Wayne Thomas - Perspectives: 17 Things I Learned About Living Your Best Life While Battling a Terminal Illness

PERSPECTIVES

17 Things I Learned About Living Your Best Life While Battling a Terminal Illness

By Wayne Thomas

Contributing Editor: Kerrie Etson

Perspectives

Copyright 2020 by Wayne Thomas

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Tellwell Talent

www.tellwell.ca

ISBN

978-0-2288-4550-8 (Paperback)

978-0-2288-4549-2 (eBook)

I know in life there will be sickness, devastation, disappointments, heartache its a given. Whats not a given is the way you choose to get through it all. If you look hard enough, you can always find the bright side.

Rashida Jones

I would like to thank my beautiful wife Joanna, for her unconditional love and support she has given to me in writing this book. She has been my rock in this endeavor through providing content and editing and continues to support me physically and emotionally daily as I go through my ALS journey.

Thank-you to my friend Kerrie Etson, who nudged me to actually take the first step in writing this book and regularly took time out of her busy life to edit it and provide ideas. Thanks to Karen Caughey for writing the foreword and leading the ALS Society of Alberta, an organization that has been a valuable resource to Joanna and I and many others, since diagnosis.

Thank-you to you, the reader. I am humbled you took time out of your busy life to read my book. By purchasing this book, you are changing the world through supporting families fighting ALS and new research towards a cure. By sharing my journey you are learning about one of the deadliest diseases on the planet. Knowledge brings about change.

Finally, thank-you to our amazing friends and family members that have stepped up and provided unwavering kindness, their regular presence, love and a continued willingness to have our backs when it would have been far too easy to fade away and turn a blind eye to this horrible disease. You know who you are and we will be forever grateful.

Wayne Thomas

Contents

When the COVID-19 pandemic seized the world, our lives changed forever. As we face the uncertainty surrounding us daily, families affected by ALS continue to challenge the disease with amazing strength and resilience. ALS hasnt stopped or paused because of COVID-19.

ALS - the three letters that will change your life forever.

Wayne Thomas shares his journey living with this devastating disease through his thoughtful insights and honest reflection. He encourages the reader to reflect on their own lives through his lifes lessons and his pursuit of living the best life possible.

Wayne Thomas is synonymous with resilient. He challenges us and at the same time inspires us with his insightful perspective. His book is timely as the world tries to cope and manage in the midst of this unprecedented time.

There is so much to learn about living your best life, and we can all benefit from learning from Wayne. This is a powerful book depicting a journey battling a terminal illness and the remarkable bond between two people that gives strength and courage to each day.

It has been an honour to be a part of Waynes journey.

Karen Caughey

Where were you in March 2020 when COVID 19 turned our world upside down? Originally, this was a book about living your best life with ALS. It was about living your best life with the hand that life has dealt you. Since we began this book, all our worlds have changed in ways that we could never have fathomed two months prior. Whole cities have shut down, international borders have closed, travel has ceased, businesses have closed forever, schools have closed and kids are being home schooled, and adults and children are getting used to a new normal. Life has changed FOREVER, and that is what makes this book even more relevant.

This is one mans story about life living with the disease of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), which includes the triumphs and the tribulations, and about the indomitable love that two people have for each other. This book is not about the end of someones life, it is about the enduring spirit of one man, Wayne Thomas, who has chosen to embrace the life given to him and to live it to the best of his ability. It is about the people surrounding him, who love and care for him who want to share his life today. Hopefully, you, the reader, will come away with some understanding, life insights, and indeed, some new perspectives about living your best life with love and grace, but most of all, discovering Waynes journey can be a testament to the human spirit and a lesson to us all.

Lets converse!

Kerrie Etson

July 2020

PERSPECTIVE KERRIE, ITS ALL ABOUT PERSPECTIVE WAYNE THOMAS

Imagine you are in the prime of your life, happy, healthy, and active. From exercising regularly, eating organic, and doing everything right and then, suddenly, you head to the doctor because of random symptoms that could be anything, and, to your devastation, you are told you have a debilitating, degenerative and fatal disease called ALS.

Sadly, it is not as easy as that because ALS is often mis-diagnosed, and its symptoms can also point to a myriad of other problems. It takes a small village to diagnose this disease and there are not many doctors who specialize in ALS, but the ultimate outcome is the same. You are facing a life that is vastly and devastatingly different than you expected or planned.

Why and how does something like this happen? Many people do not understand what ALS is, or how it will turn your life upside down and change everything as you know it. It will severely test your relationships and will dictate how you walk, talk, eat, and die. On this journey you will find out who loves you, who doesnt know how to handle your diagnosis, who will disappear from your life, and who will try to make your journey all about themselves. You will also find out what you are capable of and be tested in untold ways.

So, what is ALS? According to the ALS Society of Alberta, ALS or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, is a rapid and always fatal neurodegenerative disease. It attacks the nerves of the body that would normally send messages from the brain to the muscle, resulting in weakness and wasting. Eventually, the individual with ALS is completely immobilized with loss of speech and an inability to eat, swallow or breathe.

ALS quick facts:

This disease can strike anyone. There is no age limit (although it usually strikes between ages 55-65) and it doesnt discriminate based on sex, ethnicity;

Approximately 2,500-3,000 Canadians are currently living with ALS;

90% of diagnosed cases are people with no family history of the disease;

80% of people with ALS will die within 3-5 years of diagnosis;

A person with ALS can require equipment and care valued at more than $240,000.00; and,

The cause is unknown and there is no known cure or treatment.

ALS, also referred to as Lou Gehrigs disease or Motor Neuron Disease, depending on what part of the world you live in, is a relatively rare disease. Other than the name and Stephen Hawking, most do most do not know much about this horrible disease.

These facts are stark and unrelenting, however, there are some people with ALS who have defied the odds Steven Hawking lived approximately 55 years after his diagnosis. He was diagnosed at the age of 21and lived to be 76 years old. Hawking became a world-renowned theoretical physicist and had three children. He provided many memorable quotes.