MilwLuxur8
Member
I was diagnosed with BFS about 2 months ago by a Neurologist after a clean EMG and blood work. About 3-4 weeks prior to that, I noticed non-stop twitchin in my calves and feet. The twitching was (and still is) strong enough to move my toes back and forth. The anxiety went away for awhile after the diagnosis, but it seems like the twitching is getting worse. Also, I've been feeling a lot more aching in my calves, the arches of my feet and the tops of my feet. Further, recently, my feet have been cramping a lot more and it's making me have panic attacks again.I went to another Neuro last week. He did the typical strength tests and reflex tests and said he was 99% certain the first neuro was correct and that there would be muscle and reflex symptoms with the twitches.But I constantly feel like I have creepy crawlies in my calves and feet and it just gets depressing.On the up side, I ran twice last week (4 miles each time) with no problems. I've been working out and my legs have not gotten any weaker that I can notice. However, I stupidly went on the ALS forum and read about all these people who said their first sign was twitches and that the weakness and atrophy came on months later. That really doesn't help. I also feel occasional twitches all through out the day in random places on my body. And a few weeks ago, I got a constant twitch on my face (near my mouth) that lasted for almost a week and then went away. A day or two after I run or work out, my feet usually ache on the top (in the front where it joins the ankle) and on the bottom in the arches. The ache is a "weird nerve feeling" as opposed to the muscles being sore after a workout. It's hard to describe. The cramping in my feet really gets my uptight. As I can tell, my cavles do not cramp when they ache and hurt. And the calf pain comes and goes and moves around to different parts of the calf. Other symptoms I noticed recently have been tremors in the arms and hands (only essential tremors - when I hold up my hand against gravity or work out), and my neck often feels heavy, depending on the day. I know anxiety may be playing a part. But honestly, I went almost 2 months with hardly any anxiety and the symptoms didn't change. Now I am feeling anxiety again. When I go to sleep, I'll wake up and it will feel like my heart is beating 200 times a minute. But then I'll check my pulse and it is normal. It also feels like my body is shaking and tremoring, but it's not. Last night, my wife told me I woke up in the middle of the night and told her that everything shaking (though she said it was not). I never remember even waking up. I'm 34 yr old and I know my odds of ALS are .08 in 100,000 (or 8 in 10,000,000), but my rational thought is being beaten by this anxiety of having ALS. It drives me crazy b/c even if it is "benign", it is still being caused by something! I was tested for Lymes (negative). I eat healthy (5-7 servings fruit/veg every day, plenty of meat, multivitamins, etc), I exercise 3-4 times per week, drink lots of water. I only drink 1-2 cups of coffee a day (I tried quitting, but after 2 weeks, still no difference in symptoms). I even started doing yoga and stretching. NOTHING WORKS! I know it's stupid to live my life in fear and I know stress is incredibly bad for the body. I just keep thinking that there is more going on than what the docs are seeing. The constant creepy crawling and twitching is driving me nuts. My feet often literally twitch over 100 times per minute. Is anyone else experiencing this? I figured after 3 months of no atrophy or weakness, I'd calm down. Any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Just try to beleive the neauro and move on best you can, these people on here have proved thousands of times that this is a benign and never once has it turned into anything else. My Doc put me on a beta blocker and it helped tremedously with the pulse feelings. God BlessRandy 
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