Living Well with ALS - a column by Dagmar Munn

Racing thoughts, runaway thoughts. Whatever you call ’em, I caught ’em. Yup, a case of full-blown, out-of-control, runaway thoughts. I hadn’t had them for years — not since the day I was told I had ALS. And then, like most newly diagnosed patients, I spent weeks and months imagining the…

Last week, I had the pleasure of joining the Fox Valley/Lakeshore ALS Virtual Support Group in Wisconsin as their guest speaker. We had fun discussing ways to reduce stress during the ongoing crisis while we live with our ALS. During my presentation, I shared one strategy…

During these past few months, like most folks I know, I’ve been watching movies — lots of movies. And by now, my wish list of titles is pretty well picked over. So, whenever a new release comes out, I jump on it, thinking “OK, Netflix, surprise me!” Well, I got…

Oh my! We’re still facing challenges brought on by the pandemic and most likely will continue doing so for some time. Right now I’m feeling the loss of being able to sit down with friends to chat and catch up on the little things in our lives. My many ALS…

Recently, my husband and I experienced a staycation of sorts — we dined on two weeks of gourmet meals without leaving our home. Although it gave my husband-caregiver a much-needed break from meal preparations and was a nice change of pace for both of us, we wouldn’t do it again.

Last week, I joined about 20 other ALS patients in attending an online meeting on Zoom. While the speaker scrolled through her slide program, I thought, “Wow, no parking lots! We’re all here and no one had to deal with a parking lot!” Maybe I should explain my negative association…

This week, I’m celebrating my third anniversary of writing columns for ALS News Today. This special column expresses my gratitude for having the unique opportunity to share my thoughts and wellness knowledge with the ALS community. It is a thank-you to loyal readers for their support, comments, and friendship.

During my past 10 years of living with ALS, I’ve had to adapt to a lot of new normals. One of the most important has been learning to navigate what I call my “ALS time zone.” It represents the unique pace or rhythm of my day, versus the pace…

A large part of successfully living with ALS is to face each challenge with a positive mindset and find workable solutions so I can continue to move forward with my life. Lately, a 4-by-6-inch piece of cloth — yes, a face mask — is putting me to the test. What’s…

Here’s a fun challenge. In the spirit of celebrating ALS Awareness Month, I invite you to play my A-L-S word game. It’s a simple game I created to help me cope with the stress and anxiety of being newly diagnosed with ALS. It goes along with the strategies…