Columns

I sat in the front row of the football stadium, watching my second-oldest son, Chance, 17, play football. It’s his senior year, and I’ve been front and center at each game. That front row has the accessible seating, which helps because Chance has three brothers living with…

As Western Pennsylvania natives, my wife, Wendy, and I are both Steelers fans. Naturally, when the Steelers played the Dallas Cowboys a couple weeks ago, we tuned in. If you’re not a football fan, you’re most likely unaware that the game was delayed for about an hour and a half…

What’s a typical week as a caregiver of three sons with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) like? As a primary caregiver to Max, 18, Rowen, 15, and Charlie, 13, my honest answer is that I wish I knew! There is no typical week. I also have four children who…

In my four decades of life with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, I’ve become comfortable educating everyone I meet about my quality of life and the ways all of us living with chronic, rare conditions have been given a wonderful chance to influence societal views of the disabled community. I’ve…

Our house is getting a new piece of medical equipment this week. That’s happened before, as we have three sons with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD): Max, 18, Rowen, 15, and Charlie, 13. Over the past decade, in fact, our house has been a landing zone for lots of equipment…

I’ve been disabled for over 50 years, and I spent over 30 years working with people with disabilities. The language surrounding disability has evolved in that time. For the most part, that’s a good thing. As an example, person-first language has become more common. It’s more appropriate to introduce someone…

I believe that all of us who live with a chronic illness deal with a future full of unknowns. We all wrestle with uncertainty regarding quality of life from year to year, month to month, and even day to day. My chronic illness is limb-girdle muscular dystrophy. The…

I’m going gray. Wait, I should clarify that I’ve been coloring my hair since I was 25. It started coming in gray long before I became a mom to three sons with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD): Max, 18, Rowen, 15, and Charlie, 13. But after hiding my natural color…

Last Saturday, I had the honor of participating in the third Singapore Health Patient Advocate Connection event (SPACe) hosted by the SingHealth Patient Advocacy Network (SPAN). As a cast member of the incredible SPANtastic Theatre plenary skit team, I not only had the chance to perform, but also…

I’ve had a walker with wheels for a decade. I got it after back surgery in 2014 and used it for a month or so. As a blind person with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), I found it much more difficult to maintain my orientation without direct touch. I was…