wheelchair

Since the point where my husband, Todd, needed a wheelchair because of his ALS progression, he’s had to navigate a less than perfectly accessible world. Todd is particularly challenged in our old community, which was built up long before the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in…

When ALS first caused my husband, Todd, to need a wheelchair, he realized he couldn’t recline too far in it or he’d get stuck there; his arms were too weak to reach the joystick or seat-control buttons. To compensate, his durable medical equipment technician added an egg switch to…

My husband, Todd, gets twice-weekly physical therapy, which significantly improves his quality of life with ALS. Six years ago, Todd was having pain in his shoulders, and his elbows would not fully straighten, making it difficult for him to use his wheelchair. His doctor ordered physical and occupational therapy evaluations…

I got away for a couple of nights during spring break with my 12-year-old son, Isaac, and 16-year-old daughter, Sara. It was good to have a mini-vacation, although I was sad my husband, Todd, couldn’t join us because his ALS progression makes travel too difficult. Three years ago, we all…

I set my husband, Todd, up on his computer with his HeadMouse and sip-and-puff clicker. ALS has compromised his breathing, so I put on his noninvasive ventilator. I call my mom, who lives next door. She will keep her mobile phone in her pocket. If Todd needs anything, he…

I’ve been worried about leaving my husband, Todd, who has ALS, alone after his close call with his breathing last week, but he said he would be fine while I ran to town. I needed to pick the kids up from school and take our daughter to a dentist…

My husband, Todd, and I realized that massage could be beneficial for him even before he was diagnosed with ALS. Before we knew why his left arm was weak, I would massage his bicep and forearm, which helped him to better use it. Sometime after the diagnosis, his legs began…

We decorated for Christmas this past weekend. The kids and I went out into the woods, and my 12-year-old son, Isaac, cut down a balsam fir. My 15-year-old daughter, Sara, carried it back to our house, and we put it in the tree stand in the living room. When we…

Normally, we live much of our life at home. My husband, Todd, has ALS and is paralyzed. He spends his time in his wheelchair set up at his computer, and I can’t go far in case he needs help. Our traveling days are over, and we can’t visit most…

My husband, Todd, and I celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary in late August with a date at Fitzgerald’s, a restaurant built on the shore of Lake Superior in Eagle River, Michigan. A permit to build on a beach would never be approved today, but it could be done in…