Stories Told. Lives Changed.
To my friend, who thinks no one understands…we understand. “This too shall pass.” (King Solomon) “There bad moments. But there are no bad days.” “Beyond this mountain is another mountain.” (Haitian Proverb) “Sometimes it’s okay to be selfish.” “Somewhere, someone has endured much worse.” “Look hard enough until you […]
Having a hole in your brain isn’t all terrible. Dare I say I’m grateful for having the opportunity to endured such a misfortune. For I’ve learned my attitude about such stark truth is simply a matter of perspective. Like this one time when I was having a PET scan– which tests for Multiple Sclersosis. I […]
I’m sitting in a waiting room, waiting to get a brain MRI when Jim Croce’s “I’ve Got a Name” begins playing over the ceiling speakers. Like the pine trees lining the winding road I got a name, I got a name Like the singing bird and the croaking toad I got a name, I got […]
Three days after the race and Cindy is walking as if she has a pair of wooden legs. “Everything hurts. My legs, my back, my ribs.” I stand at the kitchen sink and watch Cindy open the cabinet, reach for a glass, and wince. She draws a breath. “I should’ve trained for the race.” She […]
On June 2nd I marked September 23rd on my calendar. On September 23rd I planned to run my first 5k. An act of defiance of sorts. Defying both body and brain. Proving that I could physically and mentally triumph over 5 years of living with cerebellar ataxia, sarcoidosis, nystagmas, enlarged lymph nodes, vertigo, muscle spasms, […]
On Monday a neurologist diagnosed me with a lingering migraine. Dizziness, nausea, stabbing headaches, sensitivity to light are symptoms aligned with a migraine. This is the first time I have been diagnosed with a migraine. The neurologist ordered some blood work and issued prescriptions for a brain MRI to see if the cerebellum has further […]
I’m lying on my back on the floor, staring at the ceiling, and I’m afraid to move. The vertigo has been in my brain for 5 weeks. And though symptoms have subsided enough for me to function, I still feel like I’m falling off a cliff every time I sit up or roll to my […]
On August 9th the living room would not stop spinning. Lying down, sitting or standing it doesn’t matter. It was as if I’m strapped in a Tilt-a-Whirl. Closing my eyes helps a little. The spinning gets to my stomach but I’m hungry but I don’t want to eat. I feel like throwing up. I double […]
For the second year in a row I’m celebrating my worst day– September 4, 2013 with a homemade chocolate cake topped with vanilla icing and one of Springsteen’s most badass lines “Ain’t no sin to be glad you’re alive.” In fact, I made the same cake last year however, I’d like to believe this year’s […]
So my plan of running in a 5k in September has pulled a hamstring. I’m not feeling 90% (because I’ll never feel 100%) but at 90% I feel well enough to train. Currently, I’m feeling 75%. This week I saw a new primary doctor. After compressing five years of medical events into five minutes, I […]