I am a 36-year-old geeky gal living in Los Angeles. Living with me is my husband Paul, a videogame technical director, and two unemployed Burmese cats, Zen — the one with the game controller — and Satori. Starting at the age of 30, I was progressively “nerfed” by a series of illnesses, including Graves’ disease (in remission), Graves’ eye disease (not so much) and chronic fatigue syndrome (are you kidding me?).
I have a BFA in Dramatic Writing from NYU, and have finished the coursework for my master’s in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL). Prior to becoming disabled, I was a sign language interpreter in the college setting, and later taught English grammar and writing to underprepared deaf college students. I enjoy many nerdtastic pastimes from the The New York Times crossword to Kingdom of Loathing to rewatching Firefly episodes for the nine jillionth time.
This blog covers topics including games and geekiness, chronic illness and disability, health and medicine, and skepticism and science. The latter two inform this blog strongly. I am a proponent of critical thinking and evidence-based medicine, something I have found missing in many blogs and support forums about chronic illness. I’m happy to have joined the team at Grassroots Skeptics as their editorial manager.
Terms
There is an international debate over the terminology of this illness. Names like chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), myalgic encephalopathy (ME), ME/CFS, chronic fatigue immune deficiency syndrome (CFIDS), post-viral fatigue syndrome, neuro-endocrine immune disorder, and the new XAND (from a recent study implicating XMRV in this illness) are constantly being analyzed for accuracy and implications.
I choose to say I have CFS. I believe my syndrome is post-viral in nature and I have not yet been diagnosed with any neurological dysfunction. (Though if we’re laying odds on my next disease…) This is no kind of political statement as, having read my eyes bloody over the nomenclature issue, I’ve decided to stay out of the fray. This is my own decision about what identifies my own illness most accurately and most recognizably.
(photo by Amy Davis Roth)
About me and this blog
I have a BFA in Dramatic Writing from NYU, and have finished the coursework for my master’s in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL). Prior to becoming disabled, I was a sign language interpreter in the college setting, and later taught English grammar and writing to underprepared deaf college students. I enjoy many nerdtastic pastimes from the The New York Times crossword to Kingdom of Loathing to rewatching Firefly episodes for the nine jillionth time.
This blog covers topics including games and geekiness, chronic illness and disability, health and medicine, and skepticism and science. The latter two inform this blog strongly. I am a proponent of critical thinking and evidence-based medicine, something I have found missing in many blogs and support forums about chronic illness. I’m happy to have joined the team at Grassroots Skeptics as their editorial manager.
Terms
There is an international debate over the terminology of this illness. Names like chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), myalgic encephalopathy (ME), ME/CFS, chronic fatigue immune deficiency syndrome (CFIDS), post-viral fatigue syndrome, neuro-endocrine immune disorder, and the new XAND (from a recent study implicating XMRV in this illness) are constantly being analyzed for accuracy and implications.
I choose to say I have CFS. I believe my syndrome is post-viral in nature and I have not yet been diagnosed with any neurological dysfunction. (Though if we’re laying odds on my next disease…) This is no kind of political statement as, having read my eyes bloody over the nomenclature issue, I’ve decided to stay out of the fray. This is my own decision about what identifies my own illness most accurately and most recognizably.
(photo by Amy Davis Roth)