should i see a dr?

[krb]

Hi   I am concerned about a problem I have been having for about 9 months.  I feel like my muscles are shaking and have twitching. Sometimes I wake up because my leg, arm or jaw will be twitching.  I have always been anxious and wonder if this could be anxiety or something else. I also have other twitching during the day in other parts of my body.  I am worried i have some sort of brain disorder.  Any comments would be appreciated.      Thanks so much   KRB

[MS Sucks]

You need to make an appointment to see a doctor.  I would make sure he does the babinski reflex and a clonus test (there is a technical name for it) and just basic reflexes.  Don't sit around and fret about it.  Go see your doctor... I went to three neurologists, an orthopedic surgeon and a primary care doctor.  It wasn't until I saw the orthopedic surgeon that the babinski and clonus/reflex tests were done..... very basic tests...... these should have been done early in the progress.... and that is what led me ultimately to my current neuro.....  Good luck......

[MS Sucks]

I meant Process not progress..... God only knows there was not a lot progress by the first neuro.... he thought I had carpal tunnel syndrome....

[AJ1962]

OK, it's me again... the long winded guy.  I have been trying to post a question on this forum for weeks and I always get a window that says, too many questions for that day already.  Oh well, maybe one of you great doctors out there will read my 2 comments on here and respond.  Hopefully with some positive info that it's no big deal to shake...
As I said in the previous post in this thread, I'm pretty sure all I have is BFS, but these shakey muscles are getting more pronounced and now I am getting pretty scared.  My muscles only seem to actually shake when I use them for lifting something or when I hold something.  It doesn't have to be something heavy either.  The shakes I get are exactly like what you would get if you were holding something a little too heavy for you.  When I stop doing what I'm doing... the shake goes away, so it's no like Parkinson's or anything where you see someone continually shaking just sitting there doing nothing.  My shakes aren't slow tremors like what you see with Parkinson's either.  The oscillations are faster.  Just like I said, like when you watch a gymnast on the hanging rings, straining to hold his arms out, or like the shaking you get when you are cold... pretty fast shakes.  My wife points out people in stores shaking while they stand in line, holding something heavy and she has demonstrated that even she shakes if she's straining the muscles she's using, but my god... I sometimes shake pulling on shoe strings, or opening up a cabinet door,  Keep this in mind though... I build engines for a living, I'm 39, 5"-10" tall and weigh a sturdy 200 Lbs.  I can (and do daily) lift engine blocks and cylinder heads that can weigh anywhere from 100Lbs. to over 300Lbs. and I can move some of those items without shaking at all sometimes.  That's what's strange!  So I know I'm not weak... I can drop and give you twenty right now with no problem, but as I push up and down, I can feel my arms shaking as I'm doing the push-ups, where just a couple of months ago... I could do it smoothly.  Any ideas for me?  This can't be anxiety or simple muscle strain / stress could it?  I did have an MRI done of my head last year as well as an extensive blood work.  This was because I had a MAJOR sinus infection and it was giving me "zings" up the sides of my head and making my forhead feel like it was going to explode... as well as a bit of vertigo while I walked.  The MRI showed a normal brain but I had bone swelling in my sinus area.  I get this sinus crud all of the time for some reason and it lasts for months sometimes.  My point is, my noodle looked OK and my blood work was perfect except for a .01 point over on my liver because I like my Jose Cuervo after work, but I slowed that down a bit.  Please let me know what you think the shaking is all about and I'm SURE you will be answering for many other people on this great forum too.  We ALL thank you docs for your help and support!  You are really fine souls!

[nancee]

i woke up with a similar thing about 5 months ago.  the shakey feeling is particularly disturbing.  Sometimes I feel like it is a vibration, almost like the feeling you get when you lean against a stero or machinery of some kind.  I have muscle twitching too but not as bad as earlier.  the shakey feeling is especially  noticable when i move.  Its weird.  I had a physical and everything was normal.  I suspect anxiety makes it worse. i do find alcohol like a glass or two of wine makes it disapear.

[AJ1962]

WOW!  I have had the same thing now for about 9 months.  It started with a slow twitch in one of my thumbs, then it went into my fingers and they would twitch like clock work for several days at a time.  Then it went to my whole body, with twitching all over the place, I mean my tongue, my scalp, my ears, my eye lids, all of my muscles in my legs and arms have twitched at one time or another... sometimes for about 2 seconds and other times for hours or even days.  Sometimes I'd have 4 or 5 places all twitching at the same time!  Then they'd go away and come back somewhere else.  Mine get worse after I've drank alcohol or if I'm tired or stressed.  Although I don't notice them much WHILE I drink alcohol, for obvious reasons. Mind you, I do have anxiety real bad and I take Ativan for it.  I was scared to death of having ALS or MS at first, but I have no weakness what so ever and all of my movements are articulate and precise.  Lately though... I have been getting these muscle shakes, the same kind that you two are talking about.  Not all of the time but they are definalely there.  Sometimes I feel like I am shaking on the inside, but I hold-out my hands and arms and they are as stable as anyone else, BUT, I have been noticing that when I use some of my muscles, they will most definately shake.  It's like the same kind of shake when you look at 2 guy's arm wrestling and you see their arms shaking under stress as they push against each other really hard... or like watching a gymnast on the hanging rings, with his arms spread out and his muscles shaking because of the sheer stress they are being put through.  Mine do it with a lot less effort though.  It's not a constant tremor though like with Parkinson's.  It's only while I strain or stretch my muscles.  
Being a victim of generalized anxiety disorder, I always fear the worst.  I even feel like I'm dying when I get a stupid cold!  So these twitches and muscle shakes scare the heck out of me, but after reading what other people go through on here, with the same overall symptoms I have, it can't be anything other than stress and benign fasiculations... I hope!  Thanks to ALL of you doctors out there that help and respond to people like us.  If it wasn't for you, I'd have lost it for sure!  Keep up the great work and please respomd to this thread if you would so we can understand the muscle shaking a little better.  Thanks!

[CCF-Neuro-M.D.-JT]

These could certainly represent symptoms of anxiety, but there are a few things that need to be looked at before diagnosing it as such. First, talk to your primary care doc and have them do a physical exam just to make sure everything is ok. Then review all of the medications that you take (if any) as many drugs such as those for asthma, psychiatric disorders and seizures can give you tremors. Finally, simple lab tests such as thyroid levels, electrolyes, and a routine blood count should be done to make sure an easily correctable cause is not missed. Generalized muscle aches and twitching are usually not associated with a typical brain disorder, although there are neurological syndromes outside of the brain that can cause these symptoms. Start with the primary care doc and he/she will be able to direct you to further evaluation. Good luck.