Our Capabilities Define Us, Not Our Limitations

Over the years, I’ve found myself attracted to writing stories about the underdog. I love learning about people who come up against seemingly insurmountable odds, only to overcome them through sheer grit, ingenuity, and determination. In 2015, my first published article was about a woman who fell 45 feet…

Meditation Helps Me Seek the Quiet Mind

The “pause between” is my new Parkinson’s self-management tool. I use it every day to help me switch from old ways of reacting to the “flicker effect” (dysregulated systems). It provides improved threshold management and mindful movements, which make life easier. The old ways are like a paved…

Managing Chronic Pain, Part 1: Understanding a Shift in Perspective

Pain and suffering are not the same. An internet search for “difference between pain and suffering” yields dozens of sites for writers and practitioners, like Ashley Pennewill and Ann Marie Gaudon, who extol the benefits to be gained from this conceptualization. The repeated message is that pain is…

By Learning to Shift Perspective, We Can Change What’s Possible

I hate exercise! Both my pain and fatigue increase when I exercise. These are disabling Parkinson’s disease symptoms, and both trigger the fight-or-flight response that often manifests as “the grouch.” I have not found an easy way of exercising with Parkinson’s pain and fatigue, but I have…