Columns

Lying in a hospital bed, I watched as a nurse demonstrated how to use a nasojejunal tube (NJ tube) to my parents. I could tell they were nervous. They learned about an NJ tube only three weeks earlier, and everything about it seemed so foreign. My mother stumbled…

My optimistic crust cracked a bit when I opened the mailbox last week and spied an envelope from my late mother’s life insurance company. It could have been correspondence requesting additional information so they could “process this claim promptly,” or it could have been the proceeds from the…

My optimistic crust cracked a bit when I opened the mailbox last week and spied an envelope from my late mother’s life insurance company. It could have been correspondence requesting additional information so they could “process this claim promptly,” or it could have been the proceeds from the…

I was at a friend’s wedding a few months ago when I pondered the question of how to properly introduce myself. Typically, I give the spiel that the company I work for is a network of rare disease websites, and my job involves overseeing online communities and writing…

I was at a friend’s wedding a few months ago when I pondered the question of how to properly introduce myself. Typically, I give the spiel that the company I work for is a network of rare disease websites, and my job involves overseeing online communities and writing…

There’s nothing quite as satisfying as checking an item off your bucket list. Earlier this year, I put on my big girl pants and rescheduled a long-awaited tattoo appointment. It was a whole ordeal — one you’ll remember if you’ve been reading my column for a while. In late…

There’s nothing quite as satisfying as checking an item off your bucket list. Earlier this year, I put on my big girl pants and rescheduled a long-awaited tattoo appointment. It was a whole ordeal — one you’ll remember if you’ve been reading my column for a while. In late…

Loss of the survival motor neuron (SMN) protein changes the function of a type of brain immune cell called microglia, making them more prone to promoting inflammation and disease progression in spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a new study reveals. The study, “Survival motor neuron protein…

While reflecting on my life today, a witty phrase popped into my head. I laughed to myself as I thought, “I don’t have to go looking for trouble, trouble will find me.” As I’ve said before, if I didn’t have a sense of humor about some things, I…

While reflecting on my life today, a witty phrase popped into my head. I laughed to myself as I thought, “I don’t have to go looking for trouble, trouble will find me.” As I’ve said before, if I didn’t have a sense of humor about some things, I…