I'm writing a movie and I've got a question...

[rjmix]

I will just add that joelc did get my email and is extremely helpful! It is an absolute pleasure to talk with him!

 

[BethU]

Hi, rjmx ... I may as well pile on ... and answer your one question again ... several others have as well, so you should be all set.

I've got one dynamic scene in mind and if I could link that with my character's ALS, it would be extremely compelling. If a patient came down with pneumonia or a cold and that, coupled with the weakness of breath associated with ALS, made it so hard to breath that he needed an inhaler or oxygen to stay alive, would that be plausible?

No ... it is not plausible. That is not how ALS works, as others have explained. ALS affects muscles not organs. Any ALS patient with seriously impaired breathing would a) have a BiPap breathing assistance with them at all times, and b) NOT be traveling. If they developed pneumonia, they'd be in a hospital or ER. If the BiPap weren't sufficient, a tracheotomy would be necessary. There would be no "sudden breathing emergency" from a confluence of events in an airport.

If you need a disease with sudden respiratory failure, try Myasthenia Gravis (although again, the use of an inhaler or oxygen would not be the solution ... hospitalization and entubation would be necessary.) Also, MG respiratory failure is not that "sudden," it comes on more slowly than your dramatic needs would allow.

Best bet is to give your "victim" a heart attack. Or asthma.

"Raising awareness" of ALS is counterproductive if you don't understand the nature of the disease.

Just a simple request in exchange for all this wonderful information we are giving you: If you do ever complete your screenplay, dynamite death scene of ALS patient and all, and some producer snaps it up, and it gets greenlighted, and funded, and made into a major motion picture (I'm seeing Tom Hanks as your PALS), PLEASE DONT MENTION TWITCHES . Living in LA as you do, I'm sure you are familiar with how often wanna-be screenwriters hit gold on their first get-go, so I'm sure this will be in theaters by 2011. :lol:

Thank you for your cooperation on the twitches.

 

[liz]

If you're wanting something sudden and dramatic for your character, have him fall down and crack his head. You could have blood, bruising and swelling, an ambulance ride, a concussion, or even a coma!

 

[rocmg]

Is there any situation during the course of ALS that would warrant a patient getting immediate medications or treatment to prevent death? Like with a strong allergy, someone would need an epi-pen shot or with diabetes, they would need insulin. From what I gather, ALS is a slow degenerative disease and I can't find anything immediate that might take place. The reason I ask is I've got one dynamic scene in mind and if I could link that with my character's ALS, it would be extremely compelling.

apparently "elixir of life" not only cures pals of all their symptoms, but actually reverses the damage, making them superhuman. we're just all waiting on it to be approved by the FDA. :?


however, i hope your movie works out. it would be cool if you could raise the profile of ALS. good luck in your efforts.

 

[Connie]

Hi rjmix,

I think you are well meaning and as the wife of a wonderful man with ALS, I think we are very sensitive in terms of needing this site, as I do, to get through the day because ALS is such a depressing, frightening disease.

My husband was only diagnosed last May but our life has been transformed from a very nice, comfortble one to a very sad and scary one.

Your film might help with public understanding and awareness of this horrific disease. I applaud you for your efforts.

Connie

 

[joelc]

I have exchanged several emails with Ryan and have found him to be very sincere in what he is doing. So, I will be continuing to share what I know about ALS and my personal experiences with him.

I want to do everything I can to accurately portray what ALS is and raise awareness.

 

[hopingforthebest]

Not sure if this helps but ALS can affect the diaphram and cause difficulty with breathing and if on top of that, a patient has Asthma or bronchial problems, they would really get into some trouble if they developed a pneumonia.

A neurologist and a pulmonary doctor would be a good contact with specific questions regarding medications when developing these respiratory problems on top of the ALS.

My husband is on hospice and something I mentioned on forum was that his social worker with hospice said the majority of patients that have passed away on hospice that were ALS patients, died of disease unrelated to the ALS itself. (Heart attack, diabetes, CHF etc.) She also said that recently she had heard ALS as a syndrome vs a disease. Don't know if I buy that one! So take her comments as just that "her comments".

Good luck

 

[rjmix]

Oh gosh no, I certainly don't want the PALS to die. I can completely understand how I would've upset people in this forum if they thought that's what I was trying to do! No, I was just trying to create a dramatic scene, similar to something you'd see on ER. But the character definitely survives. Wow, I would deserve to get beat up if that was my intention in this post, haha.

Thank you again for all the wonderful information. I think my questions have definitely been answered. And another huge thanks to Joel for continuing to help me understand what a real person living with ALS goes through. Learning from a real person beats all of the independent research I could've done. And yes, I do not expect to be winning an Oscar by next awards season. But hopefully I'll be nominated in 2011. lol

 

[BethU]

Well, you will need an expert advisor on the set, as they do with cops and lawyers, so I think you have a pretty good candidate in Joel!

 

[lynster]

rjmix,

As previous posts have said, about the only thing that comes out as a life-threatening emergency is breathing issues. I know that my husband and I have discussed what might happen if he had a car accident and he ended up on his back. He would be dead within minutes. He is still ambulatory, still drives, and can walk some, but his breathing/diaphragm is so affected that he would indeed be extremely compromised (or dead) if he did not get help immediately. Awake and upright he is okay, but any time he is horizontal he uses a BiPap.

Maybe this will help.

Hope you win an Oscar!

Lynn
wife of pALS diagnosed 08/08

 

[RoadKill]

I will sell you the rights to my life story for 1 million upfront and 1% of the film's gross. I don't care who plays me. I don't care if you have to add a few car chase scenes or exploding buildings. When the film comes out, I will say only positive things (if I can still speak) and I will go on Oprah and Good Morning America to pimp the film for you.

 

[joelc]

Before anyone else has something smart to say I want you to know I was into indepth conversations with him and no one here was disrespectful to him. He is sincere about accurately portraying ALS. Everything is good. This is also 6 months old.

 

[RoadKill]

Were you offended by what I wrote?

 

[BethU]

Roadie ... I thought your post was funny, and I doubt anyone was offended.

As Joel points out, this thread is six months old. The guy's probably writing his sequel about someone threatened by flesh-eating bacteria by now.

 

[joelc]

No Roadie. Beth is right.
Hoping had to delete 1 very distasteful post, that is what I was trying to prevent from happening again.