Columns

In September 1995, my parents began running the family’s newly acquired lodge on the stunning Blue Ridge Parkway. My husband, Randy, our two children, Matthew and Katie, and I lived about an hour away at the time.

First in a series.  “All right, I have to go. Bye, Sherry,” my then-new pain specialist said. “I hope I won’t see you for a few months.” That was a few days after he’d administered a caudal…

It was another appointment in an appointment-packed January. My hopes weren’t particularly high, but no one will ever accuse me of being a less-than-perfect patient, so I braved the cold bite of the new year. I…

I didn’t expect to find myself participating in a Valentine’s Day card exchange as an adult. I thought such festivities were (sadly) reserved for kids. But then a friend shared a Facebook post last year inviting people to join…

My husband, Randy, and I moved our family to the North Carolina mountains in the final hours of 1995. Adventures in our old farmhouse commenced immediately. We considered a newsworthy blizzard and the escape of two…

Last month, the biotechnology company Scholar Rock submitted an application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requesting approval of an experimental add-on therapy to treat spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). The investigational drug apitegromab is intended to…

The weather can affect those of us with SMA in ways that many people wouldn’t think of. For example, I wish I could just enjoy looking out of the window as the snow falls, with everything…

I learned my vision needed assistance in fifth grade. Although I unwittingly squinted at the chalkboard, my report cards never indicated a problem. I was a model student because I adored my teacher, Mrs. Chandler. I…

Stephen King’s “The Shining” shows what happens when someone spends too much time cooped up indoors. Sure, supernatural forces provide the basis for the main character’s descent into madness, but a defining element of the novel is that it takes…

It takes a rather large team of specialists and various medical professionals to help manage my care alongside me and my mom, who’s my primary caregiver. That means I have to attend lots of doctor appointments. I’d…