Dancing with ALS and Life

  “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Philippians 4:8

dancingwithalsandlife.blogspot.com Living with a terminal illness sometimes feels like a wild roller coaster ride. I’m at the bottom of the track and slowly up I go. Click, click, click, I make it to the top of the hill. Then, in an instant, I plummet at high speeds into the valley below. I start going up another small hill and back down again and then up ahead, I can’t see.  All of a sudden, I'm whipped around a sharp turn. This journey has so many facets, and it changes from moment to moment.  Initially, the diagnosis comes and whiplash hits. I'm trying to process things in a state of unbelief. I begin to mourn some of the losses, maybe check out for a little and then I have a choice to make: will I turn left or right or keep going straight? Depending on the choice I make, the result is the difference between feeling a sense of hope, purpose or maybe despair.  Some people‘s journeys are very short at this stage of the ride and others may be more of a lengthy one.  ...

dancingwithalsandlife.blogspot.com Experiencing slow but continual motor function loss of my arms, hands and now in my legs, sucks!. Prior to living with ALS, I was very active with a busy life consisting of my career and family. For self care, I enjoyed hobbies to help me decompress from the world.  In 2021, my busyness came to a screeching halt going from 100 miles an hour to nothing and gave me unbearable whiplash. I just felt so lost when everything was being stripped away from me, especially all my hobbies that required using my hands such as gardening, baking, crafts, crocheting, and reading. Focusing on the losses just threw me into a tailspin of deep depression and self isolation. I would spend countless hours scrolling through webpages on 101 hobbies to try, hoping and praying for hook, line and sinker that would fit my new normal. I even googled activities/hobbies for disabled individuals. Funny thing is, the website said disabled individuals should try gardening, puzzles...

dancingwithalsandlife.blogspot.com  I began to take one step forward and then one step backward and I start moving forward again a.k.a. dancing with ALS because it is constantly robbing me of something. For example, I can no longer drive, take a shower on my own, bring a glass to my mouth to take a drink, dress myself and hug my loved ones.  The list becomes endless when living with ALS. These things are all happening while I am keenly alert and aware that the disease will progress . After time marched on and death didn’t come as soon as I thought, I had a choice to make.  Do I continue to remain in the dark spaces, or do I use my faith and decide to start living the life that I’ve been given even with all the nasty things that come along with it? The next fundamental question that presents itself is what is my purpose? Everyone needs to feel a sense of purpose and hope in their day.  It is vital part of our mental health.  Ironically, this was a conversation I ...

dancingwithalsandlife.blogspot.com      “One of the most beautiful qualities of true friendship is to understand and be understood“ ~Lucius Seneca 7/24

dancingwithalsandlife.blogspot.com    “There is a sunrise and sunset each and every single day, and they're absolutely free. Don't miss so many of them.”   ~ JO WALTON