wiftSwiftquill
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Just afraid to lose the post again, so it's gonna be today's story No.3.Does anything in that story strike you as familiar?!
Managing BFS and Anxiety: Seeking Support
- Thread starter wiftSwiftquill
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wiftSwiftquill
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Keeping real to the promise I gave myself, I have another story for today.This one highlights another important truth about "BENIGN"-FS:If you can't find a handle on how to reduce symptoms or even get rid of them (yet...), there is always the realistic option to just not care about them.Besides, many people reporting on subsiding and vanishing symptoms have to wait quite a while for this to happen.In the meantime, above mentioned option als works just fine. Funny thing is, each symptom I have encountered so far has spooked the freaking daylight out of me and had me obsess about it for days or weeks.Until the next scary symptom shows up, taking its turn in demanding my completely undisturbed anxious attention. Then the other stuff gets boring and much less of a problem in an instant. My calf twitches which had me crying of fear and despair in the first weeks are now hardly noticeable.My new freak symptom is now a severe loss of hand dexterity or control. Don't know, my fingers just don't seem to work anymore, can hardly finish typing this post.Geez, this really gets gets my heart pounding and my breath accelerating.Anyhow, don't think that changes anything I have learned from the stories I have read and shared with you, so far.That's the one for today:
wiftSwiftquill
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Another piece of advice you happen to come across all the time if you bothered to search around."Get off this site an on with your life. It helps."I'm almost ready to forsake my positive-thinking-thread commitment...
Please dont forsake it. Although I'd love to institute a rule that you're only allowed to link to posts from those who talk about complete remission (LOL) ... either way this thread is the best one on the site. Im sure we all can use our awesome search capabilities and add to it so you don't have to do all the work. If I find one ill just PM it to you so you can keep this thread clean. Feel free to delete this after you read it! Love a nice clean thread 
wiftSwiftquill
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Nah...the only cleanliness I would care about in this thread is in terms of mental hygiene and attitude.A little good-hearted BFS-talk in between can't hurt the purpose, I figure.So, thanks for the flowers...as we like to say in good old Germany. 
) Yeah, I have to admit full remissions are on top of my search list...you got me there... 
But if you read through many older posts, you will realize that with BFS complete remission can also occur with the mind, completely independent of what your body or your muscles do.Read through Basso's long history of posts and you'll know what I mean.The point I'm trying to make is that everybody on this forum can have the well-grounded and realistic hope to recover physically.However, some won't as much as others, that is what I learned from my journey through the archives.Still, absolutely EVERYBODY can fully recover mentally, no matter what the course of his or her BFS!!!And mental recovery, in turn, cranks up chances for physical improvement bigtime. It's a circle, really.It's all there in "BFS in a nutshell". Any veteran can tell you the same things, you can read in these old posts.I'm not discovering any new truth, I'm just trying to convince myself of long-known old truths.And I present the evidence for these truths in this thread. That's all.
) Yeah, I have to admit full remissions are on top of my search list...you got me there... But if you read through many older posts, you will realize that with BFS complete remission can also occur with the mind, completely independent of what your body or your muscles do.Read through Basso's long history of posts and you'll know what I mean.The point I'm trying to make is that everybody on this forum can have the well-grounded and realistic hope to recover physically.However, some won't as much as others, that is what I learned from my journey through the archives.Still, absolutely EVERYBODY can fully recover mentally, no matter what the course of his or her BFS!!!And mental recovery, in turn, cranks up chances for physical improvement bigtime. It's a circle, really.It's all there in "BFS in a nutshell". Any veteran can tell you the same things, you can read in these old posts.I'm not discovering any new truth, I'm just trying to convince myself of long-known old truths.And I present the evidence for these truths in this thread. That's all.wiftSwiftquill
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New post, old twitcher, timeless message.We'll get over it and it will get better, eventually.
wiftSwiftquill
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...and a little treat for you full remission fans out there... )
)wiftSwiftquill
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Hello my fellow twitchers,today I spare you of any wise commentary, because it has all been said, really.You know... it's benign, it will get better, no, it's NOT the bad thing, yes, many people have seen the exact same symptom before, etc., etc., etc.So, just read a short update of yet another survivor, saying that life's good with twitching.
wiftSwiftquill
Active member
You're welcome! ) I have to admit, I'm absolutely doing this for my own purposes and just thought I could share my finds in case somebody else also takes comfort in these stories.So, for the time being there's enough material to keep going for a while.Althuogh, for the moment, I have run out of thoughtful commentaries saying something else than what has been said numerous times before.Besides, I think these stories speak for themselves.So, just flip the next page in the BFS-Gone-Good calendar.
