When my late husband, Jeff, and I were living with his ALS, we were both drawn to spending time outside. While this wasn’t all that different from our life before ALS, somehow, when faced with his disease, sitting in nature brought a new level of peace that…
Thunder Road — Juliet Taylor
Juliet lost her husband, Jeff, to ALS in 2020, 19 months after his diagnosis. Together Jeff and Juliet enjoyed being on the water, live music, pets, and traveling. She was his primary caregiver, and finds meaning and healing in helping individuals and families who are living with or have lost a loved one to ALS. Juliet lives with her rescue pup, Sailor, on the eastern shore of Maryland, in a home that Jeff chose because it reminded him of his beloved Green Lake in Michigan.
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In the early, scary months after my late husband, Jeff, was diagnosed with ALS in the fall of 2018, I started to realize that I had no idea what we were up against. At almost 50 years old, I’d heard of ALS only through the Ice Bucket Challenge and…
On a bitterly cold morning in New York last weekend, I woke before the sun and walked through the empty city streets to the Times Square subway station. From there, I caught a train to Brooklyn, the starting line for the United Airlines NYC Half, where more than…
On a snowy morning three years ago, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, my late husband, Jeff, sped the entire length of the University of Michigan football field in his blue power wheelchair. Light snow was falling as his brothers and I watched him fly down the field, a…
Today I had a mammogram. We have a family history of certain cancers, so I’m careful to get recommended screenings. After losing my husband, Jeff, to ALS, I feel a bittersweet commitment to taking care of myself as he would want. Looking after my health after he’s gone,…
While my late husband, Jeff, was living with ALS, there was a place where we both felt supported and hopeful, his disease understood. Driving through the streets of Baltimore as we wound our way toward the Johns Hopkins ALS Clinic, I could’ve felt trepidation, as sometimes on clinic…
I’ve read dozens, if not more, of the kind of column I’m about to write: first-person narratives that offer advice to one’s younger self, full of lessons learned from difficult life experiences. Before my late husband, Jeff, was diagnosed with ALS, I devoured these columns, always looking for some…
A few weeks ago, I had a long conversation with a stranger I met while traveling. She was a bold and smart young woman who shared tales of her solo trips as we flew. She insightfully concluded that travel had made her more resilient, aware, and resourceful. I agreed. Growing…
For my late husband, Jeff, and me, the most difficult and saddening aspect of his ALS progression was the loss of his voice. It was heartbreaking for both of us when he lost the ability to speak, also known as dysarthria, early in his condition. Much of Jeff’s…
I remember the times before ALS, when after a day away from the house at work or running errands, I’d drive home in anticipation of seeing my late husband Jeff’s blue pickup truck in the driveway. Jeff and I would often arrive home at about the same time each…
My late husband, Jeff, had a motorized scooter that gave us the freedom to move and travel as his ALS progressed during the summer of 2019, our first full summer living with the condition. The scooter was one of the first things Jeff ordered from Amazon as his…
When my late husband, Jeff, was diagnosed with ALS in October 2018, I remember the early, seemingly insurmountable feelings of fear and bewilderment. I remember understanding that we were out of our depth in a completely foreign world of symptoms, appointments, and terminology, layered with the unbelievable knowledge…
I’m writing this column on a tough and emotional day — the anniversary of the 2018 ALS diagnosis for my late husband, Jeff. For the day I might have planned, I’d be hiking up Old Rag Mountain in Virginia, perhaps sharing the pretty view on social media,…
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