TransFatty Lives

I decided to do my last Neuro Note on the movie TransFatty Lives. One of the first things that Patrick says to his son as the movie is starting is that he doesn’t want him to be afraid of him and wants to connect with him but is having a hard time doing it. Patrick was a 30 year old artist when he was diagnosed with ALS. Once he was diagnosed with ALS, he decided to make films, but as his condition worsened the camera started to be focused on him and his journey.

It amazed me at how positive Patrick stayed. At one time he even says that “it is unfortunate but you can’t help it so you might as well stay positive.” I think this is something that everybody can learn from. When faced with knowing that he is was going to die, he continued to keep his humorous attitude. Even in the later stages, he continued to make jokes about his disease rather than being depressed about it or dwelling on the hardships that he is going through. I think this attitude is part of what lead him to finding Laura and later having a son. Laura said that she knew after about a week that they had a connection. I think it is so important how they emphasized that he was already well into his disease. Many times people don’t realize that somebody with a fatal disease can fall in love and have the same feelings as everybody else.

I have to say I was so worried that he would not be able to see his son. Before Sean was born, Patrick said that he knew he wouldn’t be able to hold him, but they showed how he was able to interact with him and how Sean was able to lay on him. I was so glad that Patrick was able to spend time with his son and got to experience the joys of being a dad. Even when he made the decision of getting a trach put it, it emphasized that he was doing it for his son so he could see him grow more. I felt like on Father’s Day when Patrick says that Laura had told him Sean didn’t want to see him and that he wanted a real dad with legs, it took away Patrick’s drive to live. At that point in the movie, the movie started to get more depressed and it started to seem more like Patrick was apologizing for still being alive.

Patrick then goes to Boston to go to a new facility that is made especially for people with ALS. This seemed to brighten his world again. He specifically says that he is humbled once he arrives to the new facility in Boston. The new facility went on many trips that enabled Patrick to enjoy his life again, including one trip to Florida where he was able to see Sean again. This facility gave Patrick back his life by having many different activities that he was able to take part in. At the end of the movie, Patrick said that his Sean was now 7. I truly think that him having a reason to live and having the human interaction rather than just laying in the bed helped him to not only have a more meaningful life, but to also live longer.

I really liked this movie and how it shows the journey that he went through from the start to the finish. I think this movie would be a great movie for any person going into a health profession because it doesn’t leave out the good or the bad that a person with ALS goes through and makes you see it in a different way.