A popular meteorologist is getting candid about a devastating diagnosis.
On Tuesday, February 24, Jeriann Ritter, tearfully revealed in an on air interview that she had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
The Iowa-based anchor has been reporting the weather for Iowa's WHO13 since 2004, and made the health admission after a viewer started questioning her speech.
© InstagramIn a conversation with anchor Keith Murphy, who noted "people have noticed a change in your speech, and they're concerned," Jeriann shared: "I'm ready to be an open book, I'm just bummed that the speech is impacting how I tell you about the weather, because I love talking about the weather — I don't love talking about ALS."
"That's what the doctors believe [is] causing my speech problems," she shared, adding: "They are still trying to prove it to me, but in the meantime they're telling me, 'No treatment, no cure.'"
Jeriann further shared that she has bulbar ALS, which per the ALS Therapy Development Institute, generally starts with slurred speech, difficulty chewing and swallowing, excessive choking and weakness or twitching in the muscles of the face, jaw, throat, and voice box, particularly the tongue.
© InstagramJerrian noted that it was her speech that viewers first became concerned over. "Viewers started sending me messages in late November. 'Are you drunk? Are you okay?' Those [messages] hit me hard," she recalled. "People think I'm drunk? I was trying so hard to disguise it."
"It is killing me that something that came so easy is so hard now," she continued. "When I was having the speech problems on TV but still working, I knew what I was facing but the people watching me did not. It started to open my eyes, you never know what people are going through. So just remember that."
Jeriann noted that she "will continue to get worse," maintaining: "Right now, I pray everyday that a miracle is going to happen, and I think it could be something else."
"But if the doctors are right, I'm probably done telling you about the weather. But I still have a lot to say, and I'm trying what that new journey looks like," she added.
© InstagramJeriann then reflected: "I have been so blessed in my life to have such a great life … maybe I'm dealing with this to remind people to be thankful for their life. Maybe my next chapter is to tell a different story because I can tell you, up until this point, I didn't forecast this storm."
"It's raining right now and I'm just trying to find the sunshine," she emphasized.
