bhjju 13 Posted January 7, 2019 Ok I apologize this might be a little long....:) I am a 21 year old Female. So in the beginning of December I woke up on a monday morning and my whole body felt really light and tired. It was weird for me because I have never felt like that before. Where I messed up is I googled that morning "muscle weakness" because thats what I thought i was experiencing.... big mistake because it gave me ALS as a topic....My anxiety from there shot up through the roof. The next day i still felt like this and I was super tired. This was the same week as finals week and the same time my boss was being very mean to me.....I also experience chills, cough, runny nose (i know thats the flu/cold but in my mind i was super scared about als). I felt like this with the chills, cough, runny nose, slight fever for about 5-6 days and i decided then to go to the walk in doctors to get checked out because i was worried it wasn't getting any better. ps i have never been to the doctors for anxiety before... At the doctors they asked me what was wrong and i listed my symptoms and they tested me for Mono Complete blood count Liver and Kidney test Thyroid test and the doctor said it was a virus leaving my system. EVERYTHING CAME BACK PERFECT but i was still scared..... over the course of the past month i have still felt weird. then about two weeks ago my elbows/forearms/wrists/fingers started to ache and "burn" whenever I would do a repetitive activity, or bend my arms for a period of time (even typing and driving makes this appear) I also get tingling and pins and needles sometimes within my fingers as well. I do sleep with my arms tucked under me and bent and I work at a place where I pick up heavy objects. Could it be a pinched nerves or maybe like tendonitis? I go to the chiropractor tomorrow and My whole family is telling me not to worry about anything. Do pinched nerves make your muscles feel tired? I still have as much physical strength as i did when everything first started about 5-6 weeks ago too. Sitting there typing this is making my forearms and elbows feel achy.... i also get really random twitches in random places in my body...they are very very brief almost like you open and close your hands and its gone. The aching in my arms also gets better whenever my arms are at rest or relaxed but still feel tired afterward. Please only serious answers only I have been so scared for so long I just need reasurance.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 7, 2019 also would like to add that my hand grip seems to be weaker but i still have strength.. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stef 1 Posted January 7, 2019 Hi BHJJU, let's start of by saying that you definitely don't have ALS. Your symptoms and onset does not fit AlS first of all. Second The flu, taken with the Anxiety, perfectly match physical Anxiety symptoms. I myself had ALS fears in the beginning - my hands being so weak that I could hardly hold a pen. The chills, pins and needles, numbness everything you explained I myself have gone through and still have from time to time. I had you exact symptoms 3 years ago convenienced I had ALS - still here, still have some of the symptoms from time to time. ALS is super rare especially at your age. I can guarantee you without a shadow of a doubt you DON'T have ALS. However, please see you doctor or psychologist for your Anxiety as I'm afraid that needs to be addressed first before this brief, yet scary situation of anxiety worsens. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 7, 2019 I cannot thank you enough. This really helped me! Sometimes its nice to hear it from someone other than a family member! I do plan on addressing my anxiety with my doctor and hopefully get it under control. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stef 1 Posted January 7, 2019 Happy to help, and please go read all the physical symptoms of Anxiety, as that will also definitely help. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stef 1 Posted January 7, 2019 I forgot to mention that twitches, jerks, spasms and perceived muscle weakness and muscle pains and aches are one, if not the most, common symptoms of Anxiety. Trust me not a place on my body that has not been affected in stressful times. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 7, 2019 Its almost like while i was sick my brain forgot everything that i felt was normal and makes me think that anything i feel is bad and scary...like the inside of my knee sometimes feels tight and weird to walk on....it scared me but i know that its normal espeically if you over stretch it....which is what ive been doing to ALL of my muscles that have felt "weird" in the past month....over doing it for sure...i caused myself 1-2 muscle strains/tendon tears in my right arm because i was so scared... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stef 1 Posted January 7, 2019 No amount of stretching is going to relieve the 'weird feeling'. The day that you Anxiety levels decrease your muscles will start feeling better, however, some muscles start feeling tender or different before you realise that you are anxious. Some take weeks to feel normal, specifically your chest region, can be tender for weeks after a period of increased anxiety. The point being the only way to get rid of the symptoms is to understand that your body does do the most unusual things when your anxious and that it's normal and not something malignant like ALS. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 7, 2019 even when you dont feel like you are anxious can you still feel the symptoms? I was tense and full of anxiety for three weeks before i could even relax my muscles again... i was told it could take a couple weeks to get back into normal even after you get over your fear..? is that correct? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stef 1 Posted January 7, 2019 Yes absolutely. Sometimes I use muscle tenderness in chest as an indication that I need to relax otherwise anxiety will kick in - that's before I actually feel anxious. And yes, even after the fear is gone some sensations in your body can take weeks to feel better. Once had a tender painful neck for more than a month - that's before I got proper anxiety treatment. But every anxiety sufferers bodies reacts and different and recovers different. Tiks and twitches recovers rapidly with me, but muscle pain takes forever to recover - my one friend is exactly the opposite. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 7, 2019 One last question....do you think I should at all go to my doctor and explain to her i think i have als and tell her my symptoms? just in case? or are you pretty confident that i will be ok? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stef 1 Posted January 7, 2019 What you are experiencing is intrusive thoughts. Your symptoms does not match ALS and Matches anxiety perfectly. I have been through it. So I'm 100% convinced that you don't have ALS. But the thing is YOU must be convinced that you don't have ALS for you to move on and recover from the Anxiety. So for your recovery to begin go see a Doctor, purely for your own peace of mind, and tell him/ her about your symptoms and ALS fears. They will confirm that you don't have ALS, which from your original posts looks like it has already been ruled out, and then start working super hard on the underlying cause of your distress - anxiety. However, to make it clear me having Health Anxiety on and of almost my whole life, I am 100% sure you don't have ALS. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 7, 2019 Ok thank you so much! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
