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How has ALS impacted your priorities?
After the shock of being diagnosed with ALS wore off, I looked at life differently. The song by Tim McGraw comes to mind, Live Like You Are Dying.”
I’ve learned to live, truly live, in each moment. I value quality time with the people I love over everything else. I make a point of noticing the good things, and I point those things out. I strive to be a better person and to make other people’s days and lives better. That is fulfilling for me.
I focus on ALS advocacy and volunteer for opportunities to help find treatments and cures for ALS. These are my priorities now, and they help keep me positive.
What are your priorities as a pALS or a caregiver? How have they shifted over time?
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4 Replies
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Amanda
Sounds to me like you are doing great. I wish I could be that positive.
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Boj,
I have my days!! This week has been a doozy to be honest. I have to remind myself how good I have it. I also have to apologize to my mom a lot. She’s been staying with me since about 2 weeks after I was diagnosed. She is awesome. At 80 years old, with severe COPD she is still taking care of everything she can to help me. We take care of each other. It’s comical at times since neither of us are physically strong or have an abundance of energy.
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I, like Amanda, had to go through the shock of being diagnosed with ALS – and then, I vowed to make each day count. No more putting my self-care last. I build it into each day as part of my routine; good sleep, eat healthy, exercise my body, and look for the good (rather than dwell on the negatives). I love being involved with creative groups, but with ALS I had to change the way I was involved. Now, I do more online; learning to create newsletters and websites for my groups. I love being able to share motivation and ideas through my weekly column for ALS News Today. I guess you could say, my priorities haven’t changed, only change is the way I do them.
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Dagmar,
I have found you to be inspiring since we first met. We’ve come a long way together on this journey and platform. I give you a lot of credit for motivating me to look for the best in situations. Thank you Dagmar. I cherish your friendship.
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