Movement Disorder Archives - Page 3 of 14

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Movement Disorder

“So Have You Tried Yoga?” And Other Well-Meaning Things People Say

Michael MantzMay 1, 2026Ataxia Awareness, Resilient Voices

A field guide to the well-meaning things people say when they’re trying to help There’s a moment that happens when you tell someone about your diagnosis. You can almost see it – the quick calculation behind their eyes as they figure out what to say next. Most people land somewhere kind. Some land somewhere memorable....

Living Without a Finish Line: What Spinocerebellar Ataxia Taught Me About Uncertainty

Michael MantzApril 20, 2026Ataxia Awareness, My Story, Resilient Voices

There’s a moment, somewhere between the kitchen and the hallway, where I catch myself paying attention to how I’m walking. Not because anything dramatic happened. Just a slight shift, a half-second of recalibration, and suddenly I’m aware of my feet in a way most people never are. It happens in my own house. A place...

When Head Tremors Return: My Experience with Cerebellar Ataxia and Titubation

Michael MantzApril 11, 2026Ataxia Awareness, My Story

This is Part 2 of my head tremor journey. If you missed the original, you can read it here: Shaking the Silence: My Intense Journey with Head Tremors Almost three years. That’s how long I had gone without an episode. Long enough to wonder, maybe even quietly hope, that they were done with me. They...

The Strange Things You Notice When Balance Starts Changing

Michael MantzMarch 20, 2026Ataxia Awareness, Resilient Voices

Balance is one of those things you never really think about. Walking across a parking lot, stepping off a curb, and moving through a crowd… your body just handles it. Thousands of little adjustments are happening every minute, and they stay completely in the background. You don’t notice them because, honestly, you’ve never had a...

Overthinking When the Stakes Are Real

Michael MantzMarch 7, 2026Ataxia Awareness, Resilient Voices

When “Stop Worrying” Doesn’t Help Most advice about overthinking starts from the same assumption. That you’re worried about something that probably won’t happen. Or that your brain is jumping ahead for no good reason. You’re told to stay present, let go of hypothetical outcomes, and focus on what’s actually in front of you. And sometimes,...

How Blood Sugar May Affect Balance and Coordination in Ataxia

Michael MantzFebruary 25, 2026Ataxia Awareness, Overall Wellness, Resilient Voices

There are days when nothing obvious has changed. You slept fine. Your symptoms feel about the same as usual. And yet your balance is just a little less reliable. You misjudge a step or reach for something, and it takes a second longer than it should. Walking across the room takes slightly more effort than...

When It Feels Like You’ve Lost a Part of Yourself After a Major Life/Health Change

Michael MantzFebruary 20, 2026Ataxia Awareness, Overall Wellness, Resilient Voices

There’s a moment after a major life change – injury, illness, relocation, relationships, career changes – when something feels like it disappeared. Not paused, not adapting, just gone. It doesn’t arrive dramatically. It shows up in quiet sentences: “I’m not that person anymore.”“That chapter’s over.”“I can’t do that the way I used to.” Over time,...

Gene Therapy for Ataxia: What This New Trial Really Means (and What It Doesn’t)

Michael MantzJanuary 28, 2026Ataxia Awareness, Research and Development

I saw the screenshot the same way many people probably did, as a post about a new gene therapy trial for Friedreich’s ataxia. “First patient dosed.” Big words. Big implications. The kind of headline that makes your nervous system lean forward for a second before your rational brain has a chance to catch up. For...

When the Same Advice Wrecks One Person and Helps Another

Michael MantzJanuary 18, 2026Ataxia Awareness, Overall Wellness, Resilient Voices

Why “What Works” Is Misleading With Ataxia and Neurological Conditions One of the most confusing parts of living with ataxia and similar neurological conditions is how often the same advice produces completely opposite results. Something that genuinely helps one person can quietly wreck another. Sleep medications are a common example. Supplements too. So are routines,...

The New Year’s Chat

Franke JamesJanuary 9, 2026Ataxia Awareness, Resilient Voices

Every once in a while, someone in this community puts words to a feeling many of us carry but rarely articulate. Franke James is one of those people. Franke is a writer and author who also lives with idiopathic ataxia. When she shared this piece with me, it stayed with me. Not because it softens...