it got really bad. I started having muscles spasms and haven’t been able to work (I have a very physical job). It feels muscular and is radiating to my abdomen and hips. I also have increased gas and more frequent trips to the bathroom. Something a normal person would think is due the muscles being tensed up but not me. Nope. Ovarian C. Why???!

Weeks. Sometimes longer if I’m really anxious about it.

Thanks Holls! I hate how our minds believe that being healthy means we are completely pain free all of the time and anytime we do have pain it means something life threatening or will last forever, leaving us disabled.

I get this from time to time. The last time it flared up I went to an ENT (again). He looked me over and said, “you have muscle tension due to anxiety.” He sent me to physical therapy which did really help.

My wife has had TMJ and she was advised to wear a mouth guard, avoid chewing gum, do light jaw exercises and take OTC pain medicine as necessary. The ENT physician also told her that stress can make TMJ worse.

Thank you Holls! I’ve been lingering in that dark place in my mind.. literally watch the seconds on the clock to try to get time behind me so I can be that farther out from 7 days ago!!! Feeling a little better about things.

As long as I can remember I’ve been twitching. I remember when I googled about twitching and it got to me. That was back in oct 2018. Saw 3 docs told them about my twitching and said I was okay just anxiety. Did not believe them. I literally had to ask for a referral to a nuero. Finally got one. Fast forward to July and did a clinical, everything was fine just hyperflexia. He said “I don’t see anything wrong with you, but we just need to do more testing to find out” which was the emg. So my visit summary said: fasciculation, hyperflexia, ANXIETY STATE. August 2019. I finally go in for my emg. I have my parents with me because I’m scared to death to find out the results. My nuero was a neuromuscular medicine specialist so I felt really good about the her conducting the emg. My mother even gave the nuero a note saying “my son has had anxiety for a year worrying about ALS, please tell him the results” love my mom man lol So after the EMG she said your fine, go live your life. I don’t wanna see you for a follow up. I felt so good. I felt like I could get my life together. I lost the love of my life to this anxiety and I was ready to move on. I got my own apartment, got another job. Was doing really good. Twitches were there still but I didn’t pay attention. They were background noise. Welp everything was going good but since quarantine I had nothing but time to think and think and here I am questioning everything. I’m laying in bed again all day. Scared. Just really bad depression. Idk if you have Snapchat but memories pop up and I saw a picture 2 years ago and I knew I was twitching back then. 2 years ago. 2 years ago. The nasty DOESNT linger. I need to get myself out of this thinking. I’ve talked to many people recently about this and they have helped me. I’m looking into a therapist now. I worry about the future and when I have kids. I don’t want their dad to look weak and defeated. I know this is something we all need to get used to. Thank y’all for reading just wanted to vent.

I was told by sweet Gilly on the forum that setbacks are proof you are getting better.. and she's right. I was just complaining to my therapist last week how frustrating it is when I have a set back and she said you have come so so far... Your set backs don't last long and you have tools to pull you out of it and she's right. You aren't back to where you were .. setbacks are annoying. Anxiety sucks, but It's just how we react to it. I talk to my therapist over the phone every other week and it's nice knowing I always have an appointment coming up. Hugs. You are doing better than you think.

Thats EXACTLY what it is Wendi. Don't forget, if you are exercising more than usual, then your lungs are filling more than usual and will be extending muscles past what they usually do. Just lactic acid in the muscles making them ache a bit. I get it when i go out on my bike, i get pain in the front and back of my chest. It goes after the muscles warm up. Nothing to worry about.