Happy, Happy Tuesday! Today is July 25th and it is VERY, VERY warm in Atlanta! I won’t say “sweltering”, but it is 92 and probably feels closer to 100! Good grief! Based on the weather forecast, we have another 7-10 days of temps just like this… maybe even a bit warmer. Can’t wait for Fall already!
Anyway, hope y’all are doing great! I realize it’s been a week or two since my last post, but I get so busy doing nothing that sometimes nothing turns into a whole of something. Go figure! As the temps have been high, I’ve been limiting my outdoor activities to morning walks and time at the pool. Honestly, it’s been almost too hot to even go to the pool. That should tell you something! 🙂
By the way… How do you like the title of today’s post? Paroxysmal Dyskinesia! Yep. I checked on the spelling and everything! You’re probably wondering why this is the topic of the day and, well, you can thank my wife! 🙂 Here’s why…
Every once in a while my wife and I will be enjoying time outside or even driving around when she comments on my arms making a weird jerky motion. The jerky motion seems to be limited to my arms and maybe even my chest and shoulders, but it never my legs. My wife, when she notices the movement always asks, “Are you alright?” and “Did you just feel that?”. My general response, of course, is “What do you mean?” or “What are you talking about?”. It’s an honest response because most of the time the movement happens I don’t even notice it. So weird….
Based on my wife noticing this issue and the fact that I sometimes notice it as well, I decided to see if this could be another MS “thing”. So, a quick look on the internet using my favorite search engine threw out several results that seemed to confirm the movements could be MS related. Of course, my on-going lack of surprise at anything when it comes to MS helped keep expectations low, so no biggee! Just something new. 🙂
Paroxysmal Dyskinesia? What is it and why do I think that is what I’m experiencing? The supporting definition (And I am sorry as it’s rather technical) is:
- Paroxysmal dyskinesia is a group of hyperkinetic movement disorders characterized by recurrent episodes of dystonia, chorea, athetosis, or a combination of the latter. Paroxysmal dystonia (PD) is the 2nd most commonly described movement disorder in MS after tremors.
Boy, do I feel lucky I don’t really suffer from tremors! 🙂 I looked up the difficult words and believe the one that most fits my experience is Chorea. Chorea is:
- Chorea is a movement disorder that causes sudden, unintended, and uncontrollable jerky movements of the arms, legs, and facial muscles.
Honestly, even though I haven’t spoken to my doctor, this definition is spot-on when it comes to what’s going on. Add one to the things I need to talk to him about during my next visit!
The good thing is, at least for now, this particular issue is way down on my list of things to be concerned about. It’s happening very randomly and hasn’t caused any sort of interruption to my usual activities. Of course, I have not been holding a plate or drink when the “Jerky movement” thing happens, so that might impact my feelings a bit more negatively, but for now… all is good! Mostly…
That’s about all I have to say of Paroxysmal Dyskinesia today (I had to throw in the words again as they’re fun to type)! Definitely one of the weirder things to happen as of late. Im really curious about why I don’t seem to notice the movement as much as the people around me do. Perhaps it’s because it’s been happening for a long time and I just got real good at ignoring it? Who knows… another question for the doctor!
Hope everyone is enjoying their summer! New post next week… although.. school starts next week for my daughter, so I may be off-track. Guess we’ll see!
Talk soon!
Steve
#1guywithms
#paroxysmaldiskinesia
