Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with twitch

how to improve foot stability control

bookdragoness — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 21:04:58 -0800

How do I improve the stability control of my foot? From my husband:

When I stand on one foot, I get really wobbly because my foot starts rocking back and forth trying to remain stable. It's not because the other muscles are failing or I'm off balance, it's just that I can't plant it solidly without muscle twitches.

My foot almost instantly tries to cramp and it's the exact same feeling and the exact same muscle that makes rollerblading difficult. I don't experience it in stiff boots, like skis and ice skates. It's also an instant reaction and not a fatigue failure over time.

It's not a question of me needing to run more or other muscles higher up my leg failing - I have very good balance, work out regularly, and am in shape. This problem has existed since I was a kid and has lasted through intense seasons of football, track, rugby, and soccer, as well as a time where I was regularly rock-climbing.

I'd like to be able to stand with one foot planted solidly and not have muscles twitching randomly.

What is it that is weak (i.e. muscle groups) and how do I strengthen it?

FYI, I'm a 25-year-old male with wide feet.

Is Klonopin as strong as they say?

ishotjr — Mon, 04 May 2009 16:12:50 -0800

Seeking first-hand experiences with Klonopin for muscle twitches but also for other reasons. I have a severe ongoing eyelid twitch. I was prescribed Klonopin, but am concerned about side effects and haven't taken it yet. Especially looking for people's experiences with Klonopin as taken to relieve muscle twitching, but other first hand experiences are helpful too.

Why am I so twitchy?

Anonymous — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 06:54:10 -0800

Why am I so twitchy? I've always been the stereotypical fidgeter, of the obsessive pen-clicking, finger-tapping, leg-jiggling variety (I'm very fun to share an office with). I see a lot of people doing this and think it's a fairly common quirk.

But I have these other weird fidgets, too, and they've gotten worse recently. The first kind (leg-jiggling, etc.) I don't tend to realize I'm doing until the person sitting next to me tells me to cut it out. The other ones, though, are more like compulsions. They mostly involve flexing or stretching a muscle in a specific spot. It's like scratching an itch - if I resist, I feel a little crazy, and the more I think about them, the worse they get. It's to the point where I've become slightly self-conscious about my twitchiness, especially because I've had significant others ask me about it when we're falling asleep and I just have to explain to them that I'm weird.

I've wondered whether or not it's a Tourette's-like thing, especially because Tourette's is often comorbid with ADHD and OCD, and - surprise! - I have both. One thing I'm not clear on, though, is whether or not the Tourette's tics are "intentional," or whether they just happen on their own, like myoclonic jerks (which I also get occasionally). I'm very conscious of these and can resist the urges, though I feel like AAARRRGGGHHH inside until I just give in. I don't really have any significant vocal tics, either, except when I remember something really mortifying. I also think it sounds similar to Restless Leg Syndrome, but it definitely doesn't only happen in my legs. Or maybe RLS is a cousin of Tourette's?

Other things: The twitches began happening more frequently when I started taking Adderall for ADHD, which makes sense if they're related to a dopamine increase. I don't understand, though, why Tourette's would be related to ADHD if Tourette's is correlated with too much dopamine and ADHD is correlated with too little, and why the twitches and fidgets would get worse as the ADHD improved. Also, I've noticed that the compulsive twitches (and the myoclonic jerks, for that matter) get WAY worse on the rare occasions that I smoke marijuana, to the point that it kind of freaks me out.

Other possibly relevant information is that, along with the Adderall, I take Lexapro and Wellbutrin for depression, anxiety, and OCD. And hell, I may as well throw in that I had temporal lobe epilepsy as a kid. My brain is a big bag of endless thrills.

