When Dagmar Munn was diagnosed with ALS at the age of 59 in 2010, she tapped into her nearly 30 years of professional health and wellness experience. She not only follows her own advice but also inspires and teaches others to do the same. In addition to her columnist role, she is one of the moderators for the ALS News Today Forums and writes a personal blog called “ALS and Wellness.” She lives with her husband in Green Valley, Arizona, enjoying finding humor in life’s situations and spending free time pursuing creative projects in fiber arts.
One of the interesting mental challenges I continue to experience as I live with ALS is its effect on my perception of time. The predicted prognosis of living only two to five years after…
Living with ALS presents many challenges. For me, navigating life with a rollator, thickened beverages, and daily medication often feels like an uphill battle. There are days I wish I could go back…
Toilets aren’t one of the topics that come up in most conversations, but for those of us living with ALS, it’s fairly common and not at all embarrassing. We’ll often chat about the…
For the first few years after I was diagnosed with ALS, I followed a daily routine of walking laps in the shallow end of our neighborhood outdoor pool. I soon became friends with…
When my doctor told me that I had ALS, my reaction was like that of most newly diagnosed ALS patients. I felt a jumble of emotions and desperately wanted to let my friends…
Fire the flare guns, turn on the ship-to-shore radio, and holler “Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!” That’s the first order of business for a ship that’s sinking. It needs attention — lots of attention. There’s even…
The other day when I sat down at my computer, I discovered a small, beige envelope that had been left near my workspace. To my surprise, inside was a letter addressed to me from…
Some days, my motivation just gets stuck. Even though I’ve got interesting plans and projects to do, I can’t get started on any of them. The reasons why can include not getting enough hours…
The other day, my husband spotted me putting on my sneakers while using a long shoehorn and asked, “Wouldn’t that be a lot easier if we got you a pair of those new step-in…
I realize that the words “goals,” “improvement,” and “ALS” don’t always appear in the same sentence, but for me, they do. That’s because, over the past few years, I’ve followed a strategy of…
If you’ve been keeping up with my recent columns, you’ve likely figured out that even though I have ALS, I maintain a glass-half-full attitude. So, today, I thought you’d enjoy learning how I…
The phrase “stay in your lane” is often posted on signs to help motorists drive through a construction zone. It’s also a basic rule when swimming side by side in a race with other…