I am Tricia Baker

My mother began slurring her words and having issues speaking in May 2022. Doctors did not seem concerned and no one mentioned that it may be from an underlying condition. In February 2023, we noticed that she was becoming difficult to understand. Her PCP ordered an MRI and referred her to a Neurologist. In March, during the exam by the neurologist they noticed her tongue was twitching. They scheduled an EMG in early April, and she was diagnosed with bulbar onset ALS.

After a second opinion confirmed the diagnosis, she was referred to specialists and speech and physical therapy. By July, she was choking on most solid foods and struggled to get through a meal without choking or coughing. She refused a feeding tube, so her nutrition was a struggle. She switched to thickened liquids. She had no other physical symptoms until September, when she started falling and needing a walker.

By November, she was unable to stand. She was unable to swallow any liquid that was not thickened and could consume little to no food. She quickly lost the ability to use her hands or type messages to tell us what she needed. On November 29, she entered a hospice facility, unable to speak and in incredible pain. Her hands became clenched, and she could no longer communicate. She passed on December 8, just over 7 months from her diagnosis.

To say that this has been devastating to our family is an understatement. We had little to no knowledge of ALS prior to this, and it took my Mother swiftly and ferociously.