I also wasn't kidding when I said thinking about the twitches makes them worse - writing this question will have me popping and locking for the next two hours. AAARRRGGGHHH *twitch*

Why am I so twitchy?

pipti — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 10:54:09 -0800

Why am I so twitchy? It started with a neck tic, and now I twitch all over. But. The doctor can't see it. I don't think anyone can see it. It's really annoying. About six weeks ago, my neck started ticcing. It feels like the sort of tic that someone with a stammer has--a little jerk. I can feel it, but it's not visible. And then other little twitches started all over my body--hands, legs, back. Like I'll just be sitting still and my quad will jump. I feel it most when I'm falling asleep and waking up. Again. Not visible to anyone else. I saw a neurologist (mostly, I saw his PA); he did an EEG and an EMG, both normal. He prescribed Klonopin. It's not bothersome in a physical sense, but it is bothersome in that it triggers all sorts of fears of dread diseases. Has this happened to anyone? Please tell me some people are just twitchy. FWIW, I'm 34, female, in good health, take a multivitamin, exercise, and eat right.

Pec spasm WTF!

ignignokt — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 20:13:34 -0800

What could be causing mild but annoying pectoral spasms? My left pectoral muscle was twitching involuntarily and intermittently for about an hour yesterday. It's doing it again now, after not happening all day. It's not painful at all, just weird. At first I thought it was my heart, but it's definitely not. It twitches at a rate of about 120 bpm or so.

Physically, I haven't done anything really out of the ordinary. Last Thursday, I did two hours of judo and felt fine afterward. Saturday and Sunday, I was a little sick (cough, lower energy, stiffness in my wrists), and I did relatively light workouts that lasted about twenty minutes each. They consisted of pull-ups, push-ups, squats, and burpees on Saturday, and dumbbell snatches and swings and burpees on Sunday. Saturday's draining was a little more draining than usual, but nothing made me feel like, "Whoa! I can't handle this!" Sunday's workout felt like no problem. Certainly, nothing felt like it taxed my chest.

I might not be searching for the right things, so the only thing I can find that's somewhat useful is this, which says it's probably ignorable. It's still weirding me out, so I'd like to know more about it if possible. I'd like to know why it's happening, what I can do to make it go away, and how soon I can expect it to cease.

I'm 31, in reasonable shape, and was told I had no medical problems after a physical exam last year.

My eye is alive

princeofpersiaxz — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 19:44:45 -0800

My eye is alive! My left eye won't stop twitching, specifically the area nearest my temple. I wouldn't post asking how to "cure" this, but it's been twitching for months! I tried massaging the area... help me kill this!

I'm not winking at you, I promise!

necessitas — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 12:58:53 -0800

Help me and my twitchy eye. Why won't my eye spasm go away? What can be done about it and why is it worse when I am working out? I've had an intense eye spasm (upper eyelid of left eye) going on for about 6 months. It happens at least every other day, sometimes multiple times a day. At first I thought I was just overtired and it would go away, but it obviously isn't. In fact, it is getting worse and I've noticed that it always happens (multiple times) while I am working out (though it happens at other, random times as well).

I've done some googling for "eye twitch" and most of the results deal with blepharospasm, but I don't think that is it as blepharospasm seems to involve lots of blinking, and this is more like an intense electrical current that lasts for 15 seconds or so. For the next couple hours afterwards, my eyelid feels strange. I can't quite describe it. There is no pain, it just feels . . . strange.

I'm concerned that this is going to get worse and lead to a droopy eyelid or something. I'm also concerned that it'll get worse/more constant. On the shallow side of things, I am concerned that it is annoying to look at and I'll become "that girl with the annoying eye twitch." I know the obvious answer is "go see a doctor," and that is part of my question. What kind of doctor should I see? An eye doctor? A neurologist?

Has anyone else experienced this? If so, can you share your stories? Did it go away? Get worse? Did you get treatment? If so, what kind?

How do I stop my nose and lip from twitching?

Bud Dickman — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 14:47:05 -0800

Why have I developed a lip/nose twitch? In the last few months, I have developed some sort of twitch or compulsion that causes my nose and upper lip to twitch, much like when you're about to sneeze or you have an allergy.

It's not a twitch so much...it's not rapid. I just keep flexing, for lack of a better word, my nose and upper lip, as though there's a bee on it and I'm trying to shoo it off without using my hands. So much so that the muscles that do this can actually get tired.

It seems like this began when I got a new pair of sunglasses. They're a little large, and they touch my face in places previous glasses did not. I caught myself moving my nose while wearing them, but now I still do it when not wearing the glasses.

It's not involuntary...if I think about it, I don't do it. But if I don't think about it, the lip sneers and the nose flairs.

