emotional triggers?
 

I am suddenly very weak, and I can't figure out why. I haven't been exerting myself, and it's the part of my cycle where I'm usually strongest.

I have an old friend visiting. She has a troubled daughter, and there was bad news about her that upset me. Also, yesterday I watched my husband climb a ladder way up into a tree to pull down some fallen branches that were caught up there--he had to get them down because we were worried that they'd fall on the children. I was terrified that he would fall.

I have had this disease for about a year and a half. The "traumas" I describe above aren't so out of the ordinary. Life is full of emotional shocks. It could be that emotions have made me weak before and I never made the connection, or it could be that this is a coincidence, and I'm weak for some other reason. I don't know. Do the rest of you find that emotional upsets trigger weakness?

Abby

Without a doubt. I had an appointment with my neuro this week that went very well but was stressful and triggered major symptoms for several days.

Yes I agree with Suddenly emotional stress really effects me. My daughter got married (3rd time) early this month and I thought I was going to have to walk her down the aisle in a wheel chair.
Mike

Negative or stress related emotion gets me too. I think the emotion has probably always had some negative effect...but on top of the stress we have with summer heat - I think I just notice it more.

Emotional triggers are the worst for me, even worse than physical activity.

Even simple stressed make me weak, like when I have to make a decision or if someone asks me a question that I can't easily answer. I often think people around me think I am faking my weaknes in order to get out of answering or making decisions...which is far from the truth.

I can't handle watching someone do something that might be dangerous, like your example of watching someone climb a ladder, makes my legs weak.

I often think that I don't have any tolerance for stress. Whatever the body does to handle stress doesn't function for me.

I think one of the worst things is if someone asks or expects me to hurry, I try to hurry and then my body fights back and slows me down, sometimes so much that I have to sit or lay down.

Every once in a while, this makes me start wondering if somehow the MG symptoms are all in my head, that I am doing it to myself, especially since the stupid Social security disability doctor suggested that possibility. I know this isn't true but I can't help but wonder.

If I am home alone with no phone calls or interuptions or expectations, I feel almost normal, but as soon as anything happens that causes the least bit of stress, I am back to feeling MG weak.

I hope this helps.

I wish the best for everyone. :)

Last week my neuro wanted me to walk with him to different areas to set up IVIG and appointments for testing. He has very long legs and a long stride and I struggled to keep up. I didn't succeed and ended up following and holding the rails along the wall. Funny, I would tell my husband or friends to slow down please but wouldn't with the neuro. Stress!

Abby, Well, there is a science behind emotions and neurotransmitters! This is simply a sampling of the info out there - it's endless.

Doctors, especially neurologists, often pooh-pooh emotions, as if emotions are a "lesser" form of being. There's a great book called "Molecules of Emotions" by Candace B. Pert, PhD that I have which is a fantastic view of the "neuroendocrine" system and how emotions affect disease.

These are more "scientific."

http://www.loc.gov/loc/brain/emotion/Damasio.html

http://www.psychologistworld.com/stress/fightflight.php

http://www.fi.edu/learn/brain/proteins.html


Not a great source, since it's "Yahoo Q & A," but interesting.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...0092543AASuyTZ

So it's not silly to think emotions can make you weak. It's a complex series of chemical reactions in the body which includes acetylcholine.

Have you ever stopped for a minute to check if you're tensing your muscles? It's amazing how often I do that. So I try to relax my entire body whenever I have a chance or if I'm stressed. It really helps.

Annie

The division between the body and the soul is completely arbitrary.

I don't think anyone can clearly define what the soul is. And unfortunately in modern medicine (and science) what ever we can't demonstrate with our senses (or tools we invent) is the soul.

Just like in the excellent book by Dr. Seus- Horton Hears a who- what you can't hear, see or touch just doesn't exist. Well, if you have a microscope and can see the "who's" in the speck of dust-that's different.

Of course emotions effect our muscles and other biological functions. This is what they are meant for.

Fear/ Anxiety (an emotion) is a protective mechanism that helps us flea from danger, or fight it. It leads to constriction of our blood vessels in the gut, and re-direction of all the blood flow to the muscles, lungs etc.
This happens if we see a tiger that is about to leap on us, but also if we see our boss, after we did something we know he is not going to be happy with. Those are all very physiological processes.

For me stress if at all , is a negative trigger (eg-makes me much stronger). In fact, the first treatment for MG-ephedrine (which is also very effective for me) is based on this. So, I wonder why so many MG patients experience the opposite (eg-that stress makes them worse). This just shows how complex this illness is. And how complex people are.

Alice,

Your words remind me of another reaction I get to certain types of stress, times when I am relaxed and something startles me. If something startles me, and gets my adrenaline going, I have normal strength strength for a few moments, every once in a while the strength lasts for an hour or so. I will crash very hard after these events, but have enjoyed the strength caused by them a few times.

One time I even ran a short distance after I thought the coyotes were after my cat outside, my body came off the ground completely, I really ran :D...it was an exciting moment for me. I have always loved running, MG has put a stop to that, except this one time. I didn't know I could run, but somehow I guess I can for a short while if I absolutely need to, but I can't decide when those moments are.

Now if only I could figure out how to harness that adrenaline, use it when I want to....maybe not so healthy for the body, but still, I wonder.

Oddly, usually my reaction to being startled is about 10 seconds of strenght followed by most of my muscles going limp, often I end up on the floor if I can't make it to a chair or the bed.

And, of course, there is no consistancy in my MG symptoms, seems my descriptions change every time I tell about my experiences, I wonder if people (I don't mean you guys here) think I am making it all up since I don't seem to keep my stories straight.

I haven't been keeping track, but I think I am having longer experiences of strength after being startled as time goes by...does that mean my MG is getting more mild? Something is changing, that is for sure, maybe this is just the nature of MG.


AnnieB, the book sounds very interesting, I'd like to learn more about this subjects of emotions and nerves. Thank you.

This is a great subject! Abby, thanks for bringing it up. :)

This is exactly what ephedrine, albuterol etc. do, in a more mild, controlled and persistent way.
Of course they have their own side-effect profile and risks (like any medication), and like any symptomatic treatment they do not fully control the illness, but can definitely lead to some improvement (in those patients that respond to them).

It is interesting that you say, you have a few seconds of being stronger and then you become significantly weaker. Possibly this is what happens to people that think stress makes them worse. For me it can last for hours to days, and only then I crash. (probably when there is no more adrenaline in the system).

Interestingly, I have experienced what you describe (eg-a few seconds of feeling stronger and then crashing), when I tried acupuncture. I am still trying to understand why it happened. (maybe if I do I can avoid certain triggers).

Also, mestinon could do that to me. (that's why I stopped taking it at some point, because it made my illness even more "crazy").

This is the way MG is, and anyone that knows and understands this illness, will not think you are making it up. But, I know the feeling. Even now, when I look reasonably well and am able to talk I find it hard to explain that there are times when I can't even breath on my own. It's so wonderful and hard to believe when I encounter a physician or nurse that understand what is going on and know what to do.

This is also typical of MG. The way it changes. Every time you think you have got it, it plays a new trick on you. You may overall get better, and then one thing will get significantly worse.

My neurologist told me of a patient who had generalized MG and left sided ptosis. When she recieved PLEX, she had significant improvement in all her symptoms, except that now she had severe right sided ptosis. why? who knows.

Every time I tell him of something I think is really bizzare and hard to believe, he says to me-this is the most bizzare illness I have seen. I don't think any one really understands it. I think he is right.