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Thread: Worried about muscle fatigue in arms and legs (lactic acid type burning)

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
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    96

    Worried about muscle fatigue in arms and legs (lactic acid type burning)

    So sorry this is long, really could use some help, I've been having trouble sleeping over all this. I'm worried I have something called myasthenia gravis.

    I've been having problems with a weak lower back for a good couple years. I spend most of my time at home and work in front of a computer. I'm imagining that isn't good for me. I try to do what I can to support my lower back but I guess it's not enough.

    Anyway, in the middle of April, I was taking a shower, and when I reached for something outside the shower I slightly slipped, and when I had that slip, my entire body kinda did this funky split and slight twist. I didn't fall down, but that didn't feel too good. My left leg was outside of the tub and my right leg was inside the tub and the only thing that kept me falling down was that my right leg hit the other side of the tub to stop the small split from turning into a real one.

    Next day, I wake up and my lower back ends up being super fatigued. The entire day I could not stand up for more than a few minutes without my back fatiguing. I'd have to constantly shift my position to take the weight off my back so it wouldn't tire so quickly. As the days moved on, the back fatigue got pretty bad, and I had a really hard time turning my hips to - er - wipe myself in the bathroom. I'd end up stretching and feel all sorts of things cracking. It was not fun.

    What's worse, I started getting pain in my butt area (piriformis) and both my legs would start to fatigue. Not only would my back fatigue, but my butt muscles and my thighs and calves would fatigue as well. Went to the PCP about it and she told me I need to either go to a chiropractor or physical therapist for my lower back.

    Went to the chiropractor and he said my leg fatigue was coming from my weak back - all of it is connected - because the back muscles are weak, it puts strain on the leg muscles. Some cracking and massage therapy and I'm doing a little better, but in the middle of all this, I also started getting issues with my arms.

    I've been kinda addicted to a mobile game that takes 1-2 hours a day to play (started in October). I usually play it in the morning or at night on my bed, so I have my phone held sideways to do it, arms held out with a pillow between my arms for support while lying on my side.

    Maybe in March or April I've also started feeling some pain and stiffness in my arms from doing this, so I let off for a couple weeks, went back on in early May, stiffness was there, pain is gone, but later in the month I noticed now my arms would fatigue. Initially it was the bicep area, but now it's moved to the forearms and parts of my hands and wrists (not my fingers, thankfully). Again, the fatigue feels a lot like the fatigue I feel in my legs - lactic acid buildup, burning pain (not nerve pain though). No weakness of the arms or legs - I can still do normal activities, just not for long periods of time due to the .

    Alongside all this, I've also had this feeling like the back of my throat is "lazy" - like as though there's post-nasal drip from my nonallergic rhinitis going in there and messing things up. I'd have these episodes where I'd have difficulty swallowing (my throat would tense up) and on occasion I would randomly choke/gag on things, including my saliva. I talked to my ENT about this and she said I have an overactive gag reflex, which I think I knew for awhile and that most of what I'm feeling is from post-nasal drip. I'd get weird breathing issues as well where I find myself taking deep breaths every 10-20 minutes because I feel like I didn't breathe in enough oxygen.

    On 7/3 and 7/4 cleaning up my bed mattress because my friend's pet peed all over it, lots of heaving around a vacuum and driving and moving around to clean it (lots of baking powder, white vinegar, and swearing and cursing involved). After all this my arm fatigue got worse, and my leg fatigue has come back even though I visited the chiropractor last Saturday. I've also had to start taking this medication called ciprofloxacin for an infection in my lower half of my body - I started on 7/3 and 7/5 is about when this weird fatigue started happening, which apparently cipro can exacerbate if the patient supposedly has this myasthenia gravis condition

    Then of course, I look at the mirror and I wonder if my eyelids are both drooping if I'm just seeing things, as I've had issues with my vision. Then of course, today my throat gets tired from swallowing things (I had this happen a few months ago as well).

    You can see how much of a feedback loop I'm in. The one thing that I'm trying to tell myself is that the lactic acid feeling I have is due to extremely stressed/strained arm and leg muscles due to my lower back and my mobile gaming, and I'm trying to tell myself that it's more likely I have these other conditions that may be just anxillary due to my health anxiety.. but it's so hard to convince myself.

    I don't have muscle weakness and I'm still able to talk (another symptom of this condition), but this burning sensation makes it really hard to get work done - it's like I have lactic acid everywhere.


    I'm also trying to remind myself that this condition only presents in women younger than 40 and men older than 50 - I'm a 36 yo male, but these symptoms are getting tough to deal with. The burning sensation isn't very pleasant, for sure. By taking the cipro I'm wondering if I had a latent condition I just made worse by taking it or if my brain is just firing off into "worst case scenario mode" like it usually does... so frustrating.

    Anyone who has experience with this would be appreciated.
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  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
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    4,889

    Re: Worried about muscle fatigue in arms and legs (lactic acid type burning)

    I think the answer here is obvious. Get up and move around more.

    You can't spend your life at a desk or playing mobile games and expect your body to work. It will start to fail on you hard.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    96

    Re: Worried about muscle fatigue in arms and legs (lactic acid type burning)

    I definitely have been. I just have these other conditions that are anxillary to what I've been dealing with that makes me think it might be this issue, even though signs point to it not being since I'm outside of the demographic that can get it. This rhinitis that seems to have gotten worse (like a sinus infection without the infection). The swallowing (tired throat), etc.

    I've made it a point to get up every hour at work and walk around, even if my legs are still having issues with the lactic acid feeling. I've drastically cut my time on those games as well - 15 minutes a day and I go directly to bed.

    I'm seeing my neurologist on the 17th but the wait is going to be awfully long for me. There apparently is a simple blood test they can do to diagnose the condition, it's not like the other health anxiety MND that is common for us anxiety sufferers to worry about (starts with an A, you should know).

    I think the intense physical activity that I was doing on 7/3 and 7/4 to clean my bed exacerbated my muscle fatigue. I'm thankful I'm still able to actually lift things though - it's just the lactic acid issue that's bothering me more than anything. I've been trying to avoid Googling symptoms as much as possible, but this condition seems to be rare and even anxiety forums don't have much info on it.

    Anxiety is quite a beast to deal with, isn't it? It doesn't help that this antibiotic I'm taking for an infection also claims to make the condition worse.

    Thanks for responding and going through my rant - I've seen you around often around here. I recognize that "DON'T PANIC" picture anywhere.
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  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
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    96

    Re: Worried about muscle fatigue in arms and legs (lactic acid type burning)

    Updating this thread. The burning in my arms is mostly from this condition called radial nerve palsy (too much computer use, repetitive stress injury type of deal - lots of smartphone use in bed putting me in a bad position). The fatigue in my legs? It was from my lower back and my legs being bad. I've been seeing a Physical therapist and the PT treatment has been a tremendous help. My lower back isn't fatigued as much and my legs don't suffer and I can actually walk longer distances.

    The PT said a bad lower back can actually cause fatigue on the legs because the "wrong" muscles are being used. You need a working lower back to help coordinate the muscles in your upper back and legs. If things aren't working properly it causes other muscles not meant for moving to move, which is bad for you in the long run, obviously.
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