Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

December 7, 2018December 6, 2018

The Right Hand of Lightness

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

There’s a joy in going on a long journey in which I get the luxury of sleeping through the whole thing. It’s practically magical. Or scientifically, ... Read more

November 30, 2018November 28, 2018

In Real Time

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

So, “it” started on Monday. I have no idea what I’m dealing with. Is it a urinary tract infection, a relapse, a bird, or a plane? ... Read more

November 16, 2018November 26, 2018

And the Good News Is …

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Getting started on any career is fraught with difficulty, and the trail that got me to my base camp was truly meandering. It was nearly as ... Read more

November 9, 2018November 14, 2018

Medical Marijuana in the UK: So Near and Yet So Far

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

As I’m writing this, my right arm is tight and my right hand is cramped up. I was out working last night and night work always ... Read more

November 2, 2018November 1, 2018

How I Managed to Get a Scary Halloween Haircut

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

“You’ve had a haircut — very smart!” was the greeting at work. Yes, but it was in no way a simple thing. The logistics involved were ... Read more

October 26, 2018November 2, 2018

Every Day Is Like a Box of Chocolates

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Each morning, I’m confronted by an adaptation of the conundrum faced by Forest Gump’s mother: “Life like a box of chocolates: You never know what ... Read more

October 19, 2018October 18, 2018

Taking a Flu Day

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Going to bed late and sleeping is reportedly a marker of intelligence. In that case, I am definitely something of a genius. So, it’s always a shock ... Read more

October 12, 2018October 10, 2018

A Black Mark for the Black Cab

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Sorry, this story is definitely parochial and about being disabled, rather than narrowly focused on having MS. It also turns out to be somewhat celebratory — ... Read more

October 5, 2018October 11, 2018

Don’t Turn Anything Down!

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

At the start of all of this, when I was laid low in the hospital by what turned out to be sclerosis, I was visited by ... Read more

September 28, 2018October 3, 2018

The Morning After the Night Before

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Last Wednesday morning didn’t go according to plan. I’m lackluster every Wednesday morn because Tuesday nights are my regular work gig at London’s Comedy Store. I laugh ... Read more

September 21, 2018September 28, 2018

A Pain in the Back, Part 2

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Second in a series. Read part one. Last week, I wrote about solving my back problems by purchasing a mattress topper for my bed. It was a good thing, too, ... Read more

September 14, 2018September 19, 2018

A Pain in the Back, Part 1

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

First in a series. So this is what an earthquake feels like? Well, it wasn’t that dramatic, but it was the middle of the night, and I’d ... Read more

September 7, 2018September 11, 2018

Lymphedema: A Growing Problem?

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Now, I’m all for complimentary comments on my columns, and in the combative world the internet has engendered, the stroppy ones, too. But it’s when you ... Read more

August 31, 2018September 7, 2018

I’m Too Busy to Think About MS

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Well, it’s not a cure, but working hard sure takes my mind off MS. In fact, I’m so rushed off my feet (irony intended!) I’m not ... Read more

August 24, 2018August 29, 2018

Everywhere I Go, I’m Invited To ‘Take a Seat’

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

I knew I had MS nine years ago when I went back to see my neurologist. I’d had the lumbar puncture to prove it definitively, and ... Read more

August 17, 2018August 21, 2018

I’m Busy Doing Nothing

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Everything takes so much damn time! I’m strangely working — or at least doing things I purport as work, such as this column. That’s no different ... Read more

August 10, 2018August 9, 2018

Plumbing the Depths

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Well, this is going to be a niche market: A picture of a toilet should grab the attention of any plumber who’s now got MS and ... Read more

August 3, 2018August 8, 2018

Downbeat, but Upbeat

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Most weeks with MS are downbeat. That’s hardly a way to capture a reader’s attention — all of us struggle. What we need is light to ... Read more

July 27, 2018July 25, 2018

The Graduate

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

The queue to get into Canterbury Cathedral in bright sunshine seems endless. The quandary of being Dracula strikes me — I’ll either fry in the sun ... Read more

July 20, 2018July 18, 2018

Phew, What a Scorcher

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Phew, what a scorcher. The summer of 1976 was the last time it was this hot in the United Kingdom. My lasting memory of that summer ... Read more

