Somebody That I Used to Know
Meeting my Mayo Clinic neurologist as the real me, post autoimmune encephalitis.
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- Jan 28, 2023
- 1 min
My Brain: My Story
Jackie M. Stebbins delivered the global keynote address for The Encephalitis Society's "My Brain: My Story" event.
- Jan 17, 2023
- 4 min
Freedom Ghost
Just recently, I listened to Brené Brown’s two-part podcast with Bono. It was amazing. Most of the conversation revolved around Bono’s...
- Jan 6, 2023
- 10 min
Let It Be
In August 2021, I went solo to my first ever TEDx event. And it was a game changer for me. I met a new friend group and was introduced to...
- Dec 20, 2022
- 4 min
O Little Town of Bethlehem
My childhood encompassed the late eighties through the nineties. I also grew up in a small town in North Dakota. In those days and in...
- Nov 28, 2022
- 4 min
Cleanin' Out My Closet
Remember that metaphorical blog I wrote about my alarm clock? It’s one of my favorites. The times, they are always a changin’, aren’t...
- Oct 18, 2022
- 5 min
Chosen Family (Pt III)
I don’t have a lot of experience with meeting other AE patients and survivors. My cup of in-person exchanges runneth dry. The first...
- Oct 17, 2022
- 3 min
Chosen Family (Pt II)
I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought of this night for a long time. Maybe not during that first year where I struggled to survive, but...
- Oct 12, 2022
- 3 min
Chosen Family (Pt I)
The event was pure magic. Well maybe not magic, no one had a wand or cauldron or a Harry Potter robe, but it was the best night I...
- Sep 27, 2022
- 3 min
Suit and Jacket
It’s just a piece of paper. I can tell myself that. It’s a larger piece of thicker paper. With a beautiful green and gold, embossed...
- Sep 19, 2022
- 4 min
Big Time
It was the last book signing of the summer. I was driving home from Fargo in the early morning hours, to get back for the kids’ open...
- Sep 13, 2022
- 3 min
I Want More
I was finishing up my walk this morning. Fall is nearing, because I wore a thin, but long-sleeved shirt. I knew it would get hot later,...
- Sep 7, 2022
- 2 min
I Got You Babe
Just another day. Just another vial. Out of habit, start with the left arm and out of necessity, move to the right. One more appointment....
- Aug 17, 2022
- 3 min
Turn! Turn! Turn!
Four years. Four years and a few months since that fateful Tuesday when I gave away my DUI case to Lloyd, somehow knowing that I couldn’t...
- Aug 7, 2022
- 5 min
Livin' on a Prayer
Leave it to me to bring out a twenty-year-old t-shirt to wear on the second day of the trip. I’ve always been one to find the hilarity in...
- Jul 18, 2022
- 3 min
Amazing Grace
Stop me if you’ve heard this one. After I sat for the second day of the bar on a sunny July day in 2009, I walked through the parking lot...
- Jun 29, 2022
- 3 min
Dog Days Are Over
If FUBR’s been around since WWII, I can imagine that “shit happens” was a thing long before I remember it being such a hit in the movie...
- Jun 15, 2022
- 3 min
Beautiful Day
I know I cursed God along the recovery way. I absolutely did. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME? This is what you do to me?” But the only time I really...
- May 26, 2022
- 9 min
I Can See Clearly Now
May 26, 2022 Dear May 26, 2018-Jackie: Today is one of the worst days you’ve lived through in your life, but you’ll hardly remember it....
- May 10, 2022
- 5 min
Your Song
“Life always kind of works out,” said my counselor to me a while back. I so badly wanted to argue, and say, Notta. But it really got me...
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