Fiona MacDonald speaks out on living with MND
Former It's a Knockout host, diagnosed with motor neurone disease 2 years ago, hopes speaking up can help raise awareness and research funds.
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Former It’s a Knockout host Fiona MacDonald has spoken to New Idea about living with motor neurone disease.
Sharing her story in support of Global MND Awareness Day on June 21, she was diagnosed two years ago.
MND is a condition that progressively damages parts of the nervous system. This leads to muscle weakness, often with visible wasting. In Australia, two people are diagnosed every day, and two die of the disease every day.
In McDonald’s case, walking, talking and eating all require a huge – and sometimes overwhelming – effort.
“At first I didn’t connect when people called themselves [an MND warrior],” she said. “I was more in the mindset, ‘If a battle can’t be won, don’t fight it.’
“But as my neurons fail and my muscles waste, I’m beginning to understand what they mean.
“Things that were effortless with fully functioning muscles, like holding a smile, singing – albeit badly – swallowing, eating with my mouth closed, running to escape the rain or walking across soft sand are difficult, if not impossible,” she said.
Fiona MacDonald, 66, began her media career as a children’s presenter on Wombat and co-hosted 1980s game show It’s a Knockout. She has spent the last twenty years in marketing and public relations for the wine industry, and running her consultancy Wine Chronicles.
Lately she cherishes hanging out with her adult sons, builder Harry and bar / restaurant manager Rafe. She sees sisters Kylie and Jacki – of Hey Hey it’s Saturday fame – as often as possible. A close-knit group of friends keeps her laughing, helps with medical appointments and takes her swimming in the ocean pool near her home in Sydney’s east.
“I’ve had to come to terms with using a walking stick, a walker and a wheelchair,” she said.
“My speech is already failing. Accepting these things doesn’t come easily. It’s hideous relinquishing your own power, living with the crushing knowledge of further weaknesses to come.
“So now I understand and have joined the ranks of the MND warriors. I have a leopard-print cane and a walker with pneumatic tyres that can cross fields. I plaster a smile on my face going out and hurl open my front door thinking, ‘Damn you, MND!’”
To donate funds to MND research & trials visit here.
Source: New Idea
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3 Responses
ALS is a cruel disease. My mum is 83 and had great difficulty speaking and swallowing much of anything. Food was getting trapped in her throat and blocking her air way was happening more often. she battled for each breath. The riluzole did very little to help her. The medical team did even less. Her decline was rapid and devastating. The psychological support from the medical centre was non-existent and if it were not for the sensitive care and attention of our primary physician, there she would have died. There has been little if any progress in finding a cure or reliable treatment. Acupuncture eased her anxiety a bit. this year our primary physician started her on Natural Herbs Centre ALS/MND Ayurvedic treatment, 6 months into treatment she improved dramatically. It has been a complete turnaround with her speech, she no longer needs the feeding tube to feed, the treatment is a miracle. She recovered significantly!
So far a lot of research for few little concrete results unfortunately. It’s been 30 years since Riluzole was approached, which has only small effect and nothing since. There is a drug for a genetic form of MND that is getting further trials, it suppresses transcription of SOD1. Almost 90% of cases have no known cause or mechanism though.
So sad to read this story. Such a cruel condition.
I used to love this show as a kid! Such a family show that my brother and I looked forward o every weekend.