Estimated read time: 8-9 minutes
REXBURG, Idaho — A well-known doctor who has helped bring life into the world was given an unexpected medical diagnosis that changed his future.
John Allred, 53, has been an OB-GYN in Rexburg for 21 years at Madison Women's Clinic, where he is also a partner in the business. He delivered thousands of babies, with an estimated 3,748 being born at Madison Memorial Hospital.
"The medicine is wonderful, but it's developing the relationships with the patients that have been fantastic," Allred said as he reflected on his career.
He has also worked alongside his younger brother, Matt Allred. They are 14 years apart.
"It's been actually really fun to get to know him. He was really young when I left for college, so I didn't know him all that well," John said. "But we have gotten to the point that when we are doing surgery together, we talk about life because we know what to do."
However, life for John recently changed after he got a medical diagnosis that forced him to retire at the end of September.
He and his wife of 31 years, Nanette Allred, sold their house and are moving to Utah.
The diagnosis
"We have been seeing symptoms coming on for about a year and a half, but I wasn't officially diagnosed until the end of September. Then, I had a confirmatory diagnosis at the University of Utah on Oct. 30," John said.
He was diagnosed with ALS, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's disease. It's a nervous system disease that weakens muscles and impacts physical function. The disease gets worse over time.
According to the Mayo Clinic, symptoms include trouble walking or doing usual daily activities, hand weakness, slurred speech or trouble swallowing.
There is no cure.
"We were a little shocked and we were told that I would be dead by that same time next year (in September). We basically went out in the car, sat and stared straight ahead for 20 minutes. It was kind of hard to wrap our minds around it," John recalled of that moment with his wife.
John has a brother who cares for ALS patients in Utah.
"He said, 'You've at least got three or four years,' and we have heard of people living a lot longer," John said. "We'll see."
Before the diagnosis, Nanette said her husband had always been energetic.
"He's been a marathon runner, a college soccer player and always in good physical condition," she said.
Every day began to change. John started to get more tired, and it was apparent that he wasn't his normal self.
"I typically get up and just go all day. Then I was getting some fatigue that I wasn't used to," John explained. "It started getting to the point that I was losing some function. I thought it was carpal tunnel because I was lifting a lot of weights at the time."
Nanette said after finding out about the diagnosis, it hit her hard. Nobody in the family has had ALS.
"It was really hard to hear. I didn't like it at all," Nanette said, crying. "But now we both realize it's terminal, and he's not going to be around for all the things he wanted to be around for."
Special plans
John and Nanette have three kids, and they have all planned something special for him.
Their oldest, Hannah, 28, is married to Abby and lives on the East Coast.
"Hannah and Abby are planning their wedding in Ireland in December. They knew we weren't going to be able to make it, so they decided to come over here for Thanksgiving and exchange vows and make it so that we could be there," Nanette said.
Their son Caleb, 26, is married to Catherine, and they are planning a soccer tournament over Thanksgiving weekend.
"John coached hundreds of boys over the years. He coached Caleb and influenced a lot of boys," Nanette said.
They also have two grandchildren from Caleb and Catherine named William and Eleanor.
"Grandpa got to deliver both of them, so that was fun!" John said, talking about his two grandkids.
Then, their youngest daughter, Grace, 23, wanted to orchestrate a dance with her father as if it was her wedding and videotape the special moment. She is not engaged or married but wants to have it to play at her wedding when the time comes.
"They've always had a song that they wanted to dance to at her wedding. Since he likely won't be around for that, she got everything ready, and they had that moment," Nanette said.
He's staying positive
John says he's not in pain, even though some muscles are not responding well.
"It's like little muscle twitches that happen, like when we all get a muscle spasm; he probably has 100 of those going off every second all over his body," Nanette said.
When talking about what he is going through, he joked around with EastIdahoNews.com and smiled.
"There are benefits. I can eat whatever I want now because I don't gain weight. … I am not going to the dentist ever again, which is a voluntary decision!" he said. "I never took naps, but now naps are actually a real fun thing to do."
John has a positive attitude, and he attributes it to his faith. He is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
"I do a lot of studying in my faith," he said. "I think it's the faith that I have in Jesus Christ that helps me to face whatever is coming. I really do believe in his plan for me and my family, and it gives me hope."
"I admire the way he is handling it. He inspires me. He's willing to do everything that God requires him to do, even if it's this," Nanette added.
Support from others and good memories
Edward Evans, an OB-GYN and John's partner at Madison Women's Clinic, has known him for 15 years.
"He has become a great friend. We've been through a lot together," Evans said. "An excellent surgeon and really great partner. … It was always very evident that John was always a man of God and it was very evident that that was very important to him."
Evans, along with other staff members, are reeling from the news of John's diagnosis.
"We were all devastated by it," he recalled when he was first told about it.
He told EastIdahoNews.com that patients loved John.
Many people have written online about him after learning of his diagnosis. One said, "We've known John for 20 years and have loved him the moment he entered the room to deliver our last son. A constant minister to all he meets. We are better people because of our association."
Another wrote, "Dr. Allred delivered five of my babies. I traveled from wherever I was living at the time so that he could be the one to do it; that's how much we trusted him as a physician," and "Dr. Allred was the OB for our first child. I'm now on baby #3, and he still ranks as the best OB I've had."
John has a lot of fond memories with patients, including when he lived in Michigan. He earned his M.D. at Wayne State University in Detroit and completed his four-year OB-GYN residency at William-Beaumont Hospital.
"At a Detroit Tigers game, I delivered one of their baseman's babies, and he wanted me to come down to the dugout during the game," John recalls.
Future plans
John hoped to work at least another eight or nine more years as an OB-GYN, then retire. He and Nanette wanted to go off to a beach, stay there for a month, and serve church missions. He wanted to follow his grandkids around too.
Though the diagnosis of ALS was out of the blue, John says he has learned what's most important.
"When you know your death is coming, it's amazing how certain things just fall away, like arguments you have with people, grudges you are holding with other people," he said. "It allows you to focus on what really matters."
Looking back at her husband's career, Nanette says she didn't know how many people her husband knew and how many people whose lives he touched.
"People just keep coming up with stories of times where he saved a life or was there in a time of need. I knew he was always out there doing good, but I didn't realize how much," Nanette said. "I am just so grateful that he is my husband."
John and Nanette plan to move to Utah at the end of the month because it's close to the ALS clinic at the University of Utah, providing him with the care he is looking for. This Thanksgiving, they are grateful for everyone around them.
"Honestly, the support has been overwhelming. We have been really blessed just by people that we've known in our neighborhood and the community," John said.
