Calgary Flames Assistant GM Chris Snow Should Have Died From ALS A Year Ago Instead, He’s Crushing Dingers In The Park
If you haven’t followed Chris Snow’s story you should. He’s a young hockey exec with a wife and two kids who received experimental ALS therapy shortly after being diagnosed 2 years ago. He’s not only still upright, but he’s also active and he’s crushing home runs and skiing moguls.
His final full season Lou Gehrig hit .295 with 29 home runs. With #ALS. Today, on #LouGehrigDay across @MLB, 2 years after my diagnosis and 1 year after I was supposed to die, I picked up a wood bat with my one useful hand. I am proof. Science is gaining on this disease. 1/4 pic.twitter.com/KBaiKkocf6
— Chris Snow (@ChrisSnowCGY) June 2, 2021
I am constantly aware of what I have lost. Today, 4 years after I last skied, and nearly 2 years since my #ALS diagnosis, I was reminded of what I still have. Cohen described exactly how I felt: “Dad looks like himself.” pic.twitter.com/qD57J3D2xL
— Chris Snow (@ChrisSnowCGY) April 16, 2021
Calorie count by day:
Monday: 0 (Surgery)
Tuesday: 1,920
Wednesday: 3,120
Thursday: 3,555
Friday: 4,175Should have done this weeks earlier. I get what I need by way of the tube and eat/drink in small amounts for taste things that are easy and enjoyable. Whole house is at ease. pic.twitter.com/E0L4TDzZj2
— Chris Snow (@ChrisSnowCGY) December 7, 2020
Chris makes positivity look easy. I went through his Twitter feed and every major setback is treated like a new adventure.
Can’t eat solid food? Nightly milkshakes from Dairy Queen.
Can’t hold weights with your left hand anymore? Show em how you improvised and overcame the obstacle.
The fact that Chris has the stones to show you how vulnerable he is every day, knowing how this ends, is remarkable to me.
Every day Chris wakes up knowing he has to spend his day battling a disease that’s undefeated AND he’s taking us with him on that journey because the alternative is death.
Literally.
Because he’s fighting as hard as he is, his quality of life (for someone two years into an ALS diagnosis) is off the charts. He eats through a tube, works out every day, stretches every day, and has physio every day. He’s on a variety of meds, works full time, and has a family so one can imagine the commitment Chris is making just so he can have a few more tomorrows.
Chris’s story isn’t great but he’s making it incredible. He’s living for others, making the very best of his objective reality. Limited time is valuable time and there are really only two decisions to make when you find out you’re dying (sooner than you’d like to). 1. embrace it and truly LIVE through it or 2. Quit and die sooner.
Pretty easy choice.
DB
Dean Blundell
Dean Blundell is a Canadian radio personality. Best known as a longtime morning host on CFNY-FM (The Edge) in Toronto, Ontario. In 2015 he was named the new morning host on sports radio station CJCL (Sportsnet 590 The Fan). Dean started his career in radio in 2001 and for nearly 20 years been entertaining the radio audience. Dean’s newest venture is the launch of his site and podcast which is gaining tremendous momentum across North America.
