It starts with a sore toe, difficulty tying a shoelace, a tingle in a finger. Author Joe Hammond found himself “like a passenger in the aisle of a plane going through gentle turbulence”. For Ross Lyon’s mum, Louise, it started with a twitch in her calf muscle. Within a few months, she couldn’t move her arms or legs. Within a year, it was in her throat, and she was unable to breathe.
For Don Pyke’s father, Frank, it started with difficulty swallowing. He was a professor and a sports scientist and a member of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame. In the early 1970s, he played a key role in rehabilitating Dennis Lillee’s back. Motor neurone disease (MND) killed him in 16 weeks.
