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As my parents’ first child, I checked off the typical firstborn squares. I was conscientious, reliable, structured, cautious, and an achiever — in short, a perfectionist. My teachers knew I was responsible and that my folks expected me to do my best. I had no desire to disappoint.

As my parents’ first child, I checked off the typical firstborn squares. I was conscientious, reliable, structured, cautious, and an achiever — in short, a perfectionist. My teachers knew I was responsible and that my folks expected me to do my best. I had no desire to disappoint.

I was about to wrap up my freshman year of college when I found myself absorbed in a whirlwind of emotions. Tubes surrounded me as I sat in my room attached to my Vest Airway Clearance System, a device I’d been using since my sophomore year of high…

I was about to wrap up my freshman year of college when I found myself absorbed in a whirlwind of emotions. Tubes surrounded me as I sat in my room attached to my Vest Airway Clearance System, a device I’d been using since my sophomore year of high…

When it comes to new wheelchairs, I’ve been known to drag my feet. My parents love to tell the story of how my last chair sat in our basement library for a year after I got it. In my defense, I was in the midst of a major depressive…

When it comes to new wheelchairs, I’ve been known to drag my feet. My parents love to tell the story of how my last chair sat in our basement library for a year after I got it. In my defense, I was in the midst of a major depressive…

It’s been about two years since I got a message from a friend saying that she would miss seeing me at Turnstone, the local disability center. Earlier that day, an announcement had been made that the building would be closing for an undetermined amount of time…

It’s been about two years since I got a message from a friend saying that she would miss seeing me at Turnstone, the local disability center. Earlier that day, an announcement had been made that the building would be closing for an undetermined amount of time…

Most of the children with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) who received the gene therapy Zolgensma (onasemnogene abeparvovec) in their first weeks of life are able to walk independently within developmentally normal age ranges, according to new research from the SPR1NT clinical trial. The findings were presented at this…

Back in 2019, I signed up for an online women’s health and rights course by women’s rights activist and Stanford teacher Anne Firth Murray. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision; I’m not even sure I was truly interested in it back then. While I considered myself a feminist, I was…