A Family Tradition - a Column by Carlos Briceño

My wife, Jill, and I selected “A Family Tradition” as the name of this column because of the genetic nature of Huntington’s disease (HD). If someone has the HD gene mutation, their children have a 50% chance of inheriting the disease. It’s a tradition that no one…

Second in a series. Read part one. As my wife, Jill, experiences Huntington’s disease (HD) progression, we must prepare for all aspects of her care. Recently, she wanted to start thinking about our financial future. She knows that HD can be a financial burden, as the rare…

First in a series. My wife, Jill, who was diagnosed with Huntington’s disease (HD) in 2018, doesn’t like to think about what’s in store for her. She knows her illness will progress in cruel ways, so she prefers to live in the present moment. But recently,…

One of the supervillains from my childhood was Mr. Freeze, who was featured in DC Comics and the 1960s “Batman” television series. For years, I associated the word “freeze” with negative connotations because Mr. Freeze was such an evil character. Nowadays, “freeze” is a word I’m grateful for…

Thinking about death isn’t pleasant, and neither is talking about it. But my wife, Jill, who is gene-positive for Huntington’s disease (HD), asked me to write about the topic. In particular, she wanted me to discuss the importance of making a living will. Being proactive in this manner…

The month of August just happens to be when I, my wife, Jill, and her nephew, Jackson, were born. Jill loves birthdays — except hers. This year, I truly understood why. To celebrate, we visited Boston, where our daughter, Alexus, and her husband, René, live, as well…

Who knew a bucket of gum could make such a big difference in the life of a hospital patient? During the last few years of my father’s life, he had issues with diabetes, something he suffered with for years. The older he got, the more his body had a harder…

I love to write, but staring at a blank screen before my fingers start to press down on the keyboard can be daunting. That’s why I appreciate my wife, Jill, collaborating with me on these columns. She’s tremendously helpful in discussing possible topics with me and making countless suggestions…

Sleep has lately been a great concern for my wife, Jill, and me. After she recently had a meltdown about realizing she’s going to die young — sadly, Jill is gene-positive for Huntington’s disease (HD) — she realized her sleep patterns were atrocious, as she’d been getting only…

Because my wife, Jill, and I live less than half an hour away from Washington, D.C., commonly listed as one of the 10 most visited cities in the United States, we like to play tourist and visit the nation’s capital on weekends as often as we can. The last time…