Speech and Swallowing

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missmineau

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My moms speech has become quite nasal and slurred, moreso when tired, yet her chewing and swallowing has not been affected, which I like to think of as a small blessing. The doctor told her it could be months until her chewing/swallowing is affected, he just seemed very vague. Anyone else in a similar situation or follow the same progression path? She no longer feeds can feed herself but is able to maintain her weight, yay for small victories right? The uncertainty of it all really sucks!
 
Hi Abby,
Ten months ago I was equal to your Mom based on what you have said,I will be 68 in Aug.Now chewing is a lot of work and the jaw gets really tired,I am eating very soft foods,no more steak for sure.I have some problems with swallowing of certain types of food and am careful about what I eat.I have been putting off the PEG,but not for much longer.Time to take Mom out for a great dinner.
Hugs Ken
 
Hi, ditto for me. Talking is more and more slurred, but I can swallow ok. Don't know what's going on. I think ALS wants to torture me and make me completely immobile and keep me alive to enjoy every minute. I hope it doesn't take months!Good luck with your Mom. The uncertainty is one of the worst parts. I'm very tired of it.
 
It's really good that she isn't losing weight because that's the cue to seriously think of getting a peg tube. My speech and swallowing went away pretty much hand in hand with slurring starting in July 2007 and the choking starting about 6 months later. I stopped talking by spring 2009 and stopped eating by that fall.

Good luck and sorry that she is going through this. And the same for you Carol and Ken, not eating is awful to be sure.
 
Abby,
Forgot to tell you voice now 100% gone!
 
We're in the same boat as you with my mother right now. She is capable of eating sometimes, but only a few bites before she gets nauseous or too tired to continue. Her breathing is fine for now, but her speech can be slurred at times. She also has a very hard time getting words out, kind of like the "tip of the tongue" sort of thing. The words are there but they won't come out without a lot of effort.

They put in a feeding tube as of yesterday, as she had gone nearly two weeks without eating more than a few bites at a time. (If that.)

For comparison on the progression of her ALS, she was diagnosed back in last June/July and was able to walk on her own at that point. Soon after that she began falling more frequently, until she fell and broke her ankle. She is now completely unable to move except for her right hand about an inch, and her legs are stuck in the sitting postion and un-able to unbend. (They haven't been straight in months.)

I can't imagine it will be much longer until she is unable to breath or eat at all on her own, but the doctors are very vague on a time line.
 
Thank you all for all your insight. Its very interesting that your mom also fell and broke her ankle Harlequin. My mom had been falling for about a year to a year and a half to reasons we never understood. Then last Jan (2010) she fell down some steps and broke her ankle, we blamed it on icy steps. Over the course of the next few months she kept falling and reinjuring her ankle, finally in March of 2010 the dr's decided to do surgery to put plates and pins in her ankle. During this time she was in a wheelchair a lot of the time and lost a lot of strength in her arms, again we thought it was from the fall and not using these muscles. It was finally September of 2010 my parents had had enough and wanted answers as to why mom was getting so weak in her arms, and we were given the horrible diagnosis that changed our lives. I find it interesting how everyones stories are so different yet so similar in ways. I have said it before this board has been a god sent for me, I have learned so much more thru this board than dr's ect. I cannot thank you all enough!
 
I hope your mother will be able to continue to chew and swallow without difficulty for some time to come!

My husband can barely be understood at this point, yet he still eats some foods. (maybe a pureed soup or a fruit smoothie, occasionally smoothing gooey)

He was d x d with ALS in 2006 and both his left hand/arm and tongue were affected. So, each pALS is different and no one can predict the progression.
 
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