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Body Twitches
Hi All.
Im a 23 year old (just) male in the UK
I have managed to over-react to typing in body twitches in to Wikipedia, which i KNOW is stupid but I really need some reassurance right now.
Avout 2 1/2 months ago i started to get a twitch in my stomach, just below my right lung. It was frequent, but not constant. tended to be only when i was relaxing and did not really bother me. It did not hurt or affect my movement.
I went to the doctor andhe checked for any form of tumour underneath i think and told me there was nothing wrong and to go away and not worry about it. I went away and then that twitch went and a new more vicous twitch started in my right triceps. Thi was like a vibration and occured when typing. But no other times. I went back to the doctor (a different one). she tested my arm reflexes and strength snd said to go away and stop worrying about ALS and MS and all the other diseases.
Now, I tend to get jerks. sometimes my thumb will jerk when my arm is held in a certain manner. I also get fleeting twitches, Ill feel 3 or 4 say in my neck then it goes. 3 or 4 an hour later in my knee and then it will go. They tend to be worse in the evening, but never really consistant in an area. I have also had what is like a weird vibration in my ear every time I burp. but that seems to have gone now too.
I dont think now there is much to worry about, i have no apparant weakness and only the occasional muscle ache which goes after a couple of days. I normaly get the ache from not warming up properly before rugby.
Should i really be paranoid about ALS??? MS??? with just the above.
Im a 23 year old (just) male in the UK
I have managed to over-react to typing in body twitches in to Wikipedia, which i KNOW is stupid but I really need some reassurance right now.
Avout 2 1/2 months ago i started to get a twitch in my stomach, just below my right lung. It was frequent, but not constant. tended to be only when i was relaxing and did not really bother me. It did not hurt or affect my movement.
I went to the doctor andhe checked for any form of tumour underneath i think and told me there was nothing wrong and to go away and not worry about it. I went away and then that twitch went and a new more vicous twitch started in my right triceps. Thi was like a vibration and occured when typing. But no other times. I went back to the doctor (a different one). she tested my arm reflexes and strength snd said to go away and stop worrying about ALS and MS and all the other diseases.
Now, I tend to get jerks. sometimes my thumb will jerk when my arm is held in a certain manner. I also get fleeting twitches, Ill feel 3 or 4 say in my neck then it goes. 3 or 4 an hour later in my knee and then it will go. They tend to be worse in the evening, but never really consistant in an area. I have also had what is like a weird vibration in my ear every time I burp. but that seems to have gone now too.
I dont think now there is much to worry about, i have no apparant weakness and only the occasional muscle ache which goes after a couple of days. I normaly get the ache from not warming up properly before rugby.
Should i really be paranoid about ALS??? MS??? with just the above.
If twitching were my only worry, I would be a happy bunny. Just because you are a hypochondriac doesn't mean you can't have something genuinly wrong with you, after all the neuro found enough abnormalities in my nerve conduction to send me to the orthopedist to operate.
I find that going for a good walk is good for you, that will stop the twitching whilst you are excercising anyway. (it does with me)
If only I knew what was happening to my left little toes and where they are going. So long as it doesn't get any worse I am fine, but if it does I shall start having problems balancing. Ironically the big toe on my left foot appears to be a lot stronger than the big toe on my right, I wonder whether it is actually compensating in some way to help preserve my balance?
I find that going for a good walk is good for you, that will stop the twitching whilst you are excercising anyway. (it does with me)
If only I knew what was happening to my left little toes and where they are going. So long as it doesn't get any worse I am fine, but if it does I shall start having problems balancing. Ironically the big toe on my left foot appears to be a lot stronger than the big toe on my right, I wonder whether it is actually compensating in some way to help preserve my balance?
Hey John,
Greetings from across the pond !
I've had these twitches now for about 4 months. All over, mostly in my arms. I too had a thing when I burped, that's how it started. I burped once and felt something "twitch" in my back. Didn't think anything of it but later a forced a burp to see and it happened again. Then I started burping silently often to "test" it. Had it for weeks. Then I realized that I can also make that muslce in my left mid back move if I straighten out the fingers in my left hand ! (what's that all about ? ) I can still do it now. If I just flex my fingers I feel this little muscle in my back flex. Anyway, I'm convinced that since I've not been getting worse that it's nothing to worry about. But I still twitch all over sometimes. I can actually see the muscle move. ( sometimes it's a tendon ) Very annoying, very troubling sometimes. But I think it's Benigh Fasiculation Syndrome, and since that's a "disease" that is diagnosed by excluding all the other diseases, I'm not going to worry about it and assume I'm o.k. and see what happens.
One thing is pretty common in almost all these threads, and that is that most people who are bothered by these twitches, including myself, are self proclaimed hypochondriacs. I do think anxiety exaserbates it. Although I don't believe it is the root cause, I KNOW it makes it worse.
Good luck
Ken
Greetings from across the pond !
I've had these twitches now for about 4 months. All over, mostly in my arms. I too had a thing when I burped, that's how it started. I burped once and felt something "twitch" in my back. Didn't think anything of it but later a forced a burp to see and it happened again. Then I started burping silently often to "test" it. Had it for weeks. Then I realized that I can also make that muslce in my left mid back move if I straighten out the fingers in my left hand ! (what's that all about ? ) I can still do it now. If I just flex my fingers I feel this little muscle in my back flex. Anyway, I'm convinced that since I've not been getting worse that it's nothing to worry about. But I still twitch all over sometimes. I can actually see the muscle move. ( sometimes it's a tendon ) Very annoying, very troubling sometimes. But I think it's Benigh Fasiculation Syndrome, and since that's a "disease" that is diagnosed by excluding all the other diseases, I'm not going to worry about it and assume I'm o.k. and see what happens.
