plac8170

@Annelys I wandered down the ALS rabbit hole last year at about this time (October 2018-May 2019). Almost lost my job because I was googling symptoms instead of doing actual work, calling in sick, and using leave to go to countless doctors appointments. You know what my initial “symptom” was? Twitching. You know what I ended up NOT having? ALS. So, coming from someone who almost got fired and is now paying close to 8,000 dollars in medical bills from this one particular HA episode... just stop. For your own sanity. We HA sufferers want “quick relief” tests. With ALS, it’s not like you can pop over to the ER for a blood test or scan to rule it out. It’s a longggggg, long road done on an outpatient only basis. Don’t go down this rabbit hole. Please! Trust me. ❤️❤️

I've had ringing in my ear (worse in my left ear) for as long as I can remember. Ever since I was a little kid (I'm 28 now). Turned out to be nothing then, it's still nothing. Seems to be worse when I'm stressed, tired, sick, have bad allergies/sinuses, etc. I'm sure you are totally fine. I was told to just learn to live with it. It seems counter intuitive, but when it's really bad, I just put some headphones in and play music at a lower volume. Drowns it out and distracts me. :)

I’m freaking out. I have dozens of tiny red specks all over my arms and legs and chest and stomach. They’re bright red and are super small. They look like tiny freckles. They started on my arms and I didn’t think anything of it but they’ve spread all over now. They don’t itch. It doesn’t look like a rash. They look like cherry angiomas but smaller. Last night I was scratching my skin and they actually popped up just my me lightly scratching. I don’t know what they could be. I have had a blood test in the last few days and my platelets were normal. I tried to ask the ER doctor and he wouldn’t even look at them as he was either not concerned or was in a hurry because it was a busy Friday night. I can’t get in to my doctor for another two weeks. Has anyone has anything similar? Any comments would be helpful. Note: they don’t look like petechiae and they blanch when pressed. They just look like little blood speckles all over my skin. I tried to attached a picture of the specks but the website says my file is too big.

Kind of disappointed. I had called my neurologist a couple weeks ago to see if I could add on an EMG for my leg since I’ve had shaking while standing and cramping in it. She said she would. Tech comes in today and does a NCS on both arms and the leg. I’m thinking “finally I can put this to rest”. Doctor comes in and only does an EMG on the left arm and when I told her about the leg issue and that my doctor put it in her notes to test it, she said I’d just have to talk to her about it when I see her next on the 10th. EMG was abnormal in the sense that I have “the worst case of ulnar nerve entrapment they’ve ever seen”. I was like “but no ALS?” And she was like “no... At least not in your left arm”. At least not in my left arm? Really lady? So now all I know is I don’t have ALS in one extremity... well two. Because she said if I don’t have it in one arm, but I have similar symptoms in the untested arm then it isn’t ALS there either. So I guess my upper body is in the clear. I know this sounds stupid and I am stupid trust me I know... I just wanted the leg done like it was supposed to be. It was a 3 month wait to get this test done and I know when I see my doctor on the 10th she’ll roll her eyes but schedule it anyway. I just don’t want to wait another 3 months for this again. The EMG took all of 8 minutes and I just wish she would have did what the notes asked and I’d be done with this. Side note: maybe it’s just my pain tolerance but the NCS and EMG were completely painless for me. A shot hurts worse. Don’t believe all the videos about them on YouTube.

It was one neurologist four times. I’m in therapy and take medication. Been dealing with this for 12 years. Nothing helps.

I attached a picture of my dent in my right thumb. My legs twitch and shake while standing but not while walking. I think it’s just anxiety “jelly legs”.

I’d trust your PCP and neurologist. Chiros are great don’t get me wrong, but a doctor especially a neurologist would be best equipped to tell if they were actually brisk. I’ve been told by my neurologist that als usually starts in one body part on one side of the body and progresses from there. She said if my symptoms were actually als I wouldn’t be functioning at all right now since I’m having symptoms everywhere. To a normal person that would be reassuring but to me I keep thinking “well maybe I’m the outlier with it in all four limbs”. Health anxiety sucks. So bad. I wish my EMG was tomorrow so I wouldn’t have to think about this anymore.

