Together - a Column by Mark Harrington

In 2020, a myasthenia gravis (MG) diagnosis completely changed my life. According to the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America, the prevalence of this disease in the U.S. is estimated at 14 to 20 per 100,000. That means there are about 36,000 to 60,000 cases. So why was I…

A recent Washington Post article, written in the form of a multiple-choice quiz, challenges many of the assumptions made about people with “disabilities.” I put disabilities in quotations because my feelings about that term are complex and mostly negative. Putting my unease aside, I agree that “research shows that…

Spring has arrived here in Texas. The trees outside my windows have lost their winter grayness and once again have turned my home into a treehouse. It’s the time of year when poets and songwriters tell us that new beginnings, and maybe even new love, are in the air. This…

Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with prednisone. Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. Living with myasthenia gravis (MG), or any rare disease, brings physical and emotional challenges. Since my diagnosis in 2020,…

Years ago, a colleague shared her morning ritual with me. After waking, she thanked God for restful sleep, the excitement of a new day, and the caring people in her life. I adopted this ritual. Each morning, I’m reminded that the new day is an adventure. The little boy in…

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Frank McCourt once said of his fellow Irishmen, “I think there’s something about the Irish experience — that we had to have a sense of humor or die.” The tragic nature of Irish history certainly tested the ability of the Irish to maintain any sense of…

The final lines of Voltaire’s “Candide” are some of my favorites in literature. As the story concludes, two of the main characters reflect on the “concatenation of events,” some of which were unpleasant and difficult, that ended in happiness for all. After a summation of their journey, the…

“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.” —…

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…

“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…