One thing is pretty common in almost all these threads, and that is that most people who are bothered by these twitches, including myself, are self proclaimed hypochondriacs. I do think anxiety exaserbates it. Although I don't believe it is the root cause, I KNOW it makes it worse.
Good luck
Ken
Hi~~
I happened to see your post on heart palpitations, and I have also had those for years. I am 47 years old, and started getting the palpitations when I was about 31. At first, they really scared me, and I spent a lot of time going to doctors and ER's. Now, I have just learned to live with them. The twitching for me only started a few weeks ago, and I hope those turn out to be benign, as are the heart palpitations. I don't think they are related as far as muscles contracting, but I do think that they can be related as far as anxiety goes. I definitely am an anxious person about my symptoms, and tend to think the worst case scenario all the time.
I've learned alot about extra heartbeats, (PVC's and PAC's)...and most of the time, they are benign, yet very annoying. They can be scary because they involve the heart, and I never thought anything else would be quite as anxiety provoking, but these twitches are doing it! I guess it's just that fear of ALS that most of us twitchers seem to get a little bit fixated on. I also have sore, stiff knees, so I worry that is related.
Anyway, good luck, I just wanted to let you know of my experience with the heart palpitations. The only thing I could ever really connect them with, is possibly hormones (as they would get MUCH worse when I was going through menopause)...and anxiety. I went through menopause early, so that is why my heart palpitations started at 31. Even for men, though, you can have hormone issues at any age, and as I said, it's also anxiety. My brother gets them also. I also read something once where it said that once your heart has these irregular beats, it has them in it's memory cells, and then needs less provocation to do it again. I just ignore them now. Talk to you soon, Val
I happened to see your post on heart palpitations, and I have also had those for years. I am 47 years old, and started getting the palpitations when I was about 31. At first, they really scared me, and I spent a lot of time going to doctors and ER's. Now, I have just learned to live with them. The twitching for me only started a few weeks ago, and I hope those turn out to be benign, as are the heart palpitations. I don't think they are related as far as muscles contracting, but I do think that they can be related as far as anxiety goes. I definitely am an anxious person about my symptoms, and tend to think the worst case scenario all the time.
I've learned alot about extra heartbeats, (PVC's and PAC's)...and most of the time, they are benign, yet very annoying. They can be scary because they involve the heart, and I never thought anything else would be quite as anxiety provoking, but these twitches are doing it! I guess it's just that fear of ALS that most of us twitchers seem to get a little bit fixated on. I also have sore, stiff knees, so I worry that is related.
Anyway, good luck, I just wanted to let you know of my experience with the heart palpitations. The only thing I could ever really connect them with, is possibly hormones (as they would get MUCH worse when I was going through menopause)...and anxiety. I went through menopause early, so that is why my heart palpitations started at 31. Even for men, though, you can have hormone issues at any age, and as I said, it's also anxiety. My brother gets them also. I also read something once where it said that once your heart has these irregular beats, it has them in it's memory cells, and then needs less provocation to do it again. I just ignore them now. Talk to you soon, Val
I am another twitcher, I have been twitching since before I ever heard of ALS, and was more worried about MS at one point till that was ruled out and anxiety was ruled in.
I have just been looking back at some emails to a friend from about three years back and it looks like my twitching was all over the place including my face back then.
Ironically the part of me which I am most certain has weakened in recent times, is not one which twitches and I wonder what that means.
As much as I want to see ALS ruled out I do need answers to definate problems like, where are my toes going and what is the prognosis.
It seems even a weakness does not have to be ALS, I would think if my finger weakness in my left hand were, it would be a lot worse than it is by now and would have spread further.
I assume that if a nerve has been trapped for a long time, you may never recover strenght in the affected parts.
But as for twitching, I guess this is a lot more common than is realised, and I would doubt that there is a lot of research into it.
For instance how many twitchers also have palpitations? Given that from time to time I have unexplained ectopic heartbeats, and that the heart is a muscle just like the other ones that twitch, why can't the heart be affected by these spontaneous electrical discharges or whatever it is that causes the twitching?
I have just been looking back at some emails to a friend from about three years back and it looks like my twitching was all over the place including my face back then.
Ironically the part of me which I am most certain has weakened in recent times, is not one which twitches and I wonder what that means.
As much as I want to see ALS ruled out I do need answers to definate problems like, where are my toes going and what is the prognosis.
It seems even a weakness does not have to be ALS, I would think if my finger weakness in my left hand were, it would be a lot worse than it is by now and would have spread further.
I assume that if a nerve has been trapped for a long time, you may never recover strenght in the affected parts.
But as for twitching, I guess this is a lot more common than is realised, and I would doubt that there is a lot of research into it.
For instance how many twitchers also have palpitations? Given that from time to time I have unexplained ectopic heartbeats, and that the heart is a muscle just like the other ones that twitch, why can't the heart be affected by these spontaneous electrical discharges or whatever it is that causes the twitching?
I would not worry about it. I have had similar twitches/fasciculations for the past 4 weeks now. Saw 3 GP's and they said not to worry (which is not easy). Obviously if things get worse get it checked out but worry and stress can very definitely make these symptoms appear worse. Good luck
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