Hi,
My name is James, I am almost 39 years old, and was diagnosed with Becker MD when I was 23. I had symptoms as a child (gower sign, enlarged calf muscles, etc), the symptoms were never recognized by doctors in the small town I grew up in. I went through teasing as a child because of enlarged calf muscles.... I was able to do most physical activities, but had difficulty with doing chin ups and running long distances. Was tormented by elementary school P.E. teachers who would tell me I was just "sorry" and even told my parents that. Was the victim of some mental and physical abuse by my father because of my inability to do certain physical activities. I made it through middle school and was successful at being in marching band. I didn't really start having any difficulty until I was 19 years old and was having difficulty climbing stairs. After being told by a general practitioner that I was just weak and needed to excercise more, I still didn't believe this diagnosis. I met a woman when I was 22 that was a physical therapy assistant and she noticed my gait was different and saw some of the compensating I was doing for muscle weakness. She knew something was wrong and suggested I tell this quack doctor I was going to that I wanted a referral to a neurologist. Well, it wasn't long before I was given a diagnosis of MD. Was told at first it was possibly Limb-Girdle, but further DNA testing showed it was Becker. I am still walking now, but with some difficulty. I have seemed to be really progressing in the last 3 years. I have had more falling incidents and I fell back in April 2008 and fractured the L-1 and L-4 vertebra in my back. I had 2 compression fractures. It has been a long 5 months recovering from it by letting it heal on it's own, but I am making it. My MDA neurologist recently has suggested getting a scooter or power chair to assist me in getting around better when long walks might be required, etc. As I have found wheelchairs make it easier to get around airports, power carts at stores make it nicer to shop especially if it is a large store.
I found this board while doing some searching about elevated liver enzyme levels and MD. I am glad I found it, I am hoping I will be able to converse with others, learn some things, and maybe help others who are dealing with MD. Sorry, if I rambled, but I wanted to get my story out there.
