ALS News Today Columns

February 25, 2021February 25, 2021

It’s Important to Share Our ALS Stories on Rare Disease Day

ALS News Today Columns

I was overcome with grief after my husband, Todd, was diagnosed with ALS. He was just 39. Our daughter was 4 years old, and our son was 9 months old. ... Read more

February 24, 2021February 24, 2021

Like It or Not, My Steak Is Rare

ALS News Today Columns

“There’s an old joke, um … two elderly women are at a Catskill mountain resort, and one of ’em says, ‘Boy, the food at this place is really terrible.’ The ... Read more

February 23, 2021February 23, 2021

Lessons I Learned From My AFOs

ALS News Today Columns, COVID-19 Columns

I’m happy to announce I’ve finally resolved a love-hate relationship — with my AFOs. It took persistence, but I can now step into my white, molded plastic ankle-foot orthoses and ... Read more

February 18, 2021February 18, 2021

Facing Winter Together and Fighting as Best as We Can

ALS News Today Columns

It’s been an intense couple weeks of winter weather on Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. After a mild January with many sunny days, the first two weeks of February made up for ... Read more

February 17, 2021February 17, 2021

We’re Not Getting Older, We’re Getting Luckier

ALS News Today Columns, COVID-19 Columns

“Ride a painted pony, Let the spinnin’ wheel spin.” Recently, I had a flashback to those lyrics by David Clayton-Thomas and recorded by the band Blood, Sweat & Tears. They ... Read more

February 16, 2021February 16, 2021

Positive Rituals and My Evolving Morning Routine

ALS News Today Columns, COVID-19 Columns

Ten years ago, if you had asked me how I was feeling when I woke up in the morning, I would’ve ignored you and disappeared beneath the blankets. That was ... Read more

February 11, 2021February 11, 2021

An ALS Diagnosis Changes Our Perception of Life

ALS News Today Columns

Some people take a long time to get an ALS diagnosis, which is a drawn-out, stressful journey. Our story was stressful in a different way, in that my husband’s diagnosis ... Read more

February 10, 2021February 10, 2021

ALS Ain’t Elvis, but It Sure Can Seem Like It Is

ALS News Today Columns

The 1987 song “Elvis Is Everywhere” by Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper asserts the omnipresence of Elvis Presley. Despite the first-glance outlandishness of the song’s premise — fittingly, the single ... Read more

February 9, 2021February 9, 2021

3 Things I Would Do Differently If Diagnosed Today

ALS News Today Columns, COVID-19 Columns

I’m often asked by others in the ALS community for tips and insight from my past 10 years of living with ALS. While I am grateful for both making it ... Read more

February 4, 2021February 4, 2021

Because of ALS, I’m Doing Things I Never Envisioned

ALS News Today Columns

When I met my husband, Todd, I was a renter, so I didn’t need to worry about home maintenance. I drove a 15-year-old Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera, and I didn’t do ... Read more

February 3, 2021February 3, 2021

The Sustaining and Uplifting Fizz of Friendship

ALS News Today Columns

If the sky above you, Grows dark and full of clouds, And that old north wind begins to blow, Keep your head together, And call my name out loud, Soon ... Read more

February 2, 2021February 2, 2021

Let’s Help Bring Back the ALS Clinics

ALS News Today Columns, COVID-19 Columns

As I hung up the phone following a short chat with my neurologist, an old saying bubbled up in my mind: “You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.” ... Read more

January 28, 2021January 28, 2021

Granting Myself Permission to Sit With My Grief

ALS News Today Columns

It’s hard to find guides for the grief that accompanies a long, progressive terminal illness. Loss is often talked about as an event that happened in the past. It’s difficult ... Read more

January 27, 2021January 27, 2021

Toward a Better Understanding of the Legend of Growing Pains

ALS News Today Columns

“Oh yes, I am wise, but it’s wisdom born of pain. — “I Am Woman,” Helen Reddy “Gain from pain” is not a new concept. The notion can be traced ... Read more

January 26, 2021January 26, 2021

Why a Football Player and a Politician Are in My ‘ALS Inspiration’ Folder

ALS News Today Columns, COVID-19 Columns

I’ve always believed in the importance of having heroes and role models to help me cope with ALS. In fact, I keep a list of names in a special folder titled “ALS Inspiration.” ... Read more