We all have things we like to do for fun – hobbies, sports, artistic endeavors or other leisure activities. Despite all the challenges and tasks involved in living with ALS, it’s important to keep doing the things you enjoy. Although ALS can make many leisure activities more difficult – or even seemingly impossible – there are ways you can adapt and still enjoy the things you love. Learn more.
You do a lot of little activities every day, usually without even thinking about them: button your clothes, brush your teeth and pick up a coffee mug. These common tasks are automatic for most people, but they become more challenging when you have you’re living with ALS. You can make daily living activities easier by adjusting how you do things or making small changes to items around the house. Learn more.
ALS often requires adjustments to your living situation. As your medical needs increase and your ability to perform everyday tasks decrease, you may need professional care on a daily or around-the-clock basis. This care may be provided in your own home but might also require moving to a different home or facility. Learn more.
Freedom of movement - walking, going up and down stairs, getting off the floor, completing daily activities, exercising—these are just a few of the activities that many of us take for granted and are able to perform without limitation. For an individual with ALS, these often become difficult or even impossible to do. As weakness develops in the legs, trunk muscles or diaphragm, active movement can become limited.
It is not unusual to notice the first symptoms of ALS in the arms or legs. There may be only a slight weakness or clumsiness in the affected limb at first and the person with ALS (PALS) may be able to go without orthotics until the weakness progresses to a more noticeable level. However, adaptability, comfort, and independence can be greatly enhanced with the proper orthopedic devices and/or products.
Does ALS cause pain? The answer is yes, although in most cases it does so indirectly. From what we know at this time, the disease process in ALS only affects the nerve cells controlling strength (motor neurons) in the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. Fortunately, these nerves don’t send pain signals back up to the brain.
Coughing is a familiar, yet complex reflex action that functions to clear material from the airway. It protects the airway from irritants, saliva, or foreign particles that may have been inhaled (aspirated), and secretions, cellular debris, and microbes generated by the lungs or bronchial tree. Coughing can be involuntary; a reaction to inhaling a foreign particle or wayward food particle, or voluntary, intentionally taking a deep breath to clear mucus from the throat.
In our work at The ALS Association’s National Office and Chapters, we all encounter a variety of situations involving persons with ALS and their families.
The ALS Association, the only national nonprofit fighting amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) on every front, applauded the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) announcement today that it has approved Radicava (edaravone), the first new treatment approved specifically for ALS in 22 years. The FDA approved Radicava less than a year after Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation submitted a New Drug Application. There are only two other approved treatments specifically for ALS, Riluzole and Tiglutik.
During an observational study, researchers might follow a group of people living with ALS over time to see how their disease progresses or use a wide range of samples and clinical information to investigate genetic causes of ALS or potential biomarkers. Observational studies can also be used to explore the role of environmental factors, such as toxins, in ALS development.