Hello , I have heard people say , including my neurologist , that a good percentage of PALS have been in active jobs , or had active lives with hobbie for example . What jobs do you , or did you have , were you an active person . ?
I did ballet from the age of 3 up to age 36 , and ice-skating for 10 years , and was a busy nurse . I had a wheelchair delivered 2 days ago , and activity seems like only yesterday . xx

Good question Tich, I was a hiker, mountain climber, scuba diver, skier, and hunter. Those were my hobbies and much of my work too for the past ten years. It is very hard for me to cope with my loss of function now, while I can still walk some, I used to be able to walk 5 kilometers in the mountains with a 30 pound backpack in under an hour. What a BUMMER!!

I have heard over and over again that people who contract ALS were very active. Overly active. It does not seem to affect couch potatoes. LOL. I guess we should have been as we would not likely have ALS if we were.

I was always busy building something (journeyman carpenter & cabinet maker), cutting firewood, camping, hiking, boating, etc. etc.

I'll tell you how active I was. My house was a place I came in when it was too dark to do anything else. I worked 28 yrs as a field surveyor with the Highway Dept. I enjoyed hunting and fishing, especially turkey hunting, which required lots of walking. I refereed basketball and umpired softball and baseball games. I also enjoyed playing golf. Now the biggest thing I do is mow my yard on my riding lawn mower. To go from being very active to basically doing nothing, and still enjoying life, comes only from God.

Hello Barry joel , and JAKE , my we were all very active , mind you , bet we all have very active minds now , and I can still do a full ballet , or deliver a baby in my mind too :-) x

My mom who had ALS was up before the sun everyday and never sat still for 5 seconds ever. She ran a bar and grill and was always busy busy busy. When she wasn't working at the bar, she was cutting wood, gardening, rearranging furniture, you name it. ALS is familial in our family, her mother passed it to her but never showed any symptoms. My grandma was a very sedintary person and spent the last 10-15 years of her life in a recliner.

Makes me really think, I am a runner and with a genetic predisposition, maybe I shouldn't be????

Hi asantiago , sorry to hear your mother has ALS , she certainly was active too . I hope you are finding support and are coping . This forum is a good place for you hun x

Its hard to compare if I was active or not.

3 years of renovations on my home (before I was dx'd - I wish I had known)

Loved my motorcycles. My 57 Dodge Fargo .

When I wasnt working on computers for a living (still working btw) and not on my hobbies , I would be gaming online. First Person Shooters .

Now ,

More , different , renovations (that I have to pay for now). Motorcycles are gone. 57 Dodge may have to go too. Online Gaming has stopped . Still spend time on computers .

and I can still do a full ballet , or deliver a baby in my mind too

Tich, I can't even WATCH a ballet let alone do one! Well OK, I probably could watch one but not for the same reasons as you :twisted: and as far as deliver a baby?? I don't even want to think about it.....

Hee Barry , easy for me , I was a midwife for years :-) xx

Tich, I would LOVE to see some Ballet photos!!! Can you post some? You are an amazing woman, by the way. Wow!
All of you Barry, Glen, Jake, asantiago's mom, Joel, such amazing people. I'm so happy to "know" you!

My dad was also up at the crack of dawn, worked as an electrician for over 40 years, grew and tended to an amazing vegetable garden and stunning flower beds, always maintained impeccable landscaping, made his own wine every year, plowed snow like no one else, was the most skilled handy man I have ever known, renovated every square inch of every home we ever lived in, made furniture, was an avid golfer, and went and helped everyone of his family members and friends with their renovations, repairs, electrical work etc. So many people are indebted to him for his boundless generosity. The last word you could ever call him was inactive. And every time he did any one of the things I have named, he whistled while he worked. What my ears wouldn't give to hear him whistle that special tune of his.

Thanks Tich,
I like this place and wish I had found it when mom was still alive. There is so much useful information and support here. I came here a lot when she first passed away but had to take a break, I was obsessing over the disease so much after living it with mom that I started thinking I was showing symptoms. After a break, I'm here a lot lately and it is easier as I have healed a lot in the last few months.

As a midwife what do you recommend for heartburn???? I am 34 weeks and fighting it something awful. Tums does little and Zantac helps some but I find myself up many nights because of it.

