Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or ALS, was discovered in 1869 by a French neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot. Today this disease is commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease, after the famous baseball player who suffered through ALS. ALS is a progressive nervous system disease where the nerve cells break down impacting bodily functions. The disease affects the motor neurons that provide voluntary movements and muscle control. Those who are diagnosed with ALS will eventually lose their ability to eat, speak, move and breathe. The cause of ALS is unknown. As of today, there is no cure for this disease however with medication and therapeutic treatments the progression of it can be slowed down. The treatments will also help reduce the discomfort of having the disease (The ALS Association, www.alsa.org).
A person living with ALS can be an unbearable experience for them. To live with knowing that they will lose the ability to move, even to take a breath on their own can be quite unnerving and depressing. But there’s a story of man who lived with ALS and chose to make every one of his remaining days living life to the fullest with love. This
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Tuesdays with Morrie is a good book with great lessons about life, love and the meaning of it all. It was amazing to see how Morrie was able to live his life fully while knowing he was going to lose mobility of his limbs and breathing on his own. He was able to make peace with death by mentally removing himself from his illness. Not everyone is able to do that. Reading this made me think of my loved ones who’ve passed on from illnesses, and what was possibly going through their minds during that time. Also, just reading through it allowed me to slow down and just be aware of what 's going on around me. I was able to be just present in the moment, even if was just a quick moment. I do plan on reading it again though, more thoroughly and take time to get completely enthrall in all the senses and themes of the