Let's Find a Way to Give Hope to the Spinocerebellar Ataxia (SCA) Community

(BPT) - When Jen's alarm clock sounds the call of a new day, her first steps are not to the coffee machine, but rather to her desk to accomplish anything that might require handwriting. She then turns her attention to any household chores that require her to go upstairs — and hopes to tackle them before noon. When she can return to the first floor of her home where she will remain for the rest of the day, she readies her meals to ensure they require little preparation when hunger strikes. These tasks all need to be done as soon as she rises, because as the clock ticks onward, Jen's mobility will decline. Her handwriting will become illegible, the second floor of her home will become a destination no longer in reach, and her ability to maneuver throughout her kitchen to make food will become an uphill battle she cannot win.

Jen has a form of Ataxia called spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA), a group of rare progressively debilitating neurodegenerative diseases characterized by loss of voluntary motor skills, loss of balance, frequent falling, impaired coordination of arms and legs, and premature death in some cases, among many other symptoms. Despite these symptoms, Jen persists and finds a way to overcome the challenges that SCA poses against her.