Name: Allison Rice
Age: 45
Where do you call home? Fort Mill, South Carolina
Education: BS in Nuclear Medicine Technology
Who do you live with? My daughters, my retired service dog, and two cats. My mom and my stepdad live about a mile away and are around all the time.
What’s a typical day for you? I’m a stay-at-home mom to my twin girls who are 12. When they are out of school, I’m with them. The rest of the time, I’m at appointments, exercising, gardening, or just doing housework.
How long have you known you are living with FA? When and how were you diagnosed? 25 years. I was diagnosed in 1999 by a neurologist.
Are there any others with FA in your family? No
Describe an adaptation and/or transition you have had to take due to living with FA. I got my ramp van about 4 years ago because I could no longer lift my manual chair into my regular van while standing.
What do you like to do to stay active and what type of exercises work for you to stay strong? I go to PT once a week, and I do core and leg strengthening at home other days. I have an indoor recumbent exercise bike and my Catrike.
Do you have any hobbies or special interests? Gardening, reading and doing things with my daughters.
What is a good trick to make daily life easier? Get enough sleep
When FA gets you down, what do you think/do to feel better? Go outside to garden
What is one way living with FA has POSITIVELY affected your life? I never would have met other people with FA or their family members if I didn’t have FA.
What is the best advice YOU could give to a person who has been newly diagnosed with FA? Find a neurologist in the CCRN, meet other people with FA and keep exercising/moving.
What is the first thing you want to do when a cure/treatment to FA is found? Stand next to my daughters to compare height.
What is your favorite part of being a parent? Watching my kids do what they love.
Did you know you had FA when you became a parent? yes
What’s one piece of advice you’d give to other (or soon to be) parents with FA? You will figure out how to do what you need to do. You will learn to adapt, and so will your kids.
Interview by
Jamie Plourde