By Miguel Mike Medina
Photo Credit: Jim Spellman/WireImage
Chesley Sullenberger reveals new details about his diagnosis of Alzheimer’s.
The captain, a hero in many people’s eyes, will have to apply the same tough lessons he learned over his four-decade aviation career to his health.
“We’re focusing clearly on the highest priority items first, and we are ignoring everything we don’t have time to do as being only distractions and unimportant,” Sullenberger said.
His wife Lori has stood by his side through the storm. It’s another battle and adversity for the couple to go through together. More than seven million people are living with Alzheimer’s across the country. That’s a high number. However, the couple is ready to take it one day at a time. At first, they decided not to go public.
Lori convinced Sully that it was time to share it with the world. People need to learn what’s going on. In addition, it will help elevate the conversation.
“I said to Sully one day, ‘This is a disease, not a character flaw,’ Lori said. “I think we need to talk about it more openly, and maybe other people can do the same.”
Sully felt shocked when the family received the news about the diagnosis.
“We felt all those emotions, the shock, the anger, why me?” Sullenberg said. “We’re part of this community who are trying to make the best out of a bad situation. One of the first things I noticed was it was harder and harder to remember people’s names, even people we knew. That’s still an issue. Just forgetting things that I normally wouldn’t or repeating myself, not realizing I just said that an hour ago.”
Sully is facing early symptoms of the progressive disease. An early diagnosis is very critical. It’s better to get tested early.
“What we’re trying to do is slow the progression of the disease,” Sullenberg said.
Sully is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and served as a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force.
The 2016 movie Sully, directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Tom Hanks, is based on the event that took place on Jan. 15, 2009. The captain tried to make an emergency landing in New York’s Hudson River after US Airways Flight 1549 went wrong.
All 155 passengers and crew members survived thanks to Sully’s heroics. Sully did have to go through an investigation about the incident, but he will always be remembered for his intelligence and thinking quickly on his feet. He saved lives.
Miguel Mike Medina is the publisher of The MMM Journal. He can be reached at medinamiguelmike@gmail.com and themmmjournal@gmail.com
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