Columns

Birthdays take on a slightly different meaning around here. At this time every year, I think about a story my mother once told me about the first birthday I celebrated and wonder how painful and heart-wrenching it all must have been for my family to process. Although I’ll…

The middle child holds a special place in everybody’s heart — they’re the peacekeeper, the negotiator, the one most likely to feel overlooked. Henry fits the bill to a T. He is Ella’s older brother and Ava’s younger one, and he seeks acceptance from…

In a few days I’ll be 24, and every year my birthday is accompanied with at least some sentimentality. I hate being sappy, and anytime I reach a milestone it’s usually followed by an emotional speech by one of my parents. At my college graduation party last…

It’s easy for me to hide behind a computer screen and tell you that it gets better. To believe that it gets better – yet still wake up every morning with an unbearable sense of … dread. Exhaustion. Never knowing what’s going to happen, and trying…

Until I was 15, I managed to stay reasonably healthy. But for the first time in almost a decade that year, I was hospitalized. The winter months can be tricky, with colds and flu taking over just about every person you come in contact with. I was admitted…

Ella’s a hard-working 7-year-old. She rises early in the morning for school. While at school, she does what all of the other kids do and more. She has therapies to go to (physical therapy and occupational therapy) throughout the week. They work her hard…

I’ve been writing this column since April, and while I haven’t shied away from addressing personal topics like adapting to my weakening body and at times feeling burdensome, dating is a subject I’ve steered away from. When I was on a panel at the Cure SMA…

I don’t know about you, but it’s getting harder and harder to keep my head above water these days. Part of it is school and part of it is depression, but most of it is just … life. There’s always something bad going on. Another…

My wheelchair has been my ultimate sidekick since I was a curly-headed toddler, and just like any other great sidekick, I rely on it for pretty much every aspect of life. Without my wheelchair, I would be helpless, confined and literally stuck. As the only source of independent…

Seven-year-old’s question everything; it’s part of how they learn about the world. Ella is no different. She questions us about many things. Of course, in the heat of frustration or while being reflective on any given situation, the questions revolve around SMA. Ella…