July 13, 2018July 12, 2018

Steering My Own Boat and Making a Splash

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

The U.K.’s National Health Service (NHS) turned 70 last week. In England, yes, we are mourning our semi-final defeat by Croatia in the World Cup, but ... Read more

July 6, 2018July 5, 2018

Down for the Weekend: World Cup Fatigue

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Hi, everyone. I’m absolutely exhausted. And it’s all the fault of the World Cup. Not from any sort of secondary exercise while watching games, but because ... Read more

June 29, 2018July 6, 2018

‘Always Look on the Bright Side of Life’

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

I started out in my professional life as a journalist. This only lasted about eight years and feels like a lifetime ago — which it was. ... Read more

June 22, 2018June 20, 2018

A Tale of Two Halves

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

For those reading this in the U.S., part of what I’m going to write will likely be incomprehensible, as it involves the World Cup. That’s football, ... Read more

June 15, 2018June 13, 2018

Anyone for Golf?

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

A family wedding in the gardens of a grand country house some 30 minutes from Oxford sounds idyllic. And indeed it was. Not, though, for anyone ... Read more

June 8, 2018June 7, 2018

MS and My Experience with the Allergy Medication Clemastine

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

  I’ve just dived into the misty world of the allergy medication clemastine. My, there’s a lot already written about it on this site. I was prompted ... Read more

June 1, 2018May 30, 2018

Dear Diary

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

I never kept a diary. I did sometimes muse about it but reckoned I’d never become famous enough for one to be useful. Well, at least in that ... Read more

May 25, 2018May 23, 2018

Running (Wheeling) on Empty

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Arguments over nothing and everything are, in my experience, induced by extreme stress. When my wife and I were at full bore working together, this often ... Read more

May 18, 2018May 17, 2018

Chained to My Desk

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

The tinkling laughter of tiny children filters through the windows of my bedroom. It’s a sunny Sunday afternoon. In years past, I would be sitting in ... Read more

May 11, 2018May 10, 2018

Crawling to Deadline

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

It’s 3:15 p.m. U.K. time on Wednesday, May 9, 2018. My deadline for this column is actually 3 p.m. Gone are the days of blaming the ... Read more

May 4, 2018May 4, 2018

Knowing Me, Knowing MS

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

The problem with writing a weekly column is I always need to come up with new ideas. Luckily, or rather, unluckily, MS always throws me a ... Read more

April 27, 2018May 1, 2018

Tricks of the Trade

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor, Lemtrada

I saw my neurologist a few weeks ago for what was effectively an emergency meeting. I’d had the customary two rounds of Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) and still ... Read more

April 20, 2018April 20, 2018

It’s the Little Things

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Really big things are going on in the world. WW3 is again flagged as a possibility. My world is considerably smaller. It’s mostly my bedroom. I can ... Read more

April 13, 2018April 12, 2018

Back to the World

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

The stars sometimes align, even for us atheists. My son was making a fleeting weekend visit from his last year at his university. It’s all we ... Read more

April 6, 2018April 9, 2018

Be My Wife

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Let me introduce you to my wife, Jane, by cheekily lifting the title “Be My Wife” from possibly the only accessible track off Bowie’s seminal ’70s ... Read more

March 23, 2018March 22, 2018

Keep Taking the Steroids!

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Six months ago, I was a reasonably svelte 14 and a half stone. I’m not sure how I managed it, but it was certainly before pitting ... Read more

March 16, 2018March 15, 2018

Into the Woods

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Well, I’m usually fairly upbeat, but this time, it’s going to be beyond me. We’ve all had relapses — I think I’m in the fitting cliché ... Read more

March 9, 2018March 7, 2018

Out of the Woods?

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

It’s been a grueling three weeks. Birds ate my breadcrumb trail long ago. I was too tired to follow it anyway. Stumbling about has definitely been beyond ... Read more

March 2, 2018March 1, 2018

Going Cold Turkey

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Usually, I’ve got a fair idea of where I’m headed in my column. This time, I really don’t. I’m confronting something. Maybe nothing. It’s as clear as ... Read more

February 23, 2018February 22, 2018

What’s Going On?

Columns, Fall Down, Get Up Again- a Column by John Connor

Something is! I had to be carted off to the hospital in an ambulance on Thursday of last week. It was either an infection my home-visiting ... Read more