She Doesn’t Look Like She Needs Handicap Parking

Katie Dama Jaskolski of Lansing looks young, fit and healthy. She teaches preschool and kindergarten at a local school. But on difficult days, she needs to park in the handicapped spot due to a rare disease of her connective tissue. And another rare disease that causes her blood pressure to plummet and her heart rate to accelerate every time she stands up.

Dama Jaskolski saw 23 doctors in one year when her symptoms first manifested, trying to get a diagnosis besides, "it's in your head". She finally found the right doctor who figured out what was making her so weak she had to crawl from room to room, needing a wheelchair at times. And they figured out how to manage her illnesses.

Katie's sister Allie also has a rare disease. After the sisters struggled through the mysterious symptoms to find diagnoses and find ways to manage their conditions, they decided to start a foundation to assist others with 'hidden diseases'. They called it, "Life as a Zebra". An article in the Lansing State Journal explains the name or their charity and gives more details on their concert fundraiser Saturday at the Kellogg Center in East Lansing. I'll be there and I hope to see you!

Joey and I talked with Katie this week about the Life as a Zebra foundation and their event this weekend. Take a listen here.