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  • Is Chicago a good place to live if you have SMA?

    Posted by survivinglife on July 19, 2024 at 4:17 am

    So my brother and I are thinking about moving eventually so he can go to grad school, but we don’t know where yet. Right now he’s looking at either Chicago or Champagne Illinois. They both have good opportunities for him in terms of education AND career, they’re not too far away from our family, and Chicago at least seems to have a lot of Doctors who know SMA. Is that true?

    Side note: My brother actually wants to go to Boston New York but he is worried about taking me all the way out there – although I don’t know if that is for medical reasons or the fact that he’ll be taking me so far away from our family, cuz while he’s not that close to our family, I AM. But My brother is my best friend. I’m going to do anything for him. So I am also wondering if Boston is a good place to live…?

    survivinglife replied 6 months, 3 weeks ago 4 Members · 4 Replies
  • 4 Replies
  • deann-r

    Member
    July 22, 2024 at 9:14 am

    It’s tough when each state operates differently. I forget, are you currently in Illinois? That would make it simpler to move because you would qualify for the same programs you do now I would think. It would just be a matter of transferring counties and arranging services. From my experience usually bigger cities have more knowledge when it comes to medical care. Sometimes they have more options for living arrangements and caregiving too but then again it can be competitive so you need to get on waitlists early.

    I don’t live in Illinois or New York but I believe we have quite a few SMAers who do.

  • alyssa-silva

    Member
    July 22, 2024 at 10:49 am

    Hey! I’m not sure what Chicago is like. But if you were considering Boston, I can tell you with certainty that you would be in great hands medically. I go to Boston Children’s Hospital for all my needs (they keep SMA patients for life), and they’re amazing. They know SMA so well and have treated me many, many times. I don’t know what home care or nursing home services are like, though. I also don’t know what accessibility is like in Boston. It’s an old city, and a lot of its history has been preserved. Maybe @dennis-turner can weigh in with his thoughts.

  • dennis-turner

    Member
    July 22, 2024 at 11:32 am

    Boston is an old city. Narrow streets, lots of stairs, subway often not accessible. The bus system, however, is pretty reliable and all busses have ramps. If you are able to locate an apartment that you can afford, it is a livable city with beautiful parks and greenways.

    As Alyssa stated, the medical facilities are the best around. I know Children’s is great, I usually use Massachusetts General for my Neurologist . They have a fantastic Adults with SMA clinic there.

    You should feel comfortable coming for a visit with your brother. It will also give you a better chance to see the city.

    Dennis

  • survivinglife

    Member
    July 22, 2024 at 12:35 pm

    Wow thank you guys!

    I currently live in southern Indiana. Right now we live in different cities cuz he is in college and was in college when all that stuff happened with our parents. But when he found out about it, he got…well mad. He said he’s tired of not being able to trust whoever’s taking care of me and he misses me like crazy anyway so he offered to take care of me himself. I’m living in a nursing home until he can get out of his lease and move into a more accessible place, then I’ll be moving in with him. I can’t wait!

    He’s still gotta finish undergrad school, but we like to think ahead.

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