I Accepted the Challenge – The Ice Bucket Challenge

I have accepted the Ice Bucket Challenge to help Strike Out ALS.  I was challenged by my fellow Hawaii Beauty Blogger Buddy – The Fab Kath aka FabZilla.  Now, I have been contemplating what I would do about this over the last few months if someone actually challenged me and originally, I thought I would not take part because of the waste of water.  But, after watching several of these, probably over a 100 of them, I figured I could taper and adjust the challenge to be more of what others are doing now – a small bucket of ice and water and that is what I did.

What is ALS?

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease,” is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. The progressive degeneration of the motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to their death. When the motor neurons die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. With voluntary muscle action progressively affected, patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed.

Watch the video embedded below to see if I was an Ice Bucket Challenge Survivor or click here to watch directly on YouTube.

Now – there are several different reasons behind using the ice and cold water for the ice bucket challenge.  I have heard several different reasons and here are a few:

• For cancer patients – the ice cold water when poured on your head is the same feeling that cancer patients feel when they are going through chemotherapy.
• For those suffering from ALS – the feeling of ice cold water when poured on your head is similar to that of someone who suffers from Lou Gehrig’s Disease, the feeling of  your mind being trapped inside your body.

The awareness of this disease as well as donations for the cure have spread across our nation and the ice bucket challenge has gone viral.  While everyone has their reasoning behind doing the challenge I think that most people had no idea about the disease or what it entailed until all of this was pushed into the scene.  My family has lost many loved ones to disease or cancer over the years and I think that this was a great way for me to bring awareness and knowledge to the table as well as allow those that have passed or those that are suffering to benefit.  Now – the challenge is not just about pouring a bucket of ice and water over your head, but each person who takes the challenge should also be donating to the cause.

I will be donating money made from my blog and YouTube channel in the months of August and September to the ALSA.org foundation as well as the Cancer Institute Research Foundation.  I appreciate all of you that have taken the time to read and watch the video.  Remember… even if you decide not to take the challenge and pour a bucket of water on your head, making others aware of the situation or donating to find a cure are steps in the right direction.  Together, we can all make a difference.

Make your donations or learn more about ALS at alsa.org