When I have more energy, I will expand this section.
In the meantime... if you've just been diagnosed and told to go home and get ready to die, know this:
You don't have to die UNLESS YOU WANT TO.
But your survival depends on the following:
· Educate yourself about your illness
· Get doctors who will support your choice
· Find things to look forward to
· Exercise regularly to maintain range of motion (I can't recommend Taoist Tai Chi highly enough)
· Get a good naturopath to supplement diet and support liver, kidney and adrenal function
· Believe that a treatment, if not a cure, will come. It will. It's but a matter of time. Be ready for it.
· Stay mentally active. Read. Write. Learn a new language. Go back to school. Study medicine. Flex your brain.
ALS does not have to be a death sentence.
I often cope by identifying with a favourite hero... for example Frodo Baggins. Yep, it sounds corny but it's how I often make it through the day. When the pain, or frustration, gets too great. When I feel I can not possibly cope with one more loss, or one more itch I can't scratch, I put myself in his place. And then I know I can carry on.
