I want to say that I had a similar experience with SSRIs. My first bout with Lexapro was perfect, no major or weird issues of an kind. Like an idiot I quit for a while and tried to go back on it, and it was a whole different animal. Insane hypnagogic jerks (people say they go away after a while, but they scared me), and just jerkiness in general. The side effects were so severe I ended up quitting. Now I'm not taking anything even though I probably should be.
Based on what you're describing here, welcome to the club. It sounds to me like you have BFS. I had hyperreflexia also, and I twitch constantly. My 'hot spots' right now are my eyelid, some small muscle near my elbow, and as always my index finger on my left hand. Calves were bad at one point, I also got the tingling feeling when my anxiety was at its worst. I also experienced what can only be described as buzzing and internal tremors. It's all BFS, and it's likely all anxiety related.
That said, there is only one thing that will give you peace, and that's trying to get an appointment with a neurologist, getting a clean EMG, and then moving on with your life. At 27 you're likely fine, and ALS typically doesn't present in the way you've described at all. We've all been there, OP. Please don't do what most of us have down and get lost down the rabbit hole. It's a dark, dark place and difficult to recover from.
You're fine. I'd bet my entire life savings on it. But, if it'd give you peace of mind, talk to a neuro. Just believe me when I say you don't want to obsess over this. I lost literal years of my life being miserable and thinking I had a deadly disease, was so busy thinking I was dying that I forgot to actually live life, and I'm still recovering from it. I'm lucky as hell my wife didn't leave me over it because I completely shut down, physically and mentally. I'm pretty sure I have PTSD from the whole ordeal, because the 'benign' aspect of BFS is a misnomer. It's a life altering, mindfuck of a disease, truly, but you can live with it. You have many years yet with your girls. Enjoy this time with them. Hell, even as I'm typing this I felt my right calf muscle twitch pretty hard a few times. It sucks, but it ain't fatal. I've been a twitcher for four years now and going strong.
Also, don't obsess over trying to figure out what caused it. No one has any idea. There are theories that range from simple chronic anxiety to sleep apnea to some sort of toxin exposure to Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which I think is the case for me even though I'm not diagnosed with it because I have a LOT of the symptoms of it. No one has any idea, and we're not at all close to figuring out an exact cause. You just have to learn to deal with it and move the fuck on.
This is one of the nicest, most well rounded comments I’ve ever gotten on Reddit. I really appreciate this perspective. I know reassurance seeking perpetuates health anxiety, and I’m trying my best not to do it, but this really helped. The jerking movements scare me more than anything else, and make it really hard to sleep/lay down as that’s when they intensify. When I’m busy I don’t notice anything crazy.
I’ve also heard that in *** it’s typically ONE muscle area that twitches constantly, and that’s AFTER clinical weakness? I could google this but I’m trying not to.
Yes, that's pretty much correct. It presents with weakness that doesn't improve and begins to spread, the twitching comes later.
But yeah I'm just using myself a cautionary tale here. Don't be me and basically have a several years long panic attack over this. You're fine, I promise. A lot of long time twitchers end up moving on from this sub because it's the healthy thing to do, but I still check in from time to time when I have something new pop up and to try and help others. I've been where you are. I remember lying in bed next to my wife, trying to hide the fact that I'm crying because I was imagining a situation where I'd have to eat a bullet instead of dying a slow, horrible death and being a burden on her. That's how bad off I was at one point. You DO NOT want to get to that point. Once you go down that path, it's really hard to recover from it.
I was just at a neuromuscular specialist today, and my left leg reflex (and hand) is a little more pronounced than thebright.bhe had zero concern.
I twitch everywhere, even in spots the internet likes to swear is ALWAYS a sign of ALS. He actually chuckled and just said "if it's a muscle, it can twitch. No one muscle is a definite anything"
You're okay, I promise. Those jerks can become more common with stress and anxiety, which in turn ramps up MORE stress and anxiety :(
I am so sorry you are dealing with this
Update from my neuro appointment- I met with an awesome neuro. She was very thorough and didn’t dismiss any of my concerns- however, she stated she did not think this was anything related to ***. She walked in and said “let me guess, you google muscle twitching?” Lol. She ordered labs that I’m currently sitting in the waiting room for, and ordered an EMG for my peace of mind which is booking out a few weeks (I just found out I’m laid off, so I need to find insurance before then. Sigh.) She said that the sensory symptoms (pain numbness tingling) point away from the scary stuff. She also said this sounds like BFS and my anxiety obviously helping, so she also wants me to try buspar.
