The Truth about ALS

 ALS feels like you are thrown into the deep end of the pool. There are so many new feelings that you feel, most of them unpleasant, so many new situations that you face that no one prepares you for. In fact most of them may be overlooked. That is why I have tried to list them down. Lack of Privacy  You can kiss your privacy goodbye because when you need help for anything and everything there will be always someone around you. Not to mention that a bathroom visit is a whole event in itself, so everyone knows when you "go". So embarrassing! Sure you get alone time a lot, but the compromised privacy definitely takes getting used to.  Random Touches Thankfully sensory nerves remain unaffected in ALS. But the amount of physical interaction I need because of my limp body is something that I had to get used to. I have to be stood up, sat down, pushed, pulled, transferred, yanked, jostled to be comfortable enough. Wheelchair rides I need a manual wheelchair that has to be pushed by

 It's July. Two years ago this month  I took the dreaded EMG test. It was my second time taking this test after a couple of months. And yet I wasn't mentally prepared for it because I knew what was about to happen. EMG is a very painful test in which they insert a needle one by one into every major muscle of the body, including back, both shoulders, both upper arms, forearms, hands, abdomen, both thighs, calves, feet, and even the face and the tongue. Yes, because I had complained of heaviness in my tongue I had to get it pricked as well. After pricking they ask you to flex the muscle, this is the point where it hurts the most.  The Arabian Sea on a cloudy July day The hospital at which the test was conducted was quite far away from home, and the test results would take another two hours, so I had some time to kill. We visited the Gateway of India, a popular monument overlooking the Arabian Sea, and followed it up with lunch at Cream Center, one of my favorite restaurants albei