{"id":148916,"date":"2026-03-11T21:20:31","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T21:20:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/i-thought-the-strange-sensation-in-my-ankle-was-a-trapped-nerve-after-a-5k-run-then-i-was-diagnosed-with-motor-neurone-disease-at-just-24\/"},"modified":"2026-03-11T21:20:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T21:20:31","slug":"i-thought-the-strange-sensation-in-my-ankle-was-a-trapped-nerve-after-a-5k-run-then-i-was-diagnosed-with-motor-neurone-disease-at-just-24","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/i-thought-the-strange-sensation-in-my-ankle-was-a-trapped-nerve-after-a-5k-run-then-i-was-diagnosed-with-motor-neurone-disease-at-just-24\/","title":{"rendered":"I thought the strange sensation in my ankle was a trapped nerve after a 5k run – then I was diagnosed with motor neurone disease at just 24"},"content":{"rendered":"

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When Jozsef Forrest felt his ankle ‘dropping’ during a gruelling obstacle race, he assumed he had trapped a nerve.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But the strange symptom was actually the first sign of motor neurone disease (MND) \u2013 diagnosed when he was just 24.<\/p>\n

Mr Forrest, now 26, from Bedford, first noticed something was wrong during a Spartan run \u2013 a five-kilometre race featuring a series of demanding obstacles.<\/p>\n

After the race in May 2024, the National Rail worker searched online for possible causes of ankle weakness and concluded it was likely to be a trapped nerve.<\/p>\n

‘I wasn’t expecting it to be the worst thing. I thought it would just be a trapped nerve or something,’ he said.<\/p>\n

But just a month later his partner, Natasha Chumber, 26, noticed his foot ‘slapping the ground’ as he walked while the couple were on holiday.<\/p>\n

Concerned, he booked an appointment with his GP when they returned to the UK in September 2024, after also experiencing weakness in his left shoulder while working out.<\/p>\n

A barrage of tests, including nerve conduction studies \u2013 which measure the speed at which nerves carry electrical signals \u2013 eventually revealed he was showing early signs of MND.<\/p>\n

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\"Jozsef <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Jozsef started experiencing symptoms of the debilitating condition at just 24-yers-old<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

MND is a progressive neurological condition that affects the brain and spinal cord. Over time it damages the nerves that control movement, eventually leaving patients unable to walk, speak, swallow or breathe independently.<\/p>\n

Around 5,000 adults in the UK are living with it, with most people diagnosed in their 60s. Life expectancy for roughly half of patients is between two and five years from the onset of symptoms.<\/p>\n

Muscle twitches and a weak grip are among the early warning signs, along with weakness in the leg or ankle \u2013 symptoms Mr Forrest began to experience at just 24.<\/p>\n

‘It was difficult. It’s the shock mainly, especially at the age as well, it wasn’t expected at all,’ he recalled.<\/p>\n

Mr Forrest was prescribed Riluzole by his GP \u2013 the standard drug used to slow the progression of the disease \u2013 though there is currently no cure.<\/p>\n

‘It was definitely difficult to process to begin with,’ he said. ‘You’re in a sort of slump and you have to try and carry on doing what you’re doing.’<\/p>\n

He now relies on a wheelchair to get around but is determined to keep his independence for as long as possible, focusing on his administrative job at National Rail.<\/p>\n

‘If you’re not working, you’re not really doing anything, and that’s worse.’<\/p>\n

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\"It <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

It was only when his girlfriend, Natasha (pictured right) noticed his foot slapping the floor that he contacted his GP<\/p>\n<\/div>\n