ALS sometimes creeps into your life
I didn’t even realize it was happening
When the first signs appeared
I tried to shake it off
My intuition told me something was wrong
My doctor gaslit me, invalidating my symptoms
She left me mistrusting my perceptions
Thinking it was all in my head, I moved on
I eventually discovered I wasn’t crazy after all
ALS was real
It raised it’s ugly head and said “I’m not going away”
As time goes on the disease demands more and more attention
The level of intimacy changes
The amount of time my husband has to spend with ALS
And the amount of physical work it requires
Has taken away from me, the person
Unlike the other woman, there’s no way to stop it
I can’t leave if I’m unhappy with it
I acknowledge I am giving ALS too much power
Too much time was spent in past relationships, before ALS, worrying about the real other woman
I have allowed ALS to consume every thought I have
I don’t know what to do about it.
In my mind, the answer is to continue to fight it