Category Archives: Catch the Digmanns

Jennifer’s walkin’. Yes indeed, she’s walkin’.

I told Dan that I still remember the last big, long walk I ever took like it was yesterday.

My first physical therapist, Heather, and I were at the Bower Theater in Flint, Michigan, to see the musical “La Cage aux Folles.” It was highly promoted so naturally, the parking lot was packed the afternoon of the performance we attended. I found an open parking space in what felt was about a mile away from the theater, but at least I got a spot, was on time and was able to enjoy the show.

I remember everything about that May 2002 afternoon so vividly. It was just five short years after my diagnosis with Multiple Sclerosis, and I was losing my ability to walk. I kept repeating to myself, “Just put one foot in front of the other, pick up your walker, take a breath. Be patient. You’ll make it.” And I did. But that was one of the last times I went for a walk.

That is, until yesterday (November 21, 2019).

Suspended in the XY-Gantry system, I stood and took 6 steps. Six steps!

This all was part of a physical therapy program at Central Michigan University where I’ve worked with two doctor of physical therapy students (Chase and Nate) twice a week for three weeks. And in this, my third session, they hooked me up into a harness and I stood.

Then, with all my weight supported through my arms, parallel bars and the XY-Gantry, I felt my thighs contracting and slowly but surely my legs received the message and I took a step with my right leg. It felt amazing! I was so unbelievably ecstatic. So much so, I couldn’t even enjoy and live in that moment.

“Let’s do this again!” I loudly screamed to myself in my mind. And so I did, as I repeated the process with my left leg.

This time I said it out loud, “Let’s do it again!”

Nate did a great job of preventing me from getting ahead of myself. He reminded me to stand up straight. Get back to center. Be patient. Make each step count.

I did. And I counted all six of them.

This number doesn’t come close to how many I took in my last long walk from the parking lot to see “La Cage aux Folles” at the Bower Theater. But then again, I didn’t realize how important such a walk was back in 2002.

Among the lessons I’ve learned throughout my life with MS, it’s more valuable to focus on appreciation and what can be than it is to concentrate on regret and what might have been. Sure, I get sad from time to time because I no longer can walk, but it never stops me from looking forward and finding hope in each moment.

I see the opportunities that equipment like the XY-Gantry has for me in my life with MS. After all, this is the same system that enabled Dan and me to dance to our wedding song for the first time. And I now know it can help me to walk. One step led to 6, and I am riding high on the hope of doing it again and the promise that comes through working with so many of the talented PT students on campus and in our home (thanks, Liz and Ben!).

Experience a new kind of MS support (virtually speaking)

“We appreciate MS can change the challenges of even the simplest daily tasks … and we understand how it makes you feel  – physically and emotionally. Why? Because we are peers … we too live with MS and we understand it at the most basic level, Share your insight and commiserate with others who know.”…Continue Reading

Dear me: A letter I wish I got when my MS turned to SPMS

I recently asked Dan, “Do you ever talk to yourself?” He answered with an emphatic, “Yes!” But then he asked me the same question, and of course my answer was, “I did. Especially when I was a child. I would have some amazing conversations.” Even today, I still do. But I have that awful habit…Continue Reading

Life with MS: MS4MS brings diamonds in the rough

Sam Greenberg had a vision of diamonds and a match made in heaven. And we saw firsthand in Detroit that baseball has a welcomed place in the efforts to enhance and improve the lives of people and families living with Multiple Sclerosis. Sam is the founder and CEO of Mission Stadiums for Multiple Sclerosis (MS4MS),…Continue Reading

OMG! Dan really does have MS!

We often say that together we show how Multiple Sclerosis affects everyone differently. While it’s easy to see that MS impacts Jennifer’s ability to walk (hint: she sits in it every day and it’s the key to her independence), most times you never could tell Dan is living with this chronic progressive disease of the…Continue Reading

MS advocacy on my own… or was I?

It’s not like I haven’t ever advocated at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan, before, but this year I was nervous. This was the first time I went without Dan, my advocacy partner in crime. He unfortunately couldn’t get away from work to attend this year’s 12th Annual Older Michiganians Day. Sure, I had my…Continue Reading

How we made a lasting impact on MS in 31 days

AMarch 2019 was a month for us to remember, and we’re charged up to make sure that you never forget it. As the nation celebrated March as MS Awareness Month, we truly went coast-to-coast to increase awareness and understanding of this chronic disease of the central nervous system. Our adventures started on March 4 and…Continue Reading