How can I put this to an end?

What causes a a single, violent, whole-body "twitch" while falling asleep?

CodeBaloo — Thu, 17 Aug 2006 03:17:59 -0800

What causes a single, violent, whole-body "twitch" while falling asleep? This happens to me frequently, but irregularly. After going to bed, closing my eyes, and relaxing for some time, out of nowhere I'll experience a very strong, but very brief, muscular "jerk" involving what feels like the entire body. Normally, this will jolt me back to being fully awake, and often wakes my wife as well. When it does wake me up, a have the sense (I feel that I know) it happened just at that very moment I "officially" fell asleep—almost as if my mind "popped the clutch" while shifting from awake-but-relaxed to asleep. The sensation is nearly identical to when someone sneaks up behind you and startles the Hell out of you as a joke. As far as I can tell, there is no common circumstance preceding this "twitch". Is there a name for this phenomenon? Is it common? And, most interestingly, what's happening neurologically or physiologically to cause it?

The Evil Eye

klangklangston — Tue, 22 Nov 2005 17:00:38 -0800

Weird eye twitch driving me crazy. Help me before I kill again. Ok, off to the extreme right of my right eye, I'm getting this uncontrollable flutter. I thought it might be on the edge of my eye, but concerted mirror-gazing seems to imply that the contractions are happening at the far right corner of my eyelid.
I've had this happen every now and then for a while; the first time I can recall consciously was over ten years ago (when I was 15 or so). It would happen up to maybe ten times within a 24-hour period, and I put it down to too much caffienne then. After that 24-hour period, it wouldn't happen again for months or years.
About a month ago, it started happening more and more frequently, to the point where it's been about a week now where I've been getting the twitch every couple of hours. I'll get it for 10 second intervals, or so, and then be fine for an hour or two, then it'll hit again.
It's made it incredibly hard to focus on reading or writing for classes, and I've cut out all caffiene over the last month. I've also tried getting more sleep, relaxing my eyes, doing eye exercizes, eating better and staying hydrated, but honestly since it's so unpredictable in its occurance, I feel like everything I've tried has been more superstition than science.
I don't have insurance, and since I can't make it happen (and can go hours without it), I don't necessarily want to go to a doctor. But if someone out there feels that there's a true health risk, I may be persuaded to.

Why do I put my hands behind my head so much?

SuperNova — Wed, 09 Nov 2005 23:32:04 -0800

I put my hands behind my head a lot. I haven't always done it, and I don't like it. How can I stop? In the past, oh, few months or so, I've noticed that I frequently put my arms/hands behind my head -- either with hands clasped and elbows out, or putting one forearm behind my head with elbow up and sometimes resting the other hand on that elbow. They're positions some people do when they're relaxing or stretching. Only I'm doing neither.

It's not a huge deal, though I worry it gives people I'm not especially close to the impression that I'm always "just chillin'". Plus, people have told me it's weird. Do you think this is just a habit, or could it be something else? Either way, what's the best way to get rid of it?

(In the interest of covering all my bases -- I'm somewhat twitchy and have some Tourette syndrome/OCD-type behavioral traits. Not nervousness, just tics. The arms-behind-head thing does not at all "feel" like a tic to me, but I figured it might be a similar neurological process that some medical MeFite might find useful to know.)

Are post work out shakes and twistched normal?

crewshell — Mon, 08 Aug 2005 22:22:13 -0800

After a semi hard run or other cardio / muscular endurance excerise I sometimes get the shakes, or muscle twitchs... and not in the muscles you would expect. What would cause this? I rowed alot in HS and College (did pretty well with it actually) and often after a REALLY hard erg work out the tip of my nose would tingle... which I could never figure out why. Also after my run tonight (2.6 miles in about 24 minutes) my hands shook (ever so slightly) while holding my drinking cup.. and i got an odd muscle twitch in my lip..

could this be a sign of something physically wrong (i've always been pretty active) or just .. my quirky anotomy?

How to get rid of a nervous tic in the eye

ascullion — Fri, 23 Jan 2004 02:42:35 -0800

I've had a nervous twitch in my left eye for four days now, and it's driving me mad. Any tips for getting rid?