My name is Heather Hawk Frank and this is my blog. Let me first introduce myself. I was raised in Lake County Ohio in the city of Mentor with my parents and younger sister. I attended Mentor Public School through twelfth grade and then attended Ursuline College to obtain my teaching and history degrees. I was born and raised Catholic, attending Saint Mary of the Assumption parish in Mentor. I have a total of two nephews and five nieces (my sister's two children being my Godchildren as well). I am married to my best friend and we live in Brook Park. Crossing the river to the west side of Cleveland was a difficult adjustment, but I made some wonderful friends who mean the world to me. In my free time, which is rare lately, I love to read and spend time with my two dogs who Dave and I rescued.
Our family: my husband Dave and our babies Luna (the black and white dog) and Meiko (the brown and white dog)
My sister's two children and my Godchildren: Kelli and Karter
Oh, and I have Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease type 1A. CMT is a neuromuscular disorder that affects my peripheral nerves. My body produces an extra PMP-22 gene that causes my nerves to send slower signals to the muscles. As a result, I have say that at times my nerves hate me. I was diagnosed with CMT when I was a sophomore in high school, but my doctors have always known that my nerves were different. I've taken pain killers since seventh grade to help with the nerve pain. Ever drop something on your foot and had instant pain? I can't remember the last time that happened to me. I can drop something on my foot and think that's gonna hurt before I actually feel anything (if I feel it at all). See, I've had doctors stick needles in the side of my foot and I've not been able to feel it. My husband, Dave, likes to play the game of stepping on my feet to see if I notice (which most times I don't). My hands have lately been my worst enemy, though. The more my disease progresses, the more my hands frustrate me. I'm slowly loosing feeling on the tips of my finger and my tremor makes it difficult to hold things at times. So is this a sob story about my CMT? ABSOLUTELY NOT! This disease has helped me become who I am. The purpose of this blog is to share my stories incorporating my CMT with my love of history (and traveling to see historical sites) and raise awareness of CMT. Thanks for reading and I look forward to sharing my story with you.
