I'm a 16 year old male worried about A.L.S. I have anxiety, but I'm still worried this is real.

Posted ,

I'm a 16 year old Caucasian male with a fear of ALS. It started when I noticed my thumb and pointer finger felt weak, and pinched very weakly. That's happened to me in the past so I just took a break from biking to give my grip a rest (I'd been biking daily on dirt trails, so constant grip pressure.) But I started noticing twitches around my body, especially my legs, pectoral muscles, shoulders, etc. Standing feels harder, and I find myself leaning against things more. Lately when I wake up, all my extremities are weak and this morning, I had the worst cramps of my life I curled my toes. My calf just decided to explode with pain. My head also feels too heavy for my neck, if that makes sense. It's easier for me to droop my head than keep it up. I've also lost a few pounds, which is especially bad because I'm already underweight (5 foot 11, 124 lbs.) My appetite hasn't been affected, I'm actually pretty hungry as of now. My legs just feel weak. Every time I raise my foot it shakes when I put it down.

So what's the prognosis? This is really affecting me, I can't sleep, I'm anxious and always looking for answers to this. I've just been to a doctor about a painful and growing mole (skin cancer runs on both sides of my family) and can't afford to go to a doctor again unless absolutely necessary. I've dealt with anxiety all my life, and in my pre-teen years dealt with severe health anxiety. I thought I was dying over and over again, and I was only 12 years old. I'm in therapy to work through some anxiety and trauma so I'm getting help. But I'm worried about this. Interestingly, my physical performance doesn't seem affected by this, I'm still improving flutter kicks and push ups. I don't know, I just really want to move on with my life. Any reassurance or advice would be greatly appreciated. A.L.S, or Lou Gehrig's disease, doesn't run in my family, and I don't live near any military bases. I have a healthy diet and have stayed relatively active throughout my life. Could my anxiety be causing these symptoms? Or am I in peril? Thanks for reading this.

0 likes, 0 replies

0 Replies

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.