Erin, MG effects all skeletal muscles. That includes the muscles that surround your lungs. Think about what your chest muscles do when you take a deep breath in and/or out. Until you do that, you may not be aware that those muscles actually help you to breathe, even though breathing is involuntary (meaning it happens without you having to think about it).

So when those chest wall muscles get weaker, it becomes more difficult to breathe. Those "core" muscles, as physical therapists call them, are very important to keep in good shape (when and if you can, MG permitting). The abdominal muscles are considered the core muscles too - anything around your mid-section.

What makes those particular muscles weaker is speaking, sitting for too long, walking for too long, etc. Laughing even! I had an exacerbation after simply talking to some family members who came into town.

So keeping your "core" coolish can help with reducing the muscle weakness. It's often what gets heated up in the summer months.

Whenever my back or chest muscles cramp or spasm, I know I'm in trouble. You always want to try to avoid overdoing those muscles.

Does that help?

There are parts of the GI tract that are affected by MG and that can reduce what is called peristalsis. It's how fast food moves through your system. That's partly why some people have issues with Mestinon and some don't. Also, you need acetylcholine to make stomach acid. Too much equals more acid. I don't have any stomach acid - Mestinon gives me absolutely no GI side effects (or any others).

The idea of the heart being affected by MG is debatable. It's a different kind of muscle. I'm too tired to write about it today.

Annie