FND WARRIORS

As an artist, my work reflects my ongoing exploration of the world around and within me, through photography, printmaking, and animation from neurosymptoms.org and fndhope.org; video interviews with Dr. Jonathan Gursky, Associate Professor of Neurology, Associate Program Director of Neurology Residency, and Director of TeleNeurology at Montefiore Hospital; and video testimonials from people affected by FND in the United Kingdom and the United States. I aim to reveal the hidden mystery of Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) - a neurological dysfunction affecting thousands of people in the U.S. and worldwide, including myself.

My creative process is profoundly influenced by having FND and involuntarily experiencing daily episodes of this condition in various manifestations, such as functional seizures, dizziness, gait impairment, weakness, dystonia, migraines, chronic pain, numbness, memory difficulties, sleep disturbances, functional tremor, paralysis, sensory impairments, swallowing challenges, and spasms. The work here incorporates imagery from research I have conducted on FND, as well as images that abstractly convey the feelings a person can experience before, after, and during the process of receiving a correct diagnosis and healing.

The exhibition is conceived in several sections. Historical and spiritual, using the printmaking technique to introduce early medicine to the audience. Taino spiritual leader “Behique” (shaman or medicine person); a symbol from Egyptian culture and belief, the “Ankh” generally held in the hands of “Sekhmet - the Goddess of Healing,” is a sign of life and used to promote holistic health. The father of modern medicine, Greek physician Hippocrates, who once thought that FND - known as “hysteria,” and pointed to a woman’s traveling womb as the culprit of what we now know as FND. Later, Sigmund Freud studied the mind-body connection and understood that FND occurred in the mind; he called it “conversion disorder,” in reference to the mind converting physical or mental trauma into the body’s physical manifestation.

The following section focuses on my own isolation and despair with an FND diagnosis and the revelation of my inner strength found in my avatar - the FND Warrior portrait by Ava Davis, a dancer who has been dealing with her own physical challenges. The third section discusses coping mechanisms for reprogramming the brain networks affected by FND. The final section features testimonies from people with FND. How they live with FND  and how this dysfunction affects those around them.

FND Warriors is created to bring attention to an ailment that has been with humans since our creation, but has not been given the proper attention by the medical community or the general population. We should never suffer in shame, silence, alone, or be blamed for having a neurological dysfunction. May we treat each other with kindness and respect.

I want to express my deepest gratitude to the contributors, Garey A. Gordon, Osjua A. Newton, and Avatar Ava Davis; my family and friends, who have had to deal with my long-term condition. I know it is difficult for them, to Dr. Jonathan Gursky, whose passion for FND is only outweighed by his knowledge. I am grateful you answered the call for this interview - thank you, Jodi Moise, for allowing me to fly with the concept. This is to all of the FND Warriors out there, doctors, patients, families, friends, and the organizations that are spreading the word—mental health matters.