In the not too distant past I did some work with a tech company headquartered in Minnesota. Minnesota? Prior to a visit to Mayo Clinic in the dead of winter I spent a week there one night.

My tech counterpart asked about weather and if I could tell the difference between seasons where I live. Yes. He thought that where I am from is in the South. Most states are south of Minnesota.

What about the seasons in Minnesota? Are they different?

He said yes, of course, and proceeded to tell me that Minnesota has four distinct seasons, too. Snow, more snow, still snowing, and road construction. After three weeks at Mayo Clinic in January and February I can understand the sentiment.

Snow.

Similar to Mother Nature and Minnesota residents, ALS plays wicked games on a body’s nerves and muscles, particularly the number, duration, and intensity of cramps.

I think of it as cramps, more cramps, still cramping, and dead.

In that order.

At some point the cramps will end in one, big, system wide cramp, but that’s when I end.

Muscle cramps may not be everywhere yet but it feels that way. Diaphragm and breathing muscles seem nonexistent. Legs and arms get cramps daily. Whatever the muscle is that tells us the bladder is full has taken to lying. It’s a cramp. Not a full bladder.

Abdominal cramps are the worst as almost any movement causes a painful cramp that often needs to be massaged to relax. Stand up, sit down, turn left, turn right, cough, or sneeze, the abdominal muscles are involved and when they cramp they are turning against the very body that once loved them.

ALS often is about cramps, more cramps, still cramping, but in the end, the final cramp is death.

Soon.