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Hello all – I am looking forward to being a part of the ALS group, where we can all learn, teach, receive support, and encourage others.

I have not been “officially” diagnosed with ALS, but I have been through 2 years of medical tests that have seemed to rule out everything else.  I am 63 years old.  Prior to 60, I was fit, active, energetic.  It has been steadily downhill since 60.

My history includes a career in greenhouse agriculture, where pesticides and herbicides were in constant use and avoidance was pretty well impossible during a normal working day.   I have also been an active athlete (marathon, ultra marathon, 10k’s etc).  I have read that both pesticide workers and athletes are at higher risk to ALS.

I also check off most of the list of symptoms:

Twitching and cramping of muscles, especially those in the hands and feet (every morning now)
Loss of motor control in the hands and arms (always dropping things)
Impairment in the use of the arms and legs (very weak legs, like always walking uphill, running no longer possible)
Tripping, stumbling, unsteady on feet
Persistent fatigue
Trouble in projecting the voice
Really really slow digestive transit times, inability to each much, and poor nutrient absorption