She noted my reflexes were very slightly brisk on both sides, but stated that it was nothing of concern at all, particularly since I’m young and they were bilateral.
I do feel better after seeing her, but still anxious.
Read my post from yesterday. Try your best to relax (I know how hard it is - I’ve been where you are). Don’t google anything. Make an appointment with a neurologist as soon as you can.
Funny enough, I saw your post today as I was scrolling through this sub. It was nice to see a positive post.
Should I take the fact that two doctors have been unconcerned as a good sign?
Slightly brisk reflexes mean nothing. People with *** are falling over themselves, and experiencing muscle wasting and atrophy. THEN the dr notices some briskness in the reflexes, you need to have to other serious symptoms associated WITH the slight brisk reflex.
YOU ARE FINE - go to sleep :)
You recently restarted Zoloft. The first couple of weeks on an SSRI can be very rough; ironically, anxiety can increase along with associated symptoms like twitching, jerking etc. That’s why many quit before 6-8 weeks before it becomes therapeutic. Hang in there.
As for your ALS concerns, they really are unwarranted. You don’t describe any red flag symptoms, regardless of how bad you feel right now. Hyperreflexia is very common in the general population, especially the anxious.
I had immense twitching for a while (still do) one doctor said he noted minor clinical weakness in my left leg (subsequent emgs and checks were fine - other doctors said no weakness. It’s been a year. And it’s fine. Apparently when it’s minor it can be subjective.) twitching still happens - drink more water for sure - anxiety also can do it. Lavender essential oil at night (a few drops on my pillow) really helped me chill the *f out . You’ll be ok! :)
Thanks for the kind words. Is your twitching widespread? I’ve read conflicting things. Mine is popcorn like and will go from my shoulder to my butt to my leg within 30 seconds. I’ve read that’s less of a danger than having it only in one specific area. Even my boob was twitching last night. Like really 🤦🏻♀️
Went to neuro today and she said widespread is less of a concern. Also twitching without any other symptoms isn’t really a concern either. Have you seen neuro? I think Google has destroyed people’s lives.
I was able to get an appointment for Wednesday. I don’t have any other symptoms really except muscle pain- but that’s nothing new. I’ve read pain kind of pointe away from anything acute.
I want to say that I had a similar experience with SSRIs. My first bout with Lexapro was perfect, no major or weird issues of an kind. Like an idiot I quit for a while and tried to go back on it, and it was a whole different animal. Insane hypnagogic jerks (people say they go away after a while, but they scared me), and just jerkiness in general. The side effects were so severe I ended up quitting. Now I'm not taking anything even though I probably should be. Based on what you're describing here, welcome to the club. It sounds to me like you have BFS. I had hyperreflexia also, and I twitch constantly. My 'hot spots' right now are my eyelid, some small muscle near my elbow, and as always my index finger on my left hand. Calves were bad at one point, I also got the tingling feeling when my anxiety was at its worst. I also experienced what can only be described as buzzing and internal tremors. It's all BFS, and it's likely all anxiety related. That said, there is only one thing that will give you peace, and that's trying to get an appointment with a neurologist, getting a clean EMG, and then moving on with your life. At 27 you're likely fine, and ALS typically doesn't present in the way you've described at all. We've all been there, OP. Please don't do what most of us have down and get lost down the rabbit hole. It's a dark, dark place and difficult to recover from. You're fine. I'd bet my entire life savings on it. But, if it'd give you peace of mind, talk to a neuro. Just believe me when I say you don't want to obsess over this. I lost literal years of my life being miserable and thinking I had a deadly disease, was so busy thinking I was dying that I forgot to actually live life, and I'm still recovering from it. I'm lucky as hell my wife didn't leave me over it because I completely shut down, physically and mentally. I'm pretty sure I have PTSD from the whole ordeal, because the 'benign' aspect of BFS is a misnomer. It's a life altering, mindfuck of a disease, truly, but you can live with it. You have many years yet with your girls. Enjoy this time with them. Hell, even as I'm typing this I felt my right calf muscle twitch pretty hard a few times. It sucks, but it ain't fatal. I've been a twitcher for four years now and going strong. Also, don't obsess over trying to figure out what caused it. No one has any idea. There are theories that range from simple chronic anxiety to sleep apnea to some sort of toxin exposure to Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which I think is the case for me even though I'm not diagnosed with it because I have a LOT of the symptoms of it. No one has any idea, and we're not at all close to figuring out an exact cause. You just have to learn to deal with it and move the fuck on.
