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Lily Pierce
Healing Journey , published by Lily Pierce February 3, 2024 The last few weeks have marked the start of a new year but also brought a lot of change for me, at least in my day-to-day life. For several years now, I’ve worked out in a gym with a physical trainer. But at the end of December 2023,...
We pressure ourselves to fit into a particular ideal and be able to do certain things. For each of us, the standards vary. For the highly athletic person, perhaps it’s running X miles a day. For the average person who exercises, it may be the ability to lift X pounds on certain machines. For a NON-gym...
You can read Lily’s previous article HERE.After taking the new medicine called Skyclarys for Friedreich’s Ataxia for a little over one month, I can share some updates and observations. Like the condition itself, these meds affect each patient differently, and our experiences all vary. I haven’t noticed any changes to my balance and coordination, two...
Hi, friends. For those who struggle with standing, balancing, or walking due to illness and/or old age, daily minutiae can become a huge burden once the leg and hip muscles atrophy. Using the toilet, taking a shower, simply getting from point A to point B–every little obstacle is a mountain. While the progression of time or disease...
At age 16, I was diagnosed with a genetic neurological disorder called Friedreich’s Ataxia. I’d been experiencing symptoms since age 11 with no logical explanation up to then.  I staggered when I walked, I couldn’t carry a cup of water, and I dropped things a lot.  But little did I know that my body cells…….....
(North Carolina’s Emerging Writers, Z Publishing House, August 2018) My name is Lily, and I’m twenty-five years old.  Since I’m a recent college graduate, one might presume my mind is filled with dreams for the future and visions of a potential career. Or, particularly in the modern era, one might guess that I feel more...

My purpose

michael mantz
Life rarely goes as planned. This blog is about navigating what actually happens – major disruptions, health challenges, and the quieter work of figuring out who you are through all of it. I write from inside that process. I have Spinocerebellar Ataxia (SCA 15), a rare neurological condition that shapes my perspective but doesn’t define this space. Some articles are personal. Some are practical. All of them are honest.

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