The Dystonia Diagnosis and Prognosis
“You have dystonia” are three words that can be very confusing and frightening. Receiving the news that you have any chronic condition can bring out a lot of emotions....
NEW BOOK RELEASE — Beyond Pain and Suffering: Adapting to Adversity and Life Challenges
In 2015, I published my first book, Diagnosis Dystonia: Navigating the Journey. It is a combination autobiography, self-help, education book that provides treatment options, coping strategies, skills for daily...
THE TOWER – What my husband’s cancer diagnosis taught us about perspective
This is a guest blog from an old friend who shares how her husband’s recent cancer diagnosis changed his and their perspective about life. This is so well written...
The impact stress and emotions have on our health
25 years ago, I developed a painful neurological movement disorder called dystonia. I was 30 years old at the time. It totally turned my life upside down where I...
Managing excessive worry and fear to avoid health consequences
I think it would be safe to say that everyone is afraid of something. Sometimes the fear is justified and sometimes not. In this article, I want to focus...
My typical day managing my dystonia and chronic pain
I have lived with dystonia and chronic pain for 21 years. The first 5 of those years were the worst of my life. The pain from the involuntary muscle...
Be careful about being too hard on yourself if you live with a health condition that already kicks your ass
Dystonia and chronic pain, as well as many other health conditions, remind me of bullies that pick on kids in the schoolyard every day. Like the bully, dystonia and...
Finding the proper puzzle pieces for better health and life balance
Not too long ago, my girlfriend and I did a 500-piece puzzle over a period of a weekend. It was not a remarkable feat, but this is the first...
After the diagnosis/Self harming thoughts
After being diagnosed with dystonia, or any other chronic health condition, and learning it is not a temporary problem (or if you have lived with it for years and...
A tool for practicing gratitude
Many of us recently celebrated Thanksgiving, a time to reflect upon things for which we are thankful. It is a time to really focus on gratitude, which got me...
How healthy is your information diet? Is it stressing you out?
We are all of course aware of diets for food, but what about diets for other aspects of our life, such as those that feed our emotional health? I...
Take a break for your health when your world is spinning out of control
For the past few months, I have been running around doing a lot of things that I have no interest doing. Life was just extra busy with so many...
Finding meaning and purpose in our pain and suffering
Life is ever evolving so it is important to remember that the storms in our lives do not always last forever. When I developed dystonia in 2001, I lost...
