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My Mom was officially diagnosed with ALS in April of 2019.  Her first symptom, severe leg cramps and slight tingling at the toes of her left foot, started sometime in 2016.  She went on to develop drop foot in her left foot, the foot also started getting cold, and fell 3 times.  A neurologist diagnosed a pinched nerve as the problem, but explained we had waited too long for surgery to fix her foot.  The doctor did strongly suggest we go ahead with the procedure anyways because she could lose control of her bladder or other foot.   In May of 2017 she fell and fractured her right knee and after that recovery she could not walk without a rollator.  Retirement in June of 2019 was almost forced upon her since her ALS had made walking long distances almost impossible without assistance and the Migrant program at her school district didn’t have enough man power to have someone else take up that part of the job.  As of today she has had a feeding tube placed and primarily uses her electric wheelchair to get around.  I feel extremely blessed to have left the military and move back home when I did so that I could be here to become her primary care giver.  She has always been such a strong woman and loving mother – up until Nov of 2019 she worked full time at the school district and right after work we would all meet at a family grocery store to work the evening shift until 10pm M-Sun.  Being a workaholic runs deep in our blood.