Hey! I went to college at FIT in NYC. Ended up opening my own coffee shop straight out of school. I sold it in May of 2001 and took the first flight out to Los Angeles. I loved it and within a month, I had all of my belongings shipped out to my place in LA. I lived in LA until 2014 and then moved back to the town where I grew up. My plan was to only stay in town for a few months… but my health took a turn — quite a turn I’ll say.

In 2017, I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. After having it removed, post-op I was diagnosed with left single side deafness, tinnitus, trigeminal neuralgia, anesthesia dolorosa, occipital neuralgia, migraine and trigeminal neuropathy. Basically, I cannot feel the left side of my face but it’s always in pain.

Somehow, I’ve normalize a degree of pain that would put others down. There are days, though, when the pain is so severe that I cannot move from my bed. These are horrific conditions, but somehow I push myself through and, hopefully, inspire others to push through as well. It’s not easy, but I know that each day I’ll experience joy and gratitude. It might just be for a moment, but at least it’s a moment. Most of all, I never lose hope. xo Michele