My favorite part of a flight is takeoff. I love that amazing feel of the combination of max speed and the moment you feel the lift. And on that particular day and flight, I had another little treat, a window seat and no one next to me. I was leaving Rochester, MN, from a trip to the Mayo Clinic. I gently rested the left side of my forehead on the cool window. And as I felt the point of rising and looked out the window as what below me became smaller, I felt one warm tear leav

With the familiar voice and music, Jackie felt like she was sitting down to chat with an old friend when she joined North Dakota Prairie Public's Ashley Thornberg on Main Street. Ashley asked all the tough questions about AE, Unwillable, why the title, the writing process, and what's up with the Elton lyrics (have I ever mentioned just how much I love Elton ...)?! To listen to the podcast, find it where you subscribe or click HERE. #StebbinsStrong #JustKeepSwimming #BetterDay

What fun it was to hold a book signing in my hometown of Bowman! And how humbled I was to see this very nice story on the front page of the Bowman County Pioneer. Thanks for welcoming me back with open arms, my beloved Bowman forever family. Read it HERE! My dear new friend who feels just like an old friend, Amanda Godfread, wrote about Unwillable in her "Speaking Out" Opinion piece in the Bismarck Tribune: "'Unwillable' offers glimpse of rare illness." Amanda's beautiful and

UNWILLABLE sightings are popping up everywhere! I've seen UNWILLABLE out in the deep blue seas of Alaska, on a boat on the Missouri River in Bismarck, at the swimming pool, the kitchen counter in North Carolina, the tattered remains after a puppy got into it in Kansas, at the Bowman Museum (shout out to my hometown), in a coffee shop in Arizona, and more! The news about autoimmune encephalitis, its complicated and horrific onset, the terror that ensues, the heartache of recov

On June 8, 2022, Jackie joined host, Mike McFeely, of the McFeely Mess podcast for a discussion of all things AE: the onset, the terror, the recovery, and the process of writing Unwillable. And what an episode it was! Mike asked a lot of tough questions and Jackie tried hard to have the answers. You can listen HERE! #StebbinsStrong #JustKeepSwimming #BetterDaysAhead #UNWILLABLE

On June 1, 2022, Jackie joined her dear friends, Jeff and Amber, on Studio 701, at the local CBS station to celebrate the launch of Unwillable: A Journey to Reclaim my Brain. As always, there were lots of laughs, Jackie busted out some 90s dance moves in the green room, and Jeff was celebrating National Barefoot Day. You can check it out HERE! #StebbinsStrong #JustKeepSwimming #BetterDaysAhead #UNWILLABLE

JM Stebbins friends, please give it up for Lacie J. Van Orman of Loupine Design. Not only is Lacie a super-duper talented graphic designer, ad and marketing lady, she has a Master's degree in Gerontology and works for Humanities North Dakota. She can now add Book Cover Designer to her long list of awesomeness. And on top of all that, she just happens to be a bestie who goes all the way back to me standing by her locker to talk to her in 7th grade. She's truly my forever frien

It’s hard to know where to begin in my relationship with her, but I think this story is best. She doesn’t live too far from me, and during my million miles of solitary walking in my neighborhood during recovery, I frequently passed her house. Usually the thick-furred golden retriever was lying outside and busy kids were coming and going. That day, I decided I’d stop. I hadn’t yet personally shared the news of my (unbelievable and past my wildest dreams) unexpected, post-AE pr

Another Bismarck Brain Walk is in the books. We put out the call for 2022 #JMStebbins, #StebbinsStrong, #BrainWalkers, and boy did y'all show up! 132 people logged brain building miles in seven states across the United States! We had a Bismarck, North Dakota, pharmacy, middle school gym classes in Texas, a beach walker in Florida, a background of ice in Alaska, and a "Just Keep Swim[mer]" in Ohio. In 2020, we had the largest event in North American history. Last year, we had

Q: What do you do for a living? A: I’m a professional patient. Truly. That’s why I do with a lot of my days. I go to the doctor. Q: Do you like what you do for a living? A: No, I don’t like going to the doctor. Actually, it wouldn’t so bad if they always had good news. But being the Wonder that I am, God’s own creation, my appointments don’t always bring good news. Not all of them bring super bad news either, I’m very lucky. But they do bring a lot of uncertainty. It’s draini

For years now, I've promised an autoimmune encephalitis book to my JM Stebbins family. I am so proud to say that 982 days after I began penning my memoir, Calumet Editions acquired it for publication! CLICK HERE to watch the video announcement Thank you, friends! It's because of your love and support that I was able to take this massive step towards my book being placed in your hands. And thank you Calumet Editions for bringing my dream to life. An extra big thank you to my c

ICYMI: Jackie and her lovely husband, Sean, presented about the Brain Fever podcast at 1 Million Cups Bismarck/ Mandan, on February 2, 2022. If you couldn't make it, but are dying to hear Jackie's stories and bad jokes and Sean's wisdom about how to actually produce and publish a podcast, CLICK HERE. Or copy and paste the link: https://fb.watch/aXYfujvaez/ The Brain Fever podcast has been downloaded over 3,000 times on 6 Continents; in 33 Countries and 514 Cities around the g

“That’s a big deal and you’re incredibly stupid for standing in the middle of a dark road,” she said as she laughed hard and flashed me a pretty smile. “Who is the lovely lady who called you stupid, Jackie?” you may ask. A: My health coach, Meg Poe. (*Meg is absolutely amazing and awesome, as I’ll explain if you keep reading. We have a great relationship and she knew I would laugh along, because I had already noted that it wasn’t super bright of me to be standing in the middl

I found this NYT’s video opinion piece to be very thought provoking. I encourage you to watch it to think about what “quitting” means to you. https://www.nytimes.com/video/opinion/100000008027932/quitting-jobs-resignation-employment.html?smid=tw-share I’m a big fan of Simone Biles. And while I know as much about gymnastics as I do about hatchet throwing, I don’t think it’s possible to dispute she’s the GOAT. And her GOATness transcends athletics. She overcame sexual abuse by

I am really proud of this piece. Not only is it my first published piece in a national publication, I spoke from the heart about my autoimmune encephalitis story, and my own mental health story while a practicing trial lawyer. My story is not easy to tell (especially in 1200 or so words) because while I was led to believe I was having a mental breakdown, it actually wasn't that, it was AE. HOWEVER, the fact that a few of my closest friends and my family were so convinced of m