Tom Coughlin reveals his wife’s ‘heartbreaking’ diagnosis

Former Giants head coach Tom Coughlin revealed on Tuesday that his wife, Judy, had been diagnosed with an incurable brain disorder that cost him almost all ability to speak and move.

“As many of you prepare for another NFL season, I will be sitting away from the sidelines, at the bedside and holding the hand of my greatest supporter, my beloved wife, the mother of our children and the grandmother of our grandchildren, ”Coughlin wrote in an essay for The New York Times.

Coughlin said he was the primary caregiver for his wife, who in 2020 was diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy after showing symptoms for the first time four years ago.

“We watched her helplessly move from a gracious woman with a knack for conversation, hugging everyone she met and making them feel like the most important person in the room. , losing almost all ability to speak and move, ”Coughlin said of his 54-year-old wife.

Coughlin, 74, decided to share his family story after someone asked why Judy hadn’t been in event photos for the Jay Fund Foundation, a nonprofit charity established by Coughlin for children with cancer.

“Judy’s decline was only heartbreaking and put me in a club with tens of millions of other Americans who serve as the primary caregiver for a loved one,” said Coughlin, who led the Giants to two. Super Bowls and Most recently ran football operations for the Jaguars before being laid off in 2019. “Certainly, the transition from an NFL franchise to a full-time caregiver hasn’t been easy. It is still not easy. The playbook changes minute to minute or is so repetitive that you lose track of time and yourself.

Nearly one in five Americans provide unpaid care to an adult with health or functional needs, according to a report from CareGiving.org.

“I’ve learned that delivering first-hand care is all-consuming,” Coughlin said. “It’s exhausting mentally and physically. Sometimes you just need a break… I’ve spent my whole life preparing for some of the greatest games a person can play, but nothing can prepare you to be a caregiver who has to watch a loved one go away .