Silas

I get this pretty frequently, and sometimes I worry about it. But, if I eat a lot of fiber, or take a fiber supplement, the stool goes back to being pretty much normal-sized. I find that if I eat a lot of carbs—stuff like pita chips, pasta, etc., my stool tends to be thin or ribbony, kind of poorly-formed. But if I eat ruff**e, red meat, fiber, etc., it is normal.

There are a couple ways to approach this. Freaking out and running to the neurologist isn’t the way to go I had a terrible bout of twitching and cramping 10 years ago, after a URI. It was a combination of stress, heightened immune response because of the infection, etc. But like you, I was convinced I had ALS. made an appointment to se the neurologist, but I couldn’t get in for like a month. So this is what I did, and this is what you should do: 1. Go the gym every day and lift weights. Work different muscle groups, and especially the legs. Work on building strength, and increase the intensity of the workouts as you go. You will get stronger. 2. Drink a potassium energy drink or Pedialyte a few times a day. Also eat bananas. This is good for the muscles and nervous system, and works to reduce the twitching. 3. A couple times a week, have a glass of wine at night and CALM DOWN. Watch a movie, relax. Don’t focus on the twitching. So after one month of this, my strength had gone up considerably, and I felt much better. I told myself “there is absolutely no way I have ALS if I am getting stronger”. I cancelled the neurologist appointment and never looked back. And sure, my legs still twitch here and there, and it is usually because I run and bike a lot. Try the above regiment—I can guarantee you will get through this, and there is simply no way you have ALS We always second-guess our doctors

My co-worker had Bell's Palsy 6 years ago. It cleared up after a few weeks and has n't been back since. Palpatations and twitches are symptoms of anxiety--I've had both. At one point I thought something was wrong with my heart, and went in to see my GP. He did some tests and concluded nothing was wrong. That was 25 years ago. Work on your anxiety going forward. None of this stuff is worth worrying about

I had a big cherry angioma on my belt line --thing was like 1/4th the size of a dime and raised. I tend to get angiomas ever since turning 22, and have lots of small ones. Got tired of looking at this one, so I went to the dermatologist and had him laser it. That was 12 days ago, and the thing is angry looking now, black and grey. Smaller than it was, but it still isn't looking as healed as I want it to. I've seen conflicting thing about how long it takes to recover from this procedure Has anyone here had laser treatment for angiomas? How long did it take to heal/go away? Before panicking and running back to the doctor, I'd figure I would check with others first

I have one on the back of my head. Went to the dermatologist about it 30 years ago. I forget what it is called, but it is like a calcium deposit that forms at the hair follicles, and is harmless. Never got any bigger, and you can't see it. It is a common thing apparently

Yep! And it isn't just anxiety. I have urinated more than most people since my 20s. It became a real issue when I was about 33 or so--I was waking up 2-3 times a night, going 15 times a day. When I was 38, I went to see a urologist. He did a DRE, ultrasound, and a cytoscopy (ouch!). Everything was normal. He diagnosed me with "primary bladder neck obstruction", which is an issue where the muscles of in the opening of the bladder neck don't function perfectly. It is a neuro-muscular issue. I had a physical 6 months ago and the doctor did a DRE. He didn't find anything unusual. As I get older, I will pee more anyway. Anxiety will make the urination much worse. If you are worried about the prostate, go see the doctor for a routine physical, and he will do a DRE. I'm sure everything will be fine. Don't go down the rabbit hole I did, and get all kinds of tests if that DRE comes back fine.

I was diagnosed with a nasal polyp 15 years ago, and I am still here In fact, another ENT did a follow up exam (endoscopy) on my sinuses and didn't even mention polyps. I really wouldn't worry about this, even if it were related to HPV. Worse comes to worse, the ENT does an endoscopic procedure and simply removes it. More likely, it is a standard polyp that a lot of people get in their noses/sinuses. Those things can be reduced through nasal steroids.

I had a big ALS scare years ago. It wasn't ALS, it was Benign Fascillation Syndrome brought on by a bad virus (URI) and anxiety. This is what I did, and what I recommend other do 1. Start working out with weights 4-6 times a week. Every time you are in the gym, increase the weight a bit. If you leg press 200lbs on Monday, go to 220lbs on Friday. 2. Start drinking potassium-rich energy drinks and lots of water. Stay very hydrated. 3. Around 8pm, have a glass or two of red wine to calm your nerves (couple times a week--not every day). Keep doing this for weeks, and you will immediately see that as you get stronger, there is NO WAY you have ALS. Your health will improve, and the exercise will help reduce the stress. I bet 50% of the people here have freaked out about ALS --it is one of those vague, scary things. You aren't sick--exercise to prove it to yourself.

ended up in the ER on Tusday night after the spots starting climbing up my calves and my hands were burning Sure enough, Doctor immediately said it was Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease. How I ended up with it, I have no idea Now things are clearing up--no more pain, and spots are fading. Nasty illness for sure though. Lasts like 10-12 days

Just noticed a couple spots on my foot --sure looking like hand, foot and mouth disease now. How I ended up with this I have no idea. I've been visiting my father in the hospital lately, so maybe it happened there?

I was thinking that was a possibility, although I only have spots on my hands (so far) and my throat (red spots on roof, and it even looks like a blister in the back)

I am a 48 year old male in pretty good health. About 3 1/2 days ago, I developed a low-grade fever and a sore throat. The fever seemed to go away after 24 hours or so, but the sore throat persisted. Yesterday, I noticed I was getting small red spots on my hands, specifically, on the palms and in-between the fingers. The spots are sensitive to the touch, and even burn a bit. So I went to the immediate care clinic, and the nurse practitioner tested me for Strep throat (A), which came back negative (I am still waiting for the B test). She wasn't sure about the spots, or if they were related to the the throat. She gave me an antibiotic to take. But here I am with irritated hands, and the spots seem a bit worse than earlier. What could this be? I know if I start searching the web, it is going to freak me out

Sorry, but I gotta ask, since I am freaking out right now about colon cancer When I have a bowel movement, I've noticed that near the end, the stool flattens out on one side, like a ribbon, if I strain. I've noticed that I have to strain a bit at the end, depending how much fiber I've eaten. The "rest" of the stool looks pretty normal, and I don't have any other symptoms, such as abdominal pain, etc., and I rarely ever have diarrhea. I had a clean colonoscopy 8 years ago, and I've had hemorrhoids in the past for sure. I also had a fissure so bad I needed to have a LIS procedure to correct it--that was 13 years ago. Before panicking and running off to the GI doc, I thought I would ask around.

Thanks Leah --makes me feel better knowing that!

Doctor said he wanted to see me 10 years later. It has been 8