
Myasthenia Gravis Support Group
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a neuromuscular disease leading to fluctuating muscle weakness and fatiguability. The hallmark of myasthenia gravis is muscle weakness that increases during periods of activity and improves after periods of rest. Although myasthenia gravis may affect any voluntary muscle, muscles that control eye and eyelid movement, facial expression, and...
I apologize if you already posted on why MG might be a consideration wrt breathing problems.
But if breathing problems are your ony symptoms....then MG is far down on a list as possible diseases.
If it turns out you do have MG....that is a good thing that you are diagnosed. There are many ways available to stabilize/manage MG....
I wish you the best on Thursday...
I also run out of air when I talk or try to sing with the radio. I just went through a number of tests last friday and am waiting for the results.
I don't really know what is in store for either of us but know that you are not alone. I'll keep you in my daily thoughts and prayers.
Best to you,
Magda
I hope this helps.
Do other people with MG have these similar problems?
My symptoms are a wide variety. My most troublesome are that I have shortness of air and I also gasp for air at times, even when there is no activity. I have droopy eye in the right eye but have recently experienced weakness in the left eye. No obvious drooping in the left eye but definite weakness, like it's becoming more difficult to keep my eye open. As the evening draws near, my right eye is almost closed and the left eye feels so heavy (like now, it's really late,,I can't sleep). I don't sleep well. I have night sweats and toss back and forth all night. I'm lucky to get 3-5 hours of sleep a night. Some say MG is a painless disease but I feel pain. When your muscles become weak and you use the stronger muscles to compensate, I know my body feels so run down and aches everyday. I'm not trying to bring everyone down but I was diagnosed just this past December. I knew for quite a while that I had some problems but couldn't figure it out. A neuro found the problem in my blood work along with my symptoms. I'm taking mestinon 4 times a day, she thinks I just need the surgery but is going to send me to another neuro to get a second opinion first. I would prefer to use every other option before considering surgery. Does anyone think that surgery would be the best option?
To answer your question about surgery, I think it is worth it. The thymectomy is the only option that has the potential to be a permanent solution and I, personally, would be disappointed in myself if I did not try it. I don't know that it improved my symptoms any, but I was on a steep decline right before my surgery and after a difficult two weeks of recovery, I stopped declining. It was much easier to find treatments that work when my condition was more consistent.
Another thing that my doctor has said is that breathing problems count as a "crisis" and if you have trouble breathing, you probably need something much more drastic than mestinon. Mestinon helps, but it's not enough. You should definitely see another neuro that has more experience with this condition.