00:03Going from being one of the fastest people in the NFL to needing somebody to help me with basic things
00:10is hard to explain unless you've lived it.
00:14ALS may change what my body can do, but it hasn't changed who I am.
00:27My days look completely different than they used to.
00:31ALS has taken away a lot of my independence, especially with my arms and hands, so I need help with
00:39things I never would have thought twice about before.
00:44I'd be in the gym and notice my right hand wasn't as strong as it had always been.
00:51I couldn't grip or lift the way I normally could, and it just didn't feel right.
00:56I mentioned it to Brittany a few times, but we both figured maybe I had pinched a nerve or it
01:03was just wear and tear from playing football for so many years.
01:06It wasn't until we were taking the kids on spring break and we were riding in the car.
01:15I'll never forget.
01:16He mentioned that the Stanley Cup that he always carried around for water was really heavy to him.
01:24He felt like when he drunk a couple sips of water, he needed to put the cup down.
01:28And that's when I really felt like that is weird because, you know, yeah, it has a little weight to
01:34it, but nothing that you should have to put down, you know, after a couple sips.
01:38I could tell that really scared her. It was the first time either of us realized this wasn't just an
01:43old football injury.
01:44From that moment on, Brittany went into action. She started calling every doctor she knew and made it her mission
01:51to figure out what was going on.
01:54Looking back now, that conversation with my Stanley Cup was really the moment everything changed.
01:59I think when he saw that I was taking it serious and I was afraid, he called the team doctor
02:05that worked for the Titans when he played.
02:08And he got him in with a neurologist immediately and he flew out, I want to say, within a week.
02:16I walked into what I thought was going to be a routine nerve conduction study because I assumed something minor
02:25was causing the weakness in my hand.
02:28Instead, the doctor handed me a packet of papers, said, this could be something serious and walked out of the
02:34room.
02:35There was no explanation.
02:38My mind went to my wife, my kids, and my family.
02:43I kept thinking, this has got to be wrong.
02:46No one should ever receive news like that.
02:49We have to do better when it comes to how life-changing diagnoses are given.
02:53I was at work and, of course, I'm calling and checking, like, what are they saying? Like, what is it?
02:58And he was like, I don't know.
02:59I said, send me a picture of the papers.
03:04And at the top it said possible anterior horn cell disease.
03:08And I had never heard of that before.
03:11And I Googled it.
03:12And as soon as I Googled it, it said ALS.
03:15I immediately just panicked, you know, that they thought that it could be that.
03:23We went and saw a local neurologist.
03:26And he mentioned that Chris didn't sound normal, that it sounded like he was kind of talking through marbles.
03:35And he had been complaining that he felt like he had, like, cold in the back of his throat that
03:41he just couldn't clear.
03:42And so I just associated it with that.
03:48He mentioned, like, some muscle loss between his thumb and his pointer finger.
03:53And that day, he kind of let us know that he thought that maybe it was ALS.
03:59But we would need to go to an ALS neurologist.
04:05And I think within a week, we were there.
04:07And he didn't really confirm it that day, but also let us know that he thought that it was that.
04:15We were just left sitting with it and hoping that it wasn't true and that it had to be something
04:22else, you know?
04:23We were just, I think, in a state of shock and denial.
04:30The changes were just so subtle that you don't think in your mind that it's something as serious as ALS.
04:38And there he goes!
04:40Football has come up throughout this process when we've talked with doctors,
04:44because I played the game basically my whole life and spent 10 years in the NFL.
04:50That's a big part of my history.
04:52As soon as you mention your career in football, they kind of just say, well, yeah, you know.
04:59So it's kind of said without being said that maybe they think that it is associated with the diagnosis.
05:08But it's not anything that they confirm.
05:11I don't think it would be right for me to say football caused my ALS because I don't know that.
05:18But I also don't think you can ignore the question.
05:21I think the possible connection between football, repeated trauma, and neurological diseases needs to continue to be studied
05:32so players and their families can have better answers.
05:38We actually didn't start telling family and friends for a long while.
05:41I think I was afraid.
05:43And at that point, we were really focused on trying to understand what this diagnosis meant
05:48and searching for every treatment option we could find.
05:52Eventually, we knew we had to tell the people closest to us, especially the kids.
05:58That was probably one of the hardest parts, because as a father, your first instinct is to protect your kids.
06:06You don't want them to be scared or feel like their whole world is changing.
06:12It was at least a year before we let them know exactly what the diagnosis was.
06:22Yeah, it was very—it was really tough.
06:26The kids all handled it differently, and we've tried to be honest with them
06:30without making ALS the center of their lives.
06:35I still want them being kids, going to school, playing sports, and chasing whatever dreams they have.
06:44Brittany helps me with pretty much everything throughout the day.
06:49I use breathing support and other equipment at home, and eating and communicating take more planning now, too.
06:57There are appointments, treatments, and therapies mixed into everything.
07:02It's nonstop. There's no breaks.
07:06But I wouldn't rather it be anyone else taking care of Chris, you know?
07:13My life has changed immensely, but I truly believe that this was my calling.
07:19The hardest part is having your mind still completely there while your body stops doing things you've done your entire
07:26life.
07:27I'm still me. I still hear everything. I understand everything.
07:32I still joke, think, make decisions, get frustrated, and want to be included in conversations about my own life.
07:41I still love football. Football changed my life and gave me opportunities I could never have imagined growing up.
07:49Tennessee Titans select Chris Johnson.
07:52When I came into the league, I was a kid from Orlando trying to prove myself, and Tennessee gave me
07:59some of the greatest moments of my career.
08:01Those memories are part of who I am.
08:04So I don't look at what I'm going through and say, my kids shouldn't play because of it.
08:10But as a father, of course, I think about things differently now.
08:13I want them to understand the risks, take care of their bodies, and never feel like they have to sacrifice
08:20their health just to prove how tough they are.
08:23If football is what they love, and that's the path they choose, I'm going to support them.
08:29He always just says, as long as they enjoy it, that he wants them to be able to do what
08:33they love, of course, not at the expense of their bodies.
08:36It is something that I think about, and it's something that I worry about, but they've been so engulfed in
08:42it most of their lives that they don't want to stop.
08:45More than anything, I want my kids to be healthy, happy, and able to build lives they love, whether football
08:53is part of that or not.
08:54Today, my dad took me on a shopping spree.
08:58Let's see what you get.
08:59If spreading our story helps, you know, get eyes on this disease, that people can see just how quickly your
09:06life can change, that it can literally happen to any one of us, and there's no treatments out there.
09:12We just need all hands on deck. We need so many eyes on this, so other families don't have to
09:18endure what we have.
09:20At first, I wanted to keep it private, but ALS is bigger than me.
09:25Once you get diagnosed, you realize how many families are dealing with this disease and how badly we need better
09:32treatments and more options.
09:34I have a platform because of football, and if sharing my story can bring more attention, help push research forward,
09:42or help another family going through this, then there's a purpose in doing it.
09:47People with ALS don't have years to wait for promising treatments to slowly make their way through the system. Time
09:54matters.
09:56I want to see my kids grow up. I want to see the boys accomplish everything they're working toward.
10:02I want to watch Honey grow up, graduate, and one day walk her down the aisle.
10:07I want more years with my wife, and I'm hopeful because we're fighting.
10:12We're not sitting around waiting for ALS to decide what happens next.
10:16We're always talking to doctors and looking at research, treatments, trials.
10:21I don't know which treatment or discovery is eventually going to change things, but I believe somebody is going to
10:28figure this disease out.
10:30Until then, I'm going to keep fighting to be here for my family. That's what gives me hope.
