Striving to find balance when in pain and everything feels off balance
I am always striving to find balance in my life, as I know most people are. Because my neck is off-center from a neurological movement disorder called dystonia, it...
How to choose better for ourselves when we are suffering
If you have dystonia and chronic pain like I do, or one of many other thousands of health conditions, or just dealing with some tough life situations, you are...
Releasing past pain and starting the new year differently
Being that it is a new year, which for many people is a time to say goodbye to the previous year with plans and goals for a fresh start,...
Coming to terms with painful challenges is hard!
Life is filled with endless ups and downs. The first 5 of my ongoing 20 years living with dystonia were pretty much nothing but down times. I experienced the...
Try as we may, we can’t hide from our pain forever
Human beings are wired to run away from things that are painful and difficult. I sure as heck did the first 5 years of my dystonia diagnosis. It often...
The truth about stress…in my opinion
Believe it or not, it wasn’t until final exams my freshman year in college that I heard the term “stressed out.” It just wasn’t used that often back then....
What a spider (and all of nature) taught me about resilience and adapting to adversity and pain
I have lived with chronic pain from dystonia, a neurological movement disorder, for 20 years. When it first began in 2001, it completely changed my life. I had to...
Stress is like a clogged drain – Tips for managing our emotional plumbing
I think everybody would agree that stress is a challenge in their lives. Personally, I think we should take on the belief that no stress exists and that it...
Slow down to manage your pain
How many of you find yourself rushing around and it’s causing you stress and pain? And if you already have pain, does it add to your pain? Are you...
Embrace the suck of life
Most of us are familiar with the Latin term, carpe diem, which means “seize the day.” This phrase became especially popular in the movie Dead Poets Society with the...
Are you turning your gizmo into a gremlin? Understanding and managing anxiety
When I think of anxiety, I think of the movie, Gremlins (1984). For those of you who have seen this movie, you know that feeding a gremlin after midnight...
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...
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...
