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The eye roll. The “I’m not listening but want you to think I am” head nod. The silence. The outbursts. Any or all of these have been responses I’ve received from people who are, or used to be, in my network when I provide updates on my life…

“No man steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” — Heraclitus “It’s the paradox that the more you allow yourself to accept that change is inevitable, the more likely you are to change intentionally and adapt.” —…

My hygiene sucks. All of it. It’s better now, but that’s because I swallowed my pride and admitted to my husband (and caregiver), Justin, that I needed more help than I was asking for. He made it easier for me to admit this by asking, “Honey, do you need…

The U.S. healthcare system is broken. There’s nothing earth-shattering in that statement. However, every day, people — our friends, neighbors, and family members — die as a result. Recent events in my life brought this home with painful clarity. Prior to my myasthenia gravis (MG) diagnosis, I believed that…

Sixty-one days, 8.7 weeks, two months, or one-sixth of a year — that’s how much time I spent at medical appointments in 2022. When I stop to look at the numbers, it’s no wonder I’ve been experiencing medical burnout. This type of burnout is real and brings a…

“The older people get, the more positive they are about aging and the more adaptive they are to their limitations. Social science tends to define old people by their disabilities. But people don’t define themselves that way.” — Laura L. Carstensen, founding director of the Stanford Center on Longevity, as…

Neon green snot runs out of my nose and down the back of my throat. A cough sounds like I’ve been smoking two packs of nonfiltered cigarettes a day. Exhaustion hits a bit differently than it normally does. My eyes are sunken. Crap. I’m normal people sick. Defining degrees of…

“Red light!” “Green light, … red light!” Are you smiling as you remember playing Red Light, Green Light in the schoolyard as a child? I have a smirk on my face as I sit here writing it. The other morning, while scrolling through social media and waiting for my medications…

I’m fat. My body mass index (BMI) is currently 37.9 kg/m2. (The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute notes that a BMI of 18.5–24.9 indicates a normal weight, while a BMI of 30 or greater indicates obesity.) According to a 2020 study published in the journal Frontiers in…