Hi there
I too was very active,
Like thelma's dad i was an electrician, and doing extra work for friends, family and the community.
In my spare time i was a vounteer firefighter and went on many 5 day deployments fire fighting all over Australia.

Also i was very active in shooting, both target (represented the state some 20 times and Australia once) as well as hunting, especially pigs which would involve many kilometers of walking. (perhaps i shouldnt have gone for that last one, but then i wouldnt have got him ):smile:

cheers
Peter

asantiago , I read in another post somewhere in here , that a spoon full of vinegar will fix that . Do a search for vinegar.


Glen

Thanks Glen, I will give it a try.

Actually I would say that for most of my life I have not been unusually active. I work as a software developer, nothing more strenuous than wiggling my fingers. Hobbies would be mostly reading, watching TV, and now surfing the net. I've never done any sports other than going skiing once or twice each winter, and doing some jogging on years when I got ambitious about it. Then about 3 years ago I decided to turn over a new leaf, lost some weight, took up distance running, and really got into it. So for the past 3 years I've been super active with my running. In fact I'm still running, I was only diagnosed a few weeks ago but I feel fine.

One thing I wonder about is falls. Active people might be more likely to fall. I know when I started running, I took some good spills four or five times that first year. Had to learn to watch the ground closely for obstacles. Then the second year, I had a really bad fall, threw my back out badly. It still bothers me sometimes now, a year and a half later.

I was a competative swimmer for 5yrs ,tryed for the olypics but didn't make it . I taught swimming also. Duke off Edinburghs award and Outward bound course in Devon England.School Games captian. As an Adult played european handball,Raquetball etc,etc. I have worked hard and never been lazy, maybe I pushed to hard, and the neurons said ENOUGH.

Rick has always been considered a couch potato but he has had his moments...... he was a tournament table tennis champion as well as billiards...... and for activity he was a college aged tennis tournament winner for several years. And he played basketball plenty when he was in the Navy 21 years. (9 active..12 reserves)

We tried playing tennis a few years ago. (we're 61 now). Maybe 3 years ago we tried playing at the local college courts and decided to serve it directly toward each other and to try to return the ball also in reach. It was still too strenuous for Rick. He had trouble moving quickly enough and broke out in a sweat that made him weak. ALS symptoms beginning.

Hi Peter , halfin , Blackpool , and Marjorie , thank you for your interesting posts too . Thank you to the senior members also :-)
Thelma honey , I will try to upload a piccy especially for you :-)
As for heartburn asantiago sweetie , you've probably tried a few things already , obviously spicy or greasy foods will make it worse .
Eat little and often rather than a big meal , lie on your side in bed , sit up as straight as you can in a chair . Do you have an equvalent
to Gaviscon over there ? You say you're 34 weeks hun , not much longer before baby will start to drop and it should ease then as baby gets out from under your ribs ! All the best honey xxx

This is me at around 16 years of age Thelma xx

Wow , that came out .....HUGE !!!!!

Oh , that's embarrasingly huge a piccy , sorry to those who don't like ballet ................:-(

It's a fabulous photo! You are so cute... a teenage ballerina. I love it. The picture is beautiful. You look so happy.
What a fantastic life, Tich from Ballerina to midwife. You make us women proud! :razz:

Thank you Thelma honey :-)
Now that you've seen the huge piccy Thelma , do you know how I can now delete it , it's far too big to stay there ...lol

Leave it! It's beautiful!

DH never sat still but to sleep. He worked 10-12 hours a day as a mechanic, played softball (some times for two to three different teams at the same time, games every night and tournaments on weekends), golf, motorcycle, four wheeler, always fixing and doing around the house. Very sad to see all of his ball equipment dusty in the garage.

My brother was very active too. Played hockey, golfed, tennis, rode snowmobiles. Did lots of work on his cars and house and yard.

Tich, I don't think this picture is too big at all! I love it and I think you should leave it. Also, I don't know how to delete it. I am pretty sure you would have to ask a moderator. As you can see though you already have two votes (mine and duplinwino's) to leave it here.
I love the picture!

I was never very active. Desk job. Played golf and softball but those are pretty sedentary sports.

Then, with age 50 approaching and my own mortality and big gut giving me hints, I started running. Short distances at first, but worked up to it. I was in the best shape of my life!

2 years after I began running I developed symptoms. Coincidence? I'll never know.

-Tom

I was hyperactihve. Now forced to be underactive. Can hardly type!