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“Askew,” a work of art by American painter and sculptor Roxy Paine, stands just outside the West Building at the North Carolina Museum of Art. It’s an almost 50-foot, tree-like metal structure, with a trunk and…

I was recently reminded why I avoid the grocery store on a Sunday morning: the crowds! I find it difficult to navigate a crowded store, especially when there are shopping carts and other items blocking the aisles. This is not only an issue at the grocery store. As my Charcot-Marie-Tooth…

At the start of 2019, I knew little about Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT). My lack of knowledge about the disease meant that I had gaps in understanding of myself, a person with CMT, and a beneficiary of a wider disability rights movement. I owe much of my growth this year…

I burned my finger the other day. I didn’t feel it right away, which is not that odd of an occurrence for me. Often, I don’t feel the heat and don’t realize I have burned myself while cooking. I have Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) type 1A, which may affect the feeling in…

Tina Trahan said she was sitting in a parking lot in May 2015 when she cried out to God, asking him to give her cancer. Cancer, she thought, offered a greater chance of survival than what a neurologist had just told her she had —…

I recently read an article in the Virginia Journal of Education that made me think about my feelings toward my mobility aids. The author, Kelly Hickok, is a wheelchair user, and she described how mobility aids give her a sense of freedom. She wrote, “We don’t view our wheelchairs…

A high school Spanish teacher introduced me to the practice of meditation. A few times a semester, he would begin or end his class with it. During these sessions, he would suggest that my classmates and I sit in a relaxed position, head on our desks or back straight, with…

I’ve been seeing a lot of articles on the importance of self-care. Self-care involves looking after your mental, physical, and emotional health. Self-care is not a new concept, but it seems to be increasingly popular, maybe because people are becoming more aware of the mind-body connection. As a…

September is CMT Awareness Month, and my social media feeds have been flooded with inspirational quotes and infographics related to Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT). It’s rare that one of these posts gives me information I hadn’t heard before, but one infographic caught me…

September is Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) Awareness Month, a great time to bring attention to this little-known disease. I have CMT1A and wear ankle-foot orthoses (AFOs). Many of my family members suffer from the disease, as well. However, there’s more to us than our disease. To educate others about CMT, I…