Seventeen years is a long time to have had MS. Unimpressed by the number seventeen? How about the fact that I’ve lived with MS for
2010 was an eventful year for me, and I commemorated it with this Christmas poem. You may enjoy following a few of the hyperlinks for old
How about a copy of ENJOYING THE RIDE: Two Generations of Tragedy and Triumph? If you live in southern Maine, print copies are available at
I wrote in my book: During my sophomore year on the high school track team, my future wife stood out among the other freshman runners
My friend Meg burst onto the MS blogging scene in 2013, not with a whimper but a bang. She calls her website BBHwithMS.com, where BBH
My friend, Dave King, who figures prominently in the book, helped me pull together this audio version, so that I didn’t have to invest thousands
Lots of book activity lately. Audiobook Version Within a week or so I should have the audiobook, which I narrate myself, available for sale. I’ll
I have strong political opinions, which I choose not to share here, so that this remains a welcome space for conservatives, independents, liberals, libertarians, librarians,
I’m not one to spout clichés and platitudes. I’ve railed against “everything happens for a reason.” Don’t get me started on “time heals all wounds,”
If I had known when I was, say, 18, that I would be diagnosed with MS, and that I would be in
Like a movie, sometimes interesting and entertaining scenes have to be cut from a book for any number of reasons. I’ll share a few of
If you want to skip ahead to my interview, it begins at minute 16:17, but if you have an interest in broader MS issues, I
Click the image to watch the video
Okay, maybe you also live in Portland. How am I supposed to know? Okay, technically I live in South Portland. Close enough. Try to stay
I don’t like to throw parties, because I’m afraid nobody will come, and if they do come, they will regret having done so. It was
It’s been a hectic couple of weeks, so I was particularly pleased when Kim noticed that ENJOYING THE RIDE, print version, is #1 for new
At long last, my book is available for purchase. Currently, it can be found at Amazon, at CIA Café in South Portland, or directly from me
We are hosting two book launch parties, one in Lincoln, Maine, where I grew up, and where the first part of the book is set,
Sometimes we get ourselves in trouble, and sometimes all it takes is a few good men or women to help us get out. Our friends
Enjoying the Ride: Two Generations of Tragedy and Triumph will be published by an upstart company called Casco Bay Publishing, LLC. Okay, this will be
An oldie but a goodie: My Pet Peeves Click the video below, or click here.
The title question is not to be confused with the more common greeting “how are you?” Under no circumstances should you respond to “how are you?”
“Playing the disability card,” is a phrase that carries a vaguely negative connotation—like I’m getting away with something. Let’s examine that. There’s not just one
Enjoying the Ride Two Generations of Tragedy & Triumph Mitch Sturgeon Details to follow.
It sure seems like the world is going to hell: climate change, job insecurity, authoritarianism, racial strife, fake news, terrorism, and so much
Looking Back I’ve written here countless times about my stairclimbing, four-wheel-drive, balancing-on-two-wheels wheelchair, the iBOT. Here are a couple of excerpts about the iBOT from
I don’t want to die, but neither do I fear death. The reason I don’t want to die is that I hate the thought of
I scour the earth for blog post ideas, and today I stumbled upon a good one. I like it when a person writes
Today I spent seven and a half hours at the cancer infusion center. That’s how long the entire Ocrevus infusion took, including an hour for
I can no longer type, and I can’t hold a book. I am unable to raise my arm high enough to wave at
On this 8-night cruise, we made only three ports of call, given that we spent two and a half days traveling from New Jersey to
This freaking cruise ship, Anthem of the Seas, is a floating city. Not Boston or San Francisco or Seattle, but more like Las Vegas, New
Average cruisers gain about one pound per day. I’m an average cruiser. Kim isn’t. She takes the stairs whenever possible and chases me around in
Logistics — the planning and execution of complex operations. Yes, that’s it. I remember the first time I heard of someone being called a “Manager
As I sit in my luxurious wheelchair, I almost feel guilty. The healthy folks around me must endure less elaborate, less comfortable chairs. Theirs don’t
I’ve been thinking about tribalism a lot lately. Seems to be everywhere. Seems to be a big problem. Teams With sports fans, tribalism is largely
I am overwhelmed by how helpful and pleasant most people are when they encounter me in public. Just last week I was zipping through a
One morning, a couple of weeks ago, Kim refused to get me out of bed, showered, dressed, and ready for the day, like she
Sixteen years is a long time to have MS. Sixteen is not a big number, however. Let’s think of it as 5844 days or 140,252
The issue of my worsening disability rarely comes up in polite conversation. On those occasions when it does, well-intentioned people, restrained by propriety, offer sentiments
“This is the way the world ends Not with a bang but a whimper.” T.S. Eliot We hoped. We prayed (some of us did, anyway).
To hear this podcast: click here This is Mitch Sturgeon who is a user of MyCounterpane.com, as well as the founder of enjoyingtheride.com. Are you living with MS, progressing and feeling
(Photo credit: Wikipedia) We’ve all heard this platitude before, but I have some questions about it. After all, isn’t it a perversion of human decency
Made Another “Best Blogs” List A company called MyTherapy, which makes a smart phone app that helps patients track their medications, recently compiled their list
So, you think making your bed is a pain in the ass? Try making my bed (I suggest using the full-screen button on the bottom
Yep, this is the big five–oh–oh. I’ve been doing this for eight years now, since I stopped working in the summer of 2009. That first
There is, and has only ever been, one FDA approved treatment for primary progressive multiple sclerosis. It’s called Ocrevus, and I’m taking it. Every other
You’ve been so very patient. I announced here, a long time ago, that I was writing a book and it was almost done. Obviously, I
I’ve been asked how it is that I maintain my identity – how it is I keep MS from defining who I am. To a
“Watch your toes. My wife says it hurts.” That’s my go-to line when I work my way through a crowd, and it serves two purposes.
I graduated high school at a lean, muscular, 180 pounds. It’s been a struggle ever since. But I kept things under control by eating less,
There are obvious things I miss: walking, driving, taking care of myself in so many ways. But here are ten more obscure activities that I wish I
My daughter and son-in-law moved out this summer, with our blessing and best wishes. This left Kim and I empty-nesters, which changes things. I didn’t feel the
Ocrevus probably won’t work for me. It’s best suited for younger patients with less disability, and it’s more effective for people with active lesions, which I don’t
Serendipity: finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for. The hostess at our favorite restaurant, Snow Squall, seated us three tables away from the other
This was billed as the Independence Day cruise. We would dock overnight in Halifax, Nova Scotia for Canada Day, July 1, and we would dock
The Celebrity Summit holds about 2450 passengers and 1000 crew. We often take the crew for granted. They work seven days a week for weeks
If I had known the wheelchair accessibility shortcomings of the Celebrity Summit, I would not have booked it for a cruise. That would have been
Do not adjust your computer/tablet/phone. You read that correctly. For the second time this year we are cruisin’. In February, accompanied by my brothers and
I am dependent but not helpless. I am left behind, but I enjoy time alone. I am fragile but not weak. I am embarrassed but
I’ve passed a lot of milestones in my disease progression—cane, crutches, scooter, wheelchair, disability retirement, the involvement of my upper extremities, and more. Recently, I’ve
Wednesday, May 31, is World MS Day, and I have big plans. Because their readership is so much larger than mine, I’m going to hack
A couple of months ago, I received an invitation from Healthline.com to respond to the above prompt. They asked the same question of other MS
Getting a new wheelchair is not like getting a new hairdo, or a new outfit. It’s way beyond that. Getting a new wheelchair isn’t the