A11yance 43 Posted January 8, 2019 5 hours ago, Stef said: What you are experiencing is intrusive thoughts. Your symptoms does not match ALS and Matches anxiety perfectly. I have been through it. So I'm 100% convinced that you don't have ALS. But the thing is YOU must be convinced that you don't have ALS for you to move on and recover from the Anxiety. So for your recovery to begin go see a Doctor, purely for your own peace of mind, and tell him/ her about your symptoms and ALS fears. They will confirm that you don't have ALS, which from your original posts looks like it has already been ruled out, and then start working super hard on the underlying cause of your distress - anxiety. However, to make it clear me having Health Anxiety on and of almost my whole life, I am 100% sure you don't have ALS. Do you get joint pain In your hands too? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 8, 2019 no i dont get joint pain Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 8, 2019 1 hour ago, A11yance said: Do you get joint pain In your hands too? no i dont get joint pain why? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
A11yance 43 Posted January 8, 2019 13 minutes ago, bhjju said: no i dont get joint pain why? That question was for stef. And only because I’m curious how many others with anxiety get joint pain Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 8, 2019 1 minute ago, A11yance said: That question was for stef. And only because I’m curious how many others with anxiety get joint pain Oh i apologize! My mom gets really bad joint pain in her fingers/hands when her anxiety gets bad... hope that helps! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
A11yance 43 Posted January 8, 2019 Just now, bhjju said: Oh i apologize! My mom gets really bad joint pain in her fingers/hands when her anxiety gets bad... hope that helps! No problem. Read my thread on als worry. Might help you Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stef 1 Posted January 8, 2019 A11yance yes I do get joint pains in my hands seems to effect my thumbs the most though. Some of the larger joints can be rather painful. Please read this link https://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety-symptoms/chronic-pain.shtml Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 8, 2019 15 hours ago, Stef said: What you are experiencing is intrusive thoughts. Your symptoms does not match ALS and Matches anxiety perfectly. I have been through it. So I'm 100% convinced that you don't have ALS. But the thing is YOU must be convinced that you don't have ALS for you to move on and recover from the Anxiety. So for your recovery to begin go see a Doctor, purely for your own peace of mind, and tell him/ her about your symptoms and ALS fears. They will confirm that you don't have ALS, which from your original posts looks like it has already been ruled out, and then start working super hard on the underlying cause of your distress - anxiety. However, to make it clear me having Health Anxiety on and of almost my whole life, I am 100% sure you don't have ALS. Is it normal for your muscles (in arms) to feel tired when you lift them up for a period of time? or doing something repetitive? Is this anxiety related? along with the dull aching the backs of my arms sometimes feel as if I can't hold them above me head for like 30 seconds,... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stef 1 Posted January 8, 2019 https://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety-symptoms/chronic-pain.shtml Please read this article. And yes its perfectly normal just really annoying. Trust me I know. I have experienced what you are feeling, but my pain-ache is usually to the bottom lower side of my arms almost at the arm pits. Almost like a dull sting pain. With your muscles during anxiety being under "tension" your muscles feel weaker, or over-strained quicker - if I can put it that way. Tired painful muscles and joint some of the most common anxiety symptoms, not only in people with anxiety but people who is under allot of stress. Hope this helps. And once again its not ALS it's just your stress reaction working in weird body sensations. It's just intrusive thoughts triggered my anxiety sensations leading to irrational thoughts of ALS. I really hope you are feeling better today and always there to help. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 9, 2019 So I went to the chiropractor and a bunch of stuff was off. My arms still very tired and weak feeling...is this normal? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhjju 13 Posted January 9, 2019 On 1/8/2019 at 8:24 AM, Stef said: https://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety-symptoms/chronic-pain.shtml Please read this article. And yes its perfectly normal just really annoying. Trust me I know. I have experienced what you are feeling, but my pain-ache is usually to the bottom lower side of my arms almost at the arm pits. Almost like a dull sting pain. With your muscles during anxiety being under "tension" your muscles feel weaker, or over-strained quicker - if I can put it that way. Tired painful muscles and joint some of the most common anxiety symptoms, not only in people with anxiety but people who is under allot of stress. Hope this helps. And once again its not ALS it's just your stress reaction working in weird body sensations. It's just intrusive thoughts triggered my anxiety sensations leading to irrational thoughts of ALS. I really hope you are feeling better today and always there to help. Went to chiropractor yesterday and a bunch of stuff was off. My arms still very tired and weak feeling on the top part of the arm between my middle forearm and middle of my upper arm...should I be worried? Do you still think it’s not? It’s in both arms...even he told me not to worry about als at all is this persistent with anxiety and pinched nerves? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