) I have to admit, I'm absolutely doing this for my own purposes and just thought I could share my finds in case somebody else also takes comfort in these stories.So, for the time being there's enough material to keep going for a while.Althuogh, for the moment, I have run out of thoughtful commentaries saying something else than what has been said numerous times before.Besides, I think these stories speak for themselves.So, just flip the next page in the BFS-Gone-Good calendar.wiftSwiftquill
Active member
A warm Good Morning to all BFSers out there from merry old Germany!! I'll keep it short and treat you with yet another recovery story from the beginnings of AbouBFS. Remember and always tell yourself the lessons to be learned from these stories:BFS can take many different courses, but in the long run it is typical for people to get better, mentally but also physically. Even complete recovery is very possible, as you can read again in today's story. In either case it is BENIGN and all of us can learn to deal with it.Enjoy.
I'll keep it short and treat you with yet another recovery story from the beginnings of AbouBFS. Remember and always tell yourself the lessons to be learned from these stories:BFS can take many different courses, but in the long run it is typical for people to get better, mentally but also physically. Even complete recovery is very possible, as you can read again in today's story. In either case it is BENIGN and all of us can learn to deal with it.Enjoy.wiftSwiftquill
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New day, new post, old story.Got to keep reminding myself that even if the ride may be long and rough, there's good reason to hope for the better.Enjoy.
wiftSwiftquill
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Ouuuuuch...just realized that the old links don't work anymore... 
...let's hope that our great admins get that fixed... ...or I'll just start over again... 
In the end it's all for the good...searching and reading these stories is really encouraging and inducing optimism!You should try for yourselves.
...let's hope that our great admins get that fixed... ...or I'll just start over again... In the end it's all for the good...searching and reading these stories is really encouraging and inducing optimism!You should try for yourselves.wiftSwiftquill
Active member
Another veteran twitcher talking sense.Happy and healthy Sunday to all of you.
wiftSwiftquill
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Even though all the former links seem to be broken, I'll continue my quest to take the edge off BFS-fear.Before that, however, I want to make use of the forum's intended purpose and write some worries off my back.As it is, I had a rough week and a bad weekend. The twitching seems to progress constantly and my muscles cause increasing trouble.At the weekend I had pretty constant twitching in the arms and hands, before they would just show the odd twitch once in a while. Of course, my calves are not alone 24/7 any longer, the rest of my legs have joined the party.Also, my legs are killing me. They are really sore and seem to have painful lumps or knots...brrrrr... 
Right now, my right thigh is happily buzzing away...also some new and rather annoying development.I really don't think this is ALS, all the appearing symptoms stronly point to BFS...but I wouldn't mind staying in the "light BFSer" category.Right now, things seem to be going southward and picking up speed along the way.Even though I have read so many survivor's stories by now and knowing from them that all sorts of BFS courses are possible and "normal" and that even after a long progression there may very well be relief and improvement in the future, this is really testing my willpower and mental stamina. It just seems to get worse and worse and worse...and no hint whatsoever where eventually this might lead...bad cramping?...bad face and tongue twitching?...severe constant muscle pain?...Puuuuhh...ok, sorry for the whining, but writing stuff off your back helps.So, the pity party is closed for today and I have a new story. All these stories show that what I am - and quite likely many of you are - experiencing is really not uncommon and that BFS can be successfully dealt with.Enjoy.
Right now, my right thigh is happily buzzing away...also some new and rather annoying development.I really don't think this is ALS, all the appearing symptoms stronly point to BFS...but I wouldn't mind staying in the "light BFSer" category.Right now, things seem to be going southward and picking up speed along the way.Even though I have read so many survivor's stories by now and knowing from them that all sorts of BFS courses are possible and "normal" and that even after a long progression there may very well be relief and improvement in the future, this is really testing my willpower and mental stamina. It just seems to get worse and worse and worse...and no hint whatsoever where eventually this might lead...bad cramping?...bad face and tongue twitching?...severe constant muscle pain?...Puuuuhh...ok, sorry for the whining, but writing stuff off your back helps.So, the pity party is closed for today and I have a new story. All these stories show that what I am - and quite likely many of you are - experiencing is really not uncommon and that BFS can be successfully dealt with.Enjoy.wiftSwiftquill
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Good morning my fellow twitchers!Today I want to share a story with you I found particularly uplifting when reading.Because it describes in a very personal manner how much suffering this BFS-ordeal can cause but also how it can be significantly decreased by working on your mind.I, for my part, am particularly impressed by the accepting state of mind this BFSer reached, not hammering positive thinking paroles into his head - although I find there is much more merit in this than in obsessive catastrophizing - but rather in accepting life with all its chances and risks and going on to live it as happily as possible as long as it lasts.I believe this mindset to be particularly soothing as it really emancipates one from desperately hoping for physical improvement and potential disappointments if such does not occur for a longer while.Don't get me wrong, I still do firmly believe that most of us will experience physical relief sooner or later, but an accepting mindset will surely speed up the healing and greatly reduce the suffering in between. The more I read stories like this the more I get convinced that the mind plays a big role in this BFS crap, even in the purely physiological manifestations. That's what many vets claim on this forum but again, sometimes you have to read and see for yourselves to believe.Personally, I have a very hard time to let go of my former life and accepting BFS and all the BS that comes with it, twitching, fatigue, pain.But I'm working on it and this story may very well help to go another tiny step in this direction.
