The Out-of-Network Network (OONN)

New post written and illustrated by @racheldlart

This is the neurologist’s office, the place I have visited every three to six months for the past two years.

The doctor clasps my hand in his and gives it a sharp jerk back. My hand bounces up and down, up and down, in a rhythmic oscillating movement called clonus. It’s a sign that the central nervous system damage has now spread to affect my arms.

“Your reflexes are a neurologist’s dream,” the doctor says.

I live with spastic paraparesis. Spastic describes the slow “velocity-dependent” stiffening of all of my muscles as a result of central nervous system damage. Paraparesis describes the way that this stiffening has led to a partial paralysis of my legs. I use a wheelchair full-time.