Our mother was diagnosed with ALS in Feb 2006. She had gone for at least a year with symptoms from ALS that when undiagnosed. ALS is hard to diagnose, because it can mimic so many other disease in it's early stages. In Feb of that year she was using a cane and able to move around with no other assistance. Shortly after she was only able to walk using a walker or she would fall. She was unable to hold herself up without assitance. Her speech at that time was beginning to slow down and at times vey difficult to understand. By thanksgiving, she had minimal speech and was completely in wheelchair, unable to move her legs at all and little use of her arms and hands. At the beginning of 2007, my mother lost all of her speech and barely able to move her arm out a little and minimal movement of fingers. In the spring of 2007, we had to insert a feeding tube, because of the dramatic loss of weight she was no longer able to swallow without choking. She had to be assisted in every area of daily living and was not able to move at all on her own or even to communicate. By early summer, she had lost all movement of hands and fingers. 

Our mother died on September 9, 2007. It is ironic, because that was grandparent's day. She loved her grandson very much. She was his "nanna". I tell this story, because I cannot comprehend some days what she went through or why. I cannot begin to understand what she was thinking or even the pain that she endured as her body deteriorated right before her eyes. She was a beautiful and spunky woman of independence. Always had things done perfectly or worked until it was. She loved with all that she had and made sure that everyone was always taken care of. We love and miss her so much. I will be married in November of this year, she will never see me that day...nor will she ever meet my little babies that I will have. But I will be sure that they know who their nanna was and that they will grow up helping to honor her memory and working to save the lives of those living with ALS and those not yet diagnosed. 

Thank you for listening to my story. God Bless You All.

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