I will try to make this short, but I know it will turn out to be a book, so please bear with me.
I have been through some unbelievable stress during the past three years. We had two cross country moves due to my husband getting layed off. I do not have any family or close friends nearby. (who wants to get to know the woman that is in pain, and crying all of the time!!)

After moving this last time, (and, this was one month after the move--not due to strenuous work!!) these are the symptoms that have come up:

(it started out with just leg and arm numbness, but after I looked up stuff on the internet, I saw more and more than I had some symptoms of ALS.)

* Achy wrist, hand, and elbow joints
* Achy knees and foot joints
* Tight, achy muscles
* Extreme Fatigue
* On and off numbness/tingling all over body (from head to toe).
* Insomnia
* Depression
* Anxiety attacks (because I am afraid I have ALS)
* Wrist joints ache, then feel better once I crack them.
* All joints crack constantly, with or without pain.
* Twitching muscles

I have had an MRI that ruled out MS, and a neurological exam so far. Lyme was also ruled out. My neurologist saw how upset I was, and prescribed Paxil. Going to a Rheumatologist next week.

Any advice?

luvmykids~

I have some of the symptoms that you post. My main symptom is twitching/anxiety. I'm so sorry you are scared http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/frown.gif When you went to the neurologist did he/she perform and emg? I have a condition called benign fasciculation syndrome(means non-life threatening twitching conditon) I've met other people with this syndrome who have all of your symptoms. Some of us have two or three in your list.

If you do a search on the syndrome, put the whole syndrome in parenthesis you will find the bfs group. There are many people there with "our" symptoms. The neuro's can't find anything wrong, so alot of us take benzo's(anxiety type med's) and depression med's. I'm on xanax and lexapro.

Another condition you might look into is fibromyalgia, or lyme. Oh I see you're going to a rheumy..that's good!! I've never been to one of them, but maybe I'll think about it.

I know what it's like to be alone. I have a husband and children, but no relatives to help me emotionally. They live quit far away. The reason we're in Texas is because my husband's job went ka-put too. I've lived here 6 years and still don't have any close friends. The closest friend I have is staring back at me(a screen) sad, but true.

I really think if you had ALS your neuro would've seen the signs.

I hope you're feeling better soon.

(((Hugs)))

Renee http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/wave.gif

I truly hope you don't have ALS. Some symsptoms you discribe match and others don't. It sounds to me like some kind of arthritis. There are many different kinds of arthritis, and it can strike at any age, race, or gender. Good to here you are seeing a Rheumatologist. They may be able to point in the right direction. When something is wrong, it is so hard not to self diagnose. I do it all the time. I swear, I have had everything at some point in my life.(Or so I thought) Be calm and direct with the doctors. The can take their time to find a diganoses. Make sure yor needs are met in a timely manner. Demand tests, demand their attention, and you'll get it. I wouldn't worrry so much about ALS. If that is what you have, the doctors won't even go there until everything else is ruled out first. It may take a while. It is so frustrating and stressful to wait and wait. We will keep you in our prayers that you may find your answer soon. Good luck and let us know what happens with your appointments.

Luvmykids-
I'm going to try to calm you down a bit here.
Most of the symptoms you are describing are NOT the way ALS usually presents itself!

The earliest symptoms in most cases are true muscle weakness (hands or arms or legs), stiffness, cramping,(note I said cramping, not aching) and twitching. The twitching almost never appears until there has been significant muscle wasting.

Numbness and tingling (called paresthesia) is not a presenting sign.
And achey joints and muscles seem to indicate more of an arthritic/rheumatic issue than a neurological one.

Your neurologist would easily be able to ascertain muscle weakness in minutes. If he sent you home telling you not to worry about ALS, believe him.

Oh yeah, and the fact that your wrist joint ache can be relieved by cracking the joint definitely does NOT indicate ALS.
However, FEAR can make your body feel simply awful.
It can exacerbate every single sensation to the point where every muscle feels "funny" and "tight" which you then interpret as 'weak", right? Tingling is a classic sign of anxiety....and again, a neurologist has cleared you!

Let is know what the rheumatologist says....And stop driving yourself crazy looking up symptoms on the internet!

zuzu xx