Just Met A Guy With Polio And He Changed My Life

Hey, everybody. Luke Wendtlandt here just got done with a big exercise this morning. It was amazing, I should say now this afternoon, but I just had to share. I was so moved by this conversation that I just had that I had to come on and do a live about it just because it's just one of those things that have forever changed my life. I was just working out at the y, had an amazing workout. When I'm done with the workout, I always jump in the sauna. There's an older gentleman, probably late seventies, that hopped in the sauna with me, and he's really struggling to walk with his left leg.

And I mean, really slow movement. And so I just kind of chit chatted a little bit about him and asked him, you know, how's your leg, you know, tell me what's going on, etcetera. And he said he was, you know, as a kid, he was diagnosed with polio, right? He didn't get the vaccine in time, and so he was diagnosed with polio, and it lay dormant for his entire life, right? So he never had symptoms. Nothing, right? So here he is, you know, mid seventies now. He said he just, you know, retired a few years ago, and now all of his polio symptoms that have laid dormant his entire life just show their ugly face in his mid to late seventies.

And he came in and his leg, he could barely walk in. It was slow going. And I asked him, I said, tell me about your leg. Tell me about what he's like. Well, you know, I was diagnosed with polio, but what an unbelievable run that I had that for 50, 60 some odd years that I never had any symptoms. I never had any symptoms. Nothing ever came up. And here I am, you know, later in life. And I said, so what's really changed? She said, I just, I just move a little slower. I just move a little slower. That's it.

Here he has this, this leg that's completely swollen, and he's walking into the sun, and he goes, I just, I just get so much joy in here because it takes down some of my inflammation, allows me to help support it. And I just walked out of that, that conversation with him. And I just felt like, you know, my problems went like this, right? My problems went like this of how big my problems really are in this world. And if this guy that's mid to late seventies, that had an unbelievable life and his polio lay dormant for the better part of three quarters of a century, and he is finding so much joy in his mid to late seventies now being diet, not diagnosed, but whereas polio is now paralyzing his leg and he's going through all the conditions, it's like, man, I think I can find a lot of joy in this life when times get tough, when it's been a bad day or, you know, there's been a struggle that's come my way or what's really hard.

So I just want you to think about it next time when you're having a tough time, when you're having a tough day, when you have some struggles, when you have some things that are going on in your life. And just think that there's this guy that was diagnosed with polio at a very young age and is now living his, you know, glory days and golden years. And now his polio comes back ten x, well, probably 100 x. And he can barely walk. And he is walking around with the biggest smile on his face. And he is inspiring other individuals in this world, most notably myself, to realize that we got a really, really good opportunity in this life and are we going to take advantage of it.

So you guys have a great day. Have an amazing, amazing weekend. And the next time, I hope you think polio. It's not just where my mom has this little shot on her arm and it's like a polio scar. I hope you think of it differently, that you can find a lot of joy and happiness when things aren't going well in your life. Take care of you all. Have an amazing day. Better yet, have a better weekend.