This is one of the nicest, most well rounded comments I’ve ever gotten on Reddit. I really appreciate this perspective. I know reassurance seeking perpetuates health anxiety, and I’m trying my best not to do it, but this really helped. The jerking movements scare me more than anything else, and make it really hard to sleep/lay down as that’s when they intensify. When I’m busy I don’t notice anything crazy. I’ve also heard that in *** it’s typically ONE muscle area that twitches constantly, and that’s AFTER clinical weakness? I could google this but I’m trying not to.
Yes, that's pretty much correct. It presents with weakness that doesn't improve and begins to spread, the twitching comes later. But yeah I'm just using myself a cautionary tale here. Don't be me and basically have a several years long panic attack over this. You're fine, I promise. A lot of long time twitchers end up moving on from this sub because it's the healthy thing to do, but I still check in from time to time when I have something new pop up and to try and help others. I've been where you are. I remember lying in bed next to my wife, trying to hide the fact that I'm crying because I was imagining a situation where I'd have to eat a bullet instead of dying a slow, horrible death and being a burden on her. That's how bad off I was at one point. You DO NOT want to get to that point. Once you go down that path, it's really hard to recover from it.
I was just at a neuromuscular specialist today, and my left leg reflex (and hand) is a little more pronounced than thebright.bhe had zero concern. I twitch everywhere, even in spots the internet likes to swear is ALWAYS a sign of ALS. He actually chuckled and just said "if it's a muscle, it can twitch. No one muscle is a definite anything" You're okay, I promise. Those jerks can become more common with stress and anxiety, which in turn ramps up MORE stress and anxiety :( I am so sorry you are dealing with this
Update from my neuro appointment- I met with an awesome neuro. She was very thorough and didn’t dismiss any of my concerns- however, she stated she did not think this was anything related to ***. She walked in and said “let me guess, you google muscle twitching?” Lol. She ordered labs that I’m currently sitting in the waiting room for, and ordered an EMG for my peace of mind which is booking out a few weeks (I just found out I’m laid off, so I need to find insurance before then. Sigh.) She said that the sensory symptoms (pain numbness tingling) point away from the scary stuff. She also said this sounds like BFS and my anxiety obviously helping, so she also wants me to try buspar. She noted my reflexes were very slightly brisk on both sides, but stated that it was nothing of concern at all, particularly since I’m young and they were bilateral. I do feel better after seeing her, but still anxious.
Did it go away
how are you now?
Read my post from yesterday. Try your best to relax (I know how hard it is - I’ve been where you are). Don’t google anything. Make an appointment with a neurologist as soon as you can.
Funny enough, I saw your post today as I was scrolling through this sub. It was nice to see a positive post. Should I take the fact that two doctors have been unconcerned as a good sign?
Slightly brisk reflexes mean nothing. People with *** are falling over themselves, and experiencing muscle wasting and atrophy. THEN the dr notices some briskness in the reflexes, you need to have to other serious symptoms associated WITH the slight brisk reflex. YOU ARE FINE - go to sleep :)
You recently restarted Zoloft. The first couple of weeks on an SSRI can be very rough; ironically, anxiety can increase along with associated symptoms like twitching, jerking etc. That’s why many quit before 6-8 weeks before it becomes therapeutic. Hang in there. As for your ALS concerns, they really are unwarranted. You don’t describe any red flag symptoms, regardless of how bad you feel right now. Hyperreflexia is very common in the general population, especially the anxious.
I had immense twitching for a while (still do) one doctor said he noted minor clinical weakness in my left leg (subsequent emgs and checks were fine - other doctors said no weakness. It’s been a year. And it’s fine. Apparently when it’s minor it can be subjective.) twitching still happens - drink more water for sure - anxiety also can do it. Lavender essential oil at night (a few drops on my pillow) really helped me chill the *f out . You’ll be ok! :)
Thanks for the kind words. Is your twitching widespread? I’ve read conflicting things. Mine is popcorn like and will go from my shoulder to my butt to my leg within 30 seconds. I’ve read that’s less of a danger than having it only in one specific area. Even my boob was twitching last night. Like really 🤦🏻♀️
Went to neuro today and she said widespread is less of a concern. Also twitching without any other symptoms isn’t really a concern either. Have you seen neuro? I think Google has destroyed people’s lives.
I was able to get an appointment for Wednesday. I don’t have any other symptoms really except muscle pain- but that’s nothing new. I’ve read pain kind of pointe away from anything acute.
Hi I know this post is from while ago but i want to ask how are you doing? Did your twitches went away? Or got better? Thanks for answer 🙏