wiftSwiftquill
Active member
Another message from one of the twitching forefathers dating back to the beginnings of the forum. Anyone want to take a guess at what he's reporting about...???!Be good and healthy, everybody.
wiftSwiftquill
Active member
Great, the links of the old posts seem to work again!! So thanks to our great administrators!As a token of my gratitude and happiness, I'll provide another story for today.Another oldtimer who had a rough ride and finally found a way to cope.We're all in the same boat and that boat is not going to sink!!
So thanks to our great administrators!As a token of my gratitude and happiness, I'll provide another story for today.Another oldtimer who had a rough ride and finally found a way to cope.We're all in the same boat and that boat is not going to sink!!wiftSwiftquill
Active member
Good morning,today I want to share with you another report of a long-term veteran who has been in this BFS-heaven of ours for long years.Another sufferer who has seen and experienced it all and who just rode it out over quite some time.Apparently she had the support of a great doctor and some of us share this fortunate situation.However, many don't. In fact, in Germany BFS doesn't even exist so nobody is going to tell you what to expect and what the odds are and how to cope with it.For all those of us, get your information from this forum and most importantly take comfort from other people's stories.Saying again and again that even with the long symptom list it's never ever going to develop into anything more sinsister than a major mindf***.And what's more important, that in time everybody can learn to deal with it and that the odds of it finally subsiding and improving are favorable for all of us.I really do know, for months I have been struggling with ever changing and ever more severe symptoms. And every single time and day, my mind wants to take the easy way downstairs...it's just so easy to let go.But downstairs is really not the place I want to be and I would supect that holds true for all of us.So, I have to tackle the mental ascent once again. And - to give humility a little break - my slowly growing collection of positive stories here increasingly proves itself to be quite an asset.So, my little suggestion: If you're really feeling down thinking that there's no way that you will ever come to terms with this BFS-crap, read the thread right from the beginning.All stories at once, one after the other, even if you have been following it regularly.I am not a veteran, I have no idea where all this will lead me and what I will have to endure in the future and I can't claim to have found any handle on my BFS, yet. However, this much advice I can and I'd like to give. For all of you in need of some peace of mind, believe the many people out of the forum's past: BFS can be beat!!!It ain't quick and it ain't easy, BUT IT IS NOT ONLY POSSBILE BUT IT IS RATHER VERY LIKELY!!!!Enjoy.
wiftSwiftquill
Active member
Hi everybody,welcome to another day with my personal mental hygiene thread.Apart from its positive attitude spirit it has become somewhat of a BFS diary for me, where I write bad and irksome stuff off my back.Another thing I can highly recommend. Writing a diary is like giving your worries and your sorrow and fear away to somebody else, it can be a real relief.So, today I want to tell about good and bad days. Something we have all read from others before but which I am personally experiencing in full force myself now.Yesterday, I thought I was having the best day in weeks or maybe even months. The twitching was really bearable, there was not much pain and no real feeling of weekness.I had slept kind of ok (that is, for my personal standards, which aren't really high, anyway) and I was having a brisk walk to the office. And I felt good afterwards and that lasted almost the entire day.But already in the evening I noticed that something was changing. The twitches slowly gathered speed, then there was the buzzing thigh again and when I finally got to bed, twitching and buzzing was again as bad as it had ever been.But at night, things got even worse. I woke up several times and both big toes were buzzing and tingling and pins-and-needling and whatever, that was truly awful. And due to the heavy twitching I have painful spots all over my legs again.But what's really killing me is some new bloating/digestive/colon stuff. I have a somewhat sharp intestinal pain right in the middle of my belly below the bellybutton. Feels kind of like my colon gets ripped apart. I have this pain for about 4 days now, but very mildly compared to this night.I don't know...here comes the health anxiety again.Colon cancer...?Morbus Crohn...?IBS...?BFS related...?But then again, I could just have eaten something bad...?I'll try to convince myself of the latter, but it is really hard to mentally keep pace with this crazy symptom circus... So, if anybody has some reassuring thoughts or comments to share feel free to OT in this thread.If not, that's just fine and do what I do and read the next story of another twitcher who experienced all the bad stuff herself but who saw it through and came out stronger than before.Besides, she strogly advocates the positive attitude approach I try to implement with this thread.Enjoy.
So, if anybody has some reassuring thoughts or comments to share feel free to OT in this thread.If not, that's just fine and do what I do and read the next story of another twitcher who experienced all the bad stuff herself but who saw it through and came out stronger than before.Besides, she strogly advocates the positive attitude approach I try to implement with this thread.Enjoy.