Finding My Peace with Sanfillipo — Emily Wallis

The photo below is one of my favorites of my sister and me. It was taken at my grandparents’ house several years ago, and it often brings me comfort because you can clearly see the love between us. Sanfilippo…

My favorite animals are sharks. They’ve always fascinated me. An interesting fact I’ve learned is that sharks can smell blood in very small concentrations in water — as low as one part per million! As I contemplated this…

It’s important in all aspects of life to find your people. For example, I have my teacher friends, my college friends, and now, we have our Sanfilippo warriors. When someone you love is living with a rare, terminal disease,…

The four years since my sister, Abby, was diagnosed with Sanfilippo syndrome have been a journey, to say the least. She has lost most of her speech and will continue to lose basic life skills as the disease…

My sister Abby has a rare, neurodegenerative disease called Sanfilippo syndrome. She was diagnosed in 2017, and life hasn’t been the same since. I’ve spent considerable time reflecting on my role as her sister, not only as a…

This year’s Thanksgiving was difficult. I lost my grandmother in March, so grief overshadowed a lot of the gratitude that should be at the forefront of this holiday for me. However, having grief at the center of Thanksgiving,…

You live with many fears when a family member is diagnosed with a terminal disease. However, there is a specific fear that comes with being the sibling: What if I move away from home and something happens to…

Since moving out of my house and away from my sister, I’ve been more cognizant of making sure she knows I love her. It’s hard to know if she understands the “little things” I do to express that,…

It has always been relatively easy to make new friends. I take kindness very seriously, and I try to be as friendly as humanly possible. The hard part isn’t striking up a conversation or finding things to talk…

I have an interesting relationship with my sister, Abby. Because she has special needs, our relationship has always been rocky. I often would become jealous of the extra attention she received, and it weighed on me for many…

I’ve known for a long time that I have anxiety. For obvious reasons, it hit an all-time high when my mom was diagnosed with cancer and my sister with Sanfilippo syndrome, which is terminal and has no cure.

I recently accepted a teaching position out of town, and am moving into a new apartment this week. As exciting as this is, I can’t help but be sad about leaving my family. Extra emotions come with being…