Ask John

You have always had such a positive attitude. Is this something you had to work at, or does it come naturally?

My positive attitude is something that I had to work at. From an early age I worked at creating this positive attitude, which has been an important part of getting through my life with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. I decided early on not to surrender to this disease. At times,The challenges brought on my DMD are enough to cause a saint to swear, but it is important that I try my hardest to keep positive. There have been many trying times, when it has been a hard struggle to remain positive. At these times, I have had feelings of hopelessness and negativity. But, I have always managed to prevail against these feelings. If I did not develop a positive attitude, I could have been a negative, and self-pitying bastard, who would just exist as if in death's waiting room, and getting little, or no enjoyment out of life. I wouldn't be able to enjoy the gift of life, if I had a persistent dark cloud over my head.