Family Emergency
>> Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Although I haven't been able to meet my eventual goal of blogging every day, I do feel as though I owe my few, but nonetheless important, followers an explanation of my recent absence. I've done a lot of thinking of whether or not I should address this issue here, and I've come to the conclusion that it is important for me to shed light on something that has severely affected my life.
The past week has proved to be much more difficult than I thought could be possible. Last Monday I found out that my grandmother, who had been ill, was in the hospital and was going to be put on hospice care to die at home. By Tuesday morning, however, she was unresponsive, and the prognosis was grim. Rather than the few weeks I thought I was to have left with her, the hospital staff was unsure as to whether or not she'd ever wake again. Although she was responsive for a few hours Wednesday morning, I missed the window, and spent hours Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday after work by her bedside. She passed away Thursday evening, me still at her side.
While this is a very difficult post for me to write, I feel compelled to share the story of my beautiful and vivacious grandmother, who fought an outstanding battle with a brutal disease. My grandmother, who truly deserves the title vibrant, was diagnosed with the most cruel and savage diseases I have ever witnessed: ALS.
ALS stands for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and is more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. To explain the disease as simply as possible, the motor neurons that carry messages from the brain to the muscles die, thus inhibiting voluntary muscle movement and nourishment, which causes the muscles to waste away. A person with ALS with begin to have muscle weakness, and eventually lose the ability to move limbs, speak, swallow, and breathe - all while leaving the brain intact. Essentially an ALS patient will be a fully cognitive brain stuck in a body that does not work.
In my grandmother's case, she had lost most of her muscle strength, almost all ability to speak, and had a feeding tube inserted so that she could still get nourishment. However, her weakening digestive system was causing her to inhale her feeds (aspirate), which causes fluid buildup in the lungs and is very serious. Due to the amount of aspirations she had in the last month, the decision was made to put her on hospice with no more feeds, since she did not want to end up on a ventilator.
Needless to say, I am brokenhearted by her passing. She was my confidant, my kindred spirit, and my friend. I miss her dearly, but can't help to be thankful to know that now she is healthy and happy and whole once again. I encourage all of you to read up on ALS, and even if you cannot make a donation at this time, spread the word about this devastating disease. There is no known cause or cure. The disease is so difficult to diagnose that you are required to get a second opinion before a diagnosis is secured. Once diagnosed, most people live a maximum of 3-5 years, and the only treatment available may lengthen an ALS patient's life up to 6 months.
Please click here to learn more about ALS. If you'd like to donate to ALS research, you can do so here.
