November 11, 2012 (WLS) -- Friedreich's ataxia, a complicated genetic disability, usually begins before puberty when areas that control coordination, movements, and functions start failing. A young west suburban college student is moving on with her life plans with a positive outlook, despite her disability. Eighteen-year-old Nicole Kramer has an amazing attitude about herself and her disability. Challenged by a heart condition, scoliosis and some speech difficulty, she is determined to succeed. At the College of DuPage, Kramer is just like any other first semester student. "It's going good," she said. "I like it a lot." Even though DuPage's campus is big, Kramer needs very little accommodations getting around. "Walking has been increasingly getting worse and harder," she said. "I don't have much walking cause all my classes are in one building. So I've been doing fine with it. I've been getting into class on time so I haven't needed anything but the only thing that I really use is like the elevator because it's easier." At the age of 15 Kramer was diagnosed with Friedreich's ataxia. Her mom, Kelly, said she had scoliosis when she was in 7th grade. "Then after wearing her brace, we found her heart condition … Continue reading →

MOVEMENT DISORDERS: Movement disorders are a group of neurological conditions that cause a person to have abnormal voluntary or involuntary movements, or slow, reduced movements. There are many different movement disorders which include Parkinson's disease, dystonia, ataxia, Huntington's disease, Tourette syndrome, and Wilson's disease. (Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com). Some movement disorders can make it difficult or impossible to walk normally and a common symptom is Dyskinesia which results in broken or jerky movements, including tremors. Causes of movement disorders include nerve diseases (i.e. Parkinson's disease), injuries, infections, autoimmune diseases, and certain medicines, although many are inherited. Treatment varies for the different disorders. (Source: http://www.nlm.nih.gov) CEREBRAL PALSY: Cerebral palsy is a disorder of movement, muscle tone, or posture which causes impaired movement such as involuntary movements, rigidity of the limbs and trunk, unsteadiness of walking, or a combination of these symptoms. Cerebral palsy may contribute to other neurological problems such as seizures, intellectual disabilities, abnormal touch or pain perceptions, urinary incontinence, and difficulty with vision and hearing. The cause of cerebral palsy is an abnormality or disruption in brain development before or during a child's birth, or sometimes in the first few years of life. Many times the exact cause of the abnormality … Continue reading →