ALS and Wellness Blog: My Life with ALS Is Learning How to Balance Effort and Ease

During the 30+ years I taught yoga, I always enjoyed explaining the concept of effort and ease. It’s the feeling of holding a yoga pose with the right amount of force. Not too much, not too little — just right.

Little did I know how, years later in 2010, an expanded version of effort and ease would become a dominant factor in my life with ALS.

Every. Single. Day.

How?

I’m sure many ALS patients can relate when I say that before my diagnosis, I took it for granted that I’d always be able to move with ease. However once my ALS symptoms emerged and progressed, I was shocked at the amount of effort needed just to do simple things. Suddenly, my shoes felt so heavy, getting dressed became difficult, and my hands cramped even while holding a toothbrush.

Frustrated, I’d just try harder. Which was both unproductive and totally exhausting.

Likewise, my mind was in turmoil. I kept replaying the moment the doctor told me I had ALS, sending me into thought loops imagining worst-case scenarios. Mornings? I’d duck back under the covers. It was easier to take the path of least resistance and spend the day sitting and doing nothing.

I was the student now

That’s when my yoga training kicked in. I pondered how I could apply the concept of effort and ease to my new normal, living with ALS.

As I wrote in “Plan and Prevent: My Personal Strategy for Living with ALS” developing a personal plan to prepare for possible symptom changes helped ease my worries.

I felt empowered addressing the question, “What can I do right now?” Plus, I followed the adage, “Work smarter, not harder.” For example, I began using a lightweight rechargeable toothbrush to prevent my hand cramps. Turning to my closet, I kept only the clothes I could easily manage. Pants with zippers and shirts with buttons were traded for elastic-waist slacks and tops I could easily pull on over my head. The complicated and challenging pieces were all donated away.

Instead of pushing my body through a lengthy workout, I broke the exercise segments into short bouts that I could easily fit in throughout the day.

And I began practicing “showing up” — not only would I get dressed up for the day, even if it would be spent at home - - but I showed up mentally as well. I created things to do, contacted friends to see, and researched places to go. All of this gave me a sense of purpose, and better yet, the time spent doing those things was time I didn’t spend thinking about my ALS.

Finally, I found the delicate balance of just enough effort and just enough ease to help me navigate the daily challenges of living with ALS.

Are you trying to push your way through ALS, or life in general? If so, try to identify where you are fighting against resistance. Can you think of easier methods? Finding the ease is not giving up… it’s making room so you can do the things you really enjoy.

I believe this is something we all can do — and you can do it, too.

Together we can learn to live well while living with ALS.

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