I ROCK

June is Mal de Debarquement Syndrome Awareness Month. What is Mal de Debarquement? Good question. I myself would wonder the same thing if it weren't for the fact I was told I have it.

I've had it for about one month now. According to the MdDS website, people have it for a few months to a few years. Basically, I feel that I am always moving, or the floor is tilting, or that I am being pushed in different directions. Or, that I'm always walking on tilted floors and having to compensate for such. My legs feel heavy and I can become momentarily disoriented. My body feels like it is bobbing in constant motion, unless ironically, I am in motion (like driving in my car)-- then I feel normal. It is a strange feeling accompanied by fatigue and fuzziness in thought. Compared to other accounts, I think mine is relatively mild. I'm fairly certain my case was instigated by my Amtrak ride to and from Denver last month. I can't help to laugh at the ridiculousness of this sometimes. Seriously, a disorder acquired as a result of a train trip or a cruise or a plane trip? Really? It seems like an SNL skit or an Onion article. I can't help but to chuckle.

I'm appreciative though. There are few benefits to being a grad student, but excellent health insurance is one of them (it will never be this good again.) I feel very lucky to have been taken seriously, and to have encountered doctors who were able to pick up on these weird symptoms. The first doctor had the professionalism to admit she didn't know what was going on and referred me to the otolaryngology department. The resident there had the wherewithal to recognize my case was different and to withhold unnecessary testing. For that, I was much appreciative. The resident did the evaluation and said my symptoms were unlike anything he knew of. He spoke to the other doctor. The other doctor knew my symptoms spot on-- even down to my difficulty of walking down aisles in stores. I neglected to mention this to him and he knew it without me saying anything. I was again appreciative when he opted not to prescribe medication. I don't like taking medications and avoid them if I can. I have faith in the healing power of my body and trust my case will subside sooner than later.

There you have it. Consider yourself aware of Mal De Debarquement Syndrome. Relatively speaking it is not horrible, just slightly concerning and really really inconvenient, distracting and annoying. If I'm in a good mood, I actually find my situation laughable now that I know what it is. Evidently, I'm not the only one though with a sense of humor about this. At least the MdDS website has an awesome slogan, and if you are going to have a syndrome, you might as well have one with an awesome slogan...

We ROCK... but we don't want to.