--- title: ALS Ice Bucket Challenge: Man With Lou Gehrig's Disease Makes Video description: Created by a man who was recently diagnosed with the degenerative disease canonical: https://time.com/3149803/als-ice-bucket-challenge-2/ author: Samantha Grossman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-08-20T21:43:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-01T08:58:09.197Z og:title: This Heartbreaking Ice Bucket Challenge Video is the Best One Yet og:description: Meet 26-year-old Anthony Carbajal, who was recently diagnosed with ALS og:url: https://time.com/3149803/als-ice-bucket-challenge-2/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb2bf05018f95ea3f/6986a05755a8595501a823e4/als-ice-bucket-challenge.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2555 og:image:height: 1437 og:image:alt: als-ice-bucket-challenge og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: This Heartbreaking Ice Bucket Challenge Video is the Best One Yet twitter:description: Meet 26-year-old Anthony Carbajal, who was recently diagnosed with ALS twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb2bf05018f95ea3f/6986a05755a8595501a823e4/als-ice-bucket-challenge.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # This Heartbreaking Ice Bucket Challenge Video Is the Best One Yet > Sponsored content. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=579bdcfb-08c6-4a0d-840c-12dfc9564393&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1) ## Video: #ALSicebucket Challenge Haters Watch This [Watch (HLS stream): #ALSicebucket Challenge Haters Watch This](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/TlgCyWMA.m3u8) (3:59)  _Published 2014-08-20. This truly touching Ice Bucket Challenge video stands apart from all the rest._ by [Samantha Grossman](https://time.com/author/samantha-grossman/) ## Samantha Grossman Aug 20, 2014 9:43 PM UTC This truly touching Ice Bucket Challenge video stands apart from all the rest. by [Samantha Grossman](https://time.com/author/samantha-grossman/) ## Samantha Grossman Aug 20, 2014 9:43 PM UTC Some skeptics have slammed the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, writing it off as a silly social media fad, a [waste of water](http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/08/19/someone-actually-calculated-how-much-water-has-been-used-for-all-those-ice-bucket-challenges-and-its-a-lot-more-than-you-probably-thought/) and just another [example ](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ben-kosinski/icebucketchallenge-why-yo%5Fb%5F5656649.html)of “slacktivism” that allows people to feel good about themselves without really doing much. If you agree with the critics, the video above might change your mind. It was created by 26-year-old Anthony Carbajal, who explains that amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease) runs in his family. His grandmother had it, his mother currently lives with it, and he himself was diagnosed just five months ago. In this very emotional video, Carbajal shows just how challenging and devastating life with this insidious disease really is as he takes care of his mom. His message for the haters and the skeptics? The Ice Bucket Challenge is actually an incredibly positive force. “I promise your newsfeed will go back to cat videos and ‘Let It Go’ covers, but right now, the ALS community has the main spotlight,” Carbajal says into the camera with tears in his eyes. “And for once in my entire life, I’ve seen it in the forefront.” We’ve reached out to Carbajal for comment and will update if he gets back to us. ## Transcript [00:03] [ MUSIC ] Oh! [00:10] Oh! Okay, that was probably the most embarrassing [00:11] thing that I have ever done in my entire life. And holy [00:13] ****, that was pretty crazy, right? [00:18] So why did I do it? I've been so [00:22] terrified of ALS my entire life because it runs in my [00:24] family. ALS runs in my [00:49] family. My, my grandmother had it. She was a second [00:52] mother to me. My mother was diagnosed when I was in [00:55] high school. And, five months ago I was diagnosed [00:59] at 26- years old. ALS is so, so scary. [01:03] You have no idea. I hate talking about it, I really hate [01:23] talking about it. And [01:29] that's probably why nobody talks about it, it's because [01:31] it's so challenging to watch, it's so challenging to see [01:34] and to talk about. Nobody wants to see a depressing [01:38] person that's dying and has two to five years to live. [01:42] They don't want to talk about it, they don't want their [01:43] day ruined. People are [01:48] getting frustrated about saying the ALS Ice Bucket [01:49] Challenge right now. that's fine, that's fine, that means [01:52] our you know, our awareness is working. It wouldn't be [01:55] successful if we weren't irritating a few people right? [01:59] Promise you're news feed will go back to cat videos [02:02] and let it go covers. But right now the ALS community [02:05] has, has the main spotlight and for [02:09] once in my entire life, I've seen it in the forefront. [02:13] There's not very much incentive for the pharmaceutical [02:16] companies to invest billions of dollars it takes to [02:18] develop a drug. Because I'm not profitable. I'm [02:22] not worth saving? Right now my hands are starting [02:27] to atrophy away. They're getting weak. Having [02:31] trouble turning my car. Buttoning my shirt. Eventually I [02:35] won't be able to use my arms or hands at all. [02:38] Eventually, I won't be able to walk. Talk and breathe [02:42] on my own. And [02:45] that's the real truth, what [ UNKNOWN ] is. Its [02:48] devastating, its costly, its not profitable. This [02:54] video is all over the place with emotions and I am, I [02:58] apologize for my rant and for my tears, but if I don't, if [03:02] I simply dump ice on my head, I don't think you're [03:04] really gonna get the point. And so I thank you for [03:06] sharing this video in advance. This is the first [03:10] successful advocacy we've ever really, really, really [03:11] had, and I am so, so, so grateful. You have no idea [03:16] how every single challenge. Makes me feel, lifts my [03:20] spirits, lifts every single ALS patient's spirits. You're [03:23] really, truly making a difference and we, we're so, so, [03:26] so grateful. Love [03:33] you. 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