Meteorologist, 49, Tearfully Reveals ALS Diagnosis on Air After Viewer Questions Her Speech: ‘Are You Drunk?’

A longtime meteorologist revealed that she has been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

On Tuesday, Feb. 24, Jeriann Ritter — who has reported the weather for Iowa’s WHO13 since 2004 — made the health admission in an emotional on-air interview after viewers started to question her speech.

“I pray every day that a miracle is going to happen. I keep thinking, ‘It could be something else,’ ” the 49-year-old broadcaster said. “But if the doctors are right, I’m probably done telling you about the weather.”

ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a rare degenerative disease that causes progressive paralysis of the muscles. Patients first experience twitching or weakness in a limb, often followed by slurred speech. According to the Mayo Clinic, because the disease affects the nerve cells in the brain and spine that control muscle movement, patients slowly lose their ability to speak, eat, walk, and breathe independently.

There’s no cure for ALS, and people usually live three to five years after diagnosis, according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Ritter explained that last summer, she started noticing changes in her speech and began experiencing a weird sensation on the left side of her face. She wasn’t in any pain, but decided to visit her dentist, initially believing she had an issue with her teeth.

However, her dentist thought she was showing signs of a stroke, which led her to visit a doctor. After months of doctor’s appointments and numerous tests, Ritter finally received her diagnosis.

Throughout that time, Ritter continued to work, despite her speech worsening. It became so apparent that viewers started to send her concerning messages.

“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 added. “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.”

Ritter then praised her husband and sons for their support since her diagnosis. She even tearfully reflected on the moment she told her children about her ALS, and how it helps her move forward.

“They said, ‘Wow Mom, are you gonna fight?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah I’m gonna fight but there’s not a lot you can do,’” she recalled. “So instead, I’m gonna do what I’ve always done for almost 50 years of my life. I’m gonna live and I’m gonna love. And that’s what I’m doing.”

“I’m gonna finish this race strong,” Ritter said, starting to cry. “There is not one ounce of ‘I’m scared.’ It’s like, I’m gonna miss out but I’m gonna have fun doing it.”