The story of julia
My story begins in 1988 when I was living in Charlotte, NC. I began noticing something amiss with my gait. I was 39 with two young children, and very active. After a few months, I contacted a neurologist and began the long search for a diagnosis. After two and a half years of tests, my doctor diagnosed me with PLS. He sent me to see Dr. Rowland at Columbia-Presbyterian in NYC to rule out ALS, which he did. In 1992 I took it upon myself to visit The Mayo Clinic and saw Dr. Daube. They tested me for 5 days and came to the same conclusion. I also visited a doctor at Duke. I’m now 72 and ambulate only with a rollator. Life is challenging but I manage to stay upbeat most of the time. I find joy in seeing my g-daughter when she visits and in teaching my piano student. The “blessing” in my title is that PLS slowed me down so that I could attend to the important things in life. The “curse” is that I lost my ability to sing and play the trumpet. I’m thankful & grateful to be here and appreciate every day to the fullest.  Julia R. Walker