Please Help (Muscle Soreness) ALS or Stress?

One thing about reading about symptoms, either online or elsewhere, is that we can get caught up in self-diagnosis. In particular, our own stress can make things loom a lot larger than they really are. Every headache is suddenly a brain tumor. Every bit of heartburn is suddenly a myocardial infarction.

This does not mean that we are never, ever wrong when it comes to thinking something horrible is wrong. But it also means that sometimes we can think something and then it ends up blowing itself out of proportion.

Your doctor, 3 years ago, told you that your symptoms were likely stress and not ALS. I doubt that there's much reason to think that things with your body are significantly different now. However, if you want to go to another doctor and ask about your symptoms, no one's stopping you. It would also be the height of irresponsibility for anyone here to attempt to diagnose you, sight unseen.

If it's bad, then you've gotten it early and that might help. If it's just stress again, then I urge you to ask your doctor for a referral to a therapist. You would need to understand why this is such a large worry for you, as it sounds like it may be or could eventually be affecting other aspects of your life. E. g. if you worry that normal workout pain is ALS, and you stop working out and gain weight, that would be pretty bad, yes?

There's a saying in the medical profession - "When you hear hoofbeats, think of horses not zebras" - Dr. Theodore Woodward.

I bet that these are horses and not zebras. It pays to have it all checked out, for your own peace of mind, but if you are constantly thinking about zebras, and are worried about them and they are affecting other aspects of your life, then that in itself could be cause for concern.

Sleeping on a bad mattress can give all the symptoms you describe.

Why are you staying in a hotel?

Some people should do themselves a giant favor and never look at symptoms online. Anyone who has a tendency to be anxious (as in falls victim to "what if" thinking) is one such person.

You know your nature is to fall into that pattern and to be a hypochondriac. Hypochondria is just another manifestation of anxiety. It usually comes on when you're in a weakened physical or emotional state. You're never "over" the tendency to fall victim to those crutches that are innate. If you're worried, then you're stressed. In your case, that stress create more worry, which creates fear. It's a vicious cycle. It's likely that there's only one thing "wrong" with you and that's the fact that you haven't acknowledged that you're the type of person who should never look at a list of symptoms.

The human body is a miraculous machine. It will heal itself of many ills given the chance. That chance can only come about in a stress-free environment.

You started lifting this week. That definitely explains most of your symptoms. They're a physical response to a physical action (exercise). The rest of your symptoms are most likely related to an emotional response to an emotional action ("what if" thinking).