Missy’s PCT Hike for ATAXIA
Donation protected
I am going to hike The Pacific Crest Trail starting May 2015 to help raise awareness for ATAXIA!!!
Since 1999 I have taken care of my recently departed Husband. Allen suffered from Spinocerebellar Ataxia which is a condition characterized by progressive problems with movement. People with this condition initially experience problems with coordination and balance. Other signs and symptoms of SCA1 include speech and swallowing difficulties, muscle stiffness (spasticity), and weakness in the muscles that control eye movement. Eye muscle weakness leads to rapid, involuntary eye movements. Individuals with SCA1 may have difficulty processing, learning, and remembering information. Over time, individuals with SCA1 may develop numbness, tingling, or pain in the arms and legs; uncontrolled muscle tensing; muscle wasting (atrophy); and muscle twitches. Rarely, rigidity, tremors, and involuntary jerking movements have been reported in people who have been affected for many years. Signs and symptoms of the disorder typically begin in early adulthood but can appear anytime from childhood to late adulthood. People with SCA1 typically survive 10 to 20 years after symptoms first appear. It was so hard to watch what was a perfectly healthy person struggle with his coordination daily. Spinocerebellar Ataxia is a hereditary disease. We don't know as of yet if it has affected our children or Grandchildren. They have a 50/50 chance. I pray that it has not.
In 2009 we recieved a call 2 days before Christmas telling us Allen had cancer and it wasn't looking good. They were offering us no options that would help Allen. After careful research we decided on a treatment not available to us in Ohio, so we reached out to some strangers across the country who changed everything for Allen and I. He went from no hope to having hope again to cure his cancer! The treatment worked! Sadly though, Allen lost his life on April 1, 2014 to yet another health issue......
Now – 16 years later – it is My time!
My goal is to thru hike the trail! I am ready to look forward to getting up every morning. I'm ready to grab life by the horns and make the most out of the little time I have left here. I don't think we were put here to get up, go to work, pay our bills and repeat, day after day, week after week, year after year. Always waiting because the time isn't right, or I don't have the money, or I'm afraid to take this adventure alone, or a magnitude of other reasons. I'm tired of waiting for it to happen - I am READY to MAKE this happen, NOW!...
I will THRU HIKE this trail not only for me (and all of you that wish you could just say the heck with it & start hiking), but I will also be hiking the trail to raise awareness & money for The National Ataxia Foundation. You can specify where you want your donation to go – Ataxia research or hiking expenses. All money raised over hiking expenses will be donated to research.
I will be keeping a blog with video & pictures and updating it whenever I have cell phone service and a charged battery. :)
Any donation would be greatly appreciated and no donation is to small.
Ataxia Thank you so much!
Since 1999 I have taken care of my recently departed Husband. Allen suffered from Spinocerebellar Ataxia which is a condition characterized by progressive problems with movement. People with this condition initially experience problems with coordination and balance. Other signs and symptoms of SCA1 include speech and swallowing difficulties, muscle stiffness (spasticity), and weakness in the muscles that control eye movement. Eye muscle weakness leads to rapid, involuntary eye movements. Individuals with SCA1 may have difficulty processing, learning, and remembering information. Over time, individuals with SCA1 may develop numbness, tingling, or pain in the arms and legs; uncontrolled muscle tensing; muscle wasting (atrophy); and muscle twitches. Rarely, rigidity, tremors, and involuntary jerking movements have been reported in people who have been affected for many years. Signs and symptoms of the disorder typically begin in early adulthood but can appear anytime from childhood to late adulthood. People with SCA1 typically survive 10 to 20 years after symptoms first appear. It was so hard to watch what was a perfectly healthy person struggle with his coordination daily. Spinocerebellar Ataxia is a hereditary disease. We don't know as of yet if it has affected our children or Grandchildren. They have a 50/50 chance. I pray that it has not.
In 2009 we recieved a call 2 days before Christmas telling us Allen had cancer and it wasn't looking good. They were offering us no options that would help Allen. After careful research we decided on a treatment not available to us in Ohio, so we reached out to some strangers across the country who changed everything for Allen and I. He went from no hope to having hope again to cure his cancer! The treatment worked! Sadly though, Allen lost his life on April 1, 2014 to yet another health issue......
Now – 16 years later – it is My time!
My goal is to thru hike the trail! I am ready to look forward to getting up every morning. I'm ready to grab life by the horns and make the most out of the little time I have left here. I don't think we were put here to get up, go to work, pay our bills and repeat, day after day, week after week, year after year. Always waiting because the time isn't right, or I don't have the money, or I'm afraid to take this adventure alone, or a magnitude of other reasons. I'm tired of waiting for it to happen - I am READY to MAKE this happen, NOW!...
I will THRU HIKE this trail not only for me (and all of you that wish you could just say the heck with it & start hiking), but I will also be hiking the trail to raise awareness & money for The National Ataxia Foundation. You can specify where you want your donation to go – Ataxia research or hiking expenses. All money raised over hiking expenses will be donated to research.
I will be keeping a blog with video & pictures and updating it whenever I have cell phone service and a charged battery. :)
Any donation would be greatly appreciated and no donation is to small.
Ataxia Thank you so much!
Organizer
Missy Mcgovern-Prather
Organizer
Dayton, OH