Yes passed all the strength and reflex tests. Neurologist said my reflexes were a little brisk but chalked all my symptoms up to health anxiety. The waiting is the worst. As bad as it sounds all my other health fears could easily be ruled out at the ER. Brain tumor fear? Easy just a CT scan to rule it out. But unfortunately they don’t do emgs in th ER. And the wait for one is awful.

I know there have been a ton of replies already but I’ll jump in. I’ve had literally every ALS symptom you can have. Started with muscle twitching in September 2018. Now I twitch all over (even in some uhhh... interesting areas to put it appropriately). I have muscle cramps everywhere. Brisk reflexes (to the point I bang my knee with my phone to test them). My arms feel weak. My legs feel weak and shake when I stand. Constantly feel like I have trouble swallowing. Feel like my voice is changing. I feel like my legs have lost muscle and that I have atrophy in my hands. I’ve been to probably 8 different doctors, including my neurologist 4 times. Finally the neurologist I think got tired of me coming in and scheduled an emg/ncs. That was in February. My EMG and ncs is officially 10 days away and I can’t wait for April 24th to get here. I do have to wait until May 10th (my birthday... yay me) to get the results but you better believe I’m asking the doctor who does my EMG if anything they saw looks like als. Don’t care how stupid I look. I’m about a millimeter away from losing my job with this. I’ve been worthless and so unproductive. 8 doctors have told me that despite all my symptoms they don’t think I have als. Neurologist said she’d be blown away if I did end up having it after the EMG. Id suggest getting the EMG to put your worries to rest. Even if you move on to another illness, I think this health anxiety spell has been the worst for me. All my other fears (cancer, MS, etc) there was at least a chance to beat it and it not be fatal. With als.... no chance. Horrible death. No treatment. Praying my EMG comes back normal so I can actually makes plans for the future again. If you can climb out of this hell hole now, do it! ALS is the worst thing to fixate on having and you’ll worry so much you’ll give yourself all the symptoms.

I mean... I already get enough “harshness” and more from doctors I see so the last place I want to hear anything like that is a forum where everyone here suffers from health anxiety and people make comments like this.. Its sad. I don’t have any family or friends so I don’t have a support system and I found this place and it helped me until this comment. But thanks I guess? Oh, and I’m not a “brother”. I’m a girl. But whatever.

I’ve posted about this on here before but a new symptom popped up and of course I’m stupid and googled. My legs now shake when I lift them up. Even when I’m just sitting in my chair and lift them out straight they shake immediately. This of course along with everything else pretty much makes me feel doomed. I have an EMG at the end of April and I am literally counting down the days. And before anyone asks... yes I’m on anxiety medication. Yes I’ve started seeing a counselor. I just can’t stop pretty much thinking about this every second of everyday and how I’ll need a wheelchair and die in 5 or less years. Depressed would be an understatement for how I feel.

I was just saying how she reassured me. I’ll delete the post.

Deleted post at others request

I posted on here before about my ALS fears... it initially started with twitching and a weird feeling in my hand like it was working right. I had an EMG scheduled for January but by that time I had somewhat talked myself out of it and cancelled it... Now for the last few weeks it’s back and worse. Twitching, cramping, real weakness where I’m dropping things. Atrophy in my hand and calf. My legs feel like they’re going to collapse from underneath me. And I tested my reflexes and my legs bounce up and down a little after I do it. Convinced I now have hyper reflexia and clonus. I’m pretty sure it’s game over for me at this point with all of these symptoms. I rescheduled my EMG again but can’t get it done until the last week of April. At this point I don’t think I’m so much scared of ALS as I am going through it alone. I have no living family and no friends. I don’t have money to pay for things like a motorized wheelchair or a caretaker. I don’t even know what I’d do if they tell me I have ALS next month. I can just picture my end laying in bed and starving to death because I can’t move and no one is around to help me eat or drink. I hate this.

I’ve been in counseling on and off for 10 years. Consistently at one point for about 3 years straight. I don’t find it helpful at all. I wish I had the money to “therapist hop” until I found one I liked but unfortunately that’s not an option.