Meet the Member

Meet the Member is a new column, written by Melanie Bassett, that features DINET members. It provides an up-close and personal look into the lives of some of DINET’s members. We hope you enjoy it.

Melanie Bassett

My name is Melanie Bassett. My forum user name is Dawn, which is my middle name. Actually for three short days after birth I was Dawn Marie. I will be writing the “Meet the Member” articles for the DINET newsletters. I am open to any and all feedback. In fact, I am hoping that someone will like to write this column with me. My personal email is melaniebassett44@hotmail.com. If you are interested, please let me know. I am not an English major. I am a 50 year old nurse, and I fit the profile of a bad speller and a messy housekeeper.

My nickname is Mel. My son’s friends often call me “Mom”. I have a tendency to “mother” and “caretake.” We have had many foster children over the years, so “Mom” just became my name.

I think I have had dysautonomia all my life but was finally diagnosed in 1994 at Mayo Clinic. I am challenged by POTS (hyperadregeneric), mild cardio-vagal failure, situational depression and anxiety.

Two years ago I had to give up my favorite job EVER. I absolutely LOVED my seven year job as a school nurse. Now, I am impatiently waiting for my social security hearing date; it should be soon.

My family consists of my husband, Larry, who is between jobs. A stepson, Zachary (age 27), is back at home and attending Technical College where he is enrolled in the Respiratory Therapy Program. Ben (age 25) has a degree in business and marketing and is currently employed as a bartender. Jesse is 16 years old. We adopted Jesse when he was in 4th grade. We are home schooling him this year, which is a first. My extended family consists of two much older brothers and a significantly older sister. I was definitely the baby. We have 2 doggies: Sammi (age 15), and Mia (age 2). They are my hobby and entertainment. I also enjoy scrapbooking. I do admit to talking on the phone ALOT.

I live and grew up in a small village in Wisconsin. You can imagine that there are many favorite childhood memories here. I think my favorite childhood memory is roller skating. How about roller skating in a building that held cattle auctions during the day? We smelled great when we got home!!

My inspiration comes from My Heavenly Father. I am also blessed by having the best physician on this earth. I have shed many tears with him and have received a great deal of encouragement and support. I know I am blessed to have this support system in my life.

Michelle Sawicki

Michelle Sawicki is the VOLUNTEER President of DINET. I know I speak for everyone when I say THANK YOU, MICHELLE! Because of you, we have a place to go when we are feeling alone and need support. Because of you, we can vent, share information and make friends. And because of you we are a family to each other, truly understanding each other’s trials and accomplishments.

Michelle is thirty-five years old. She was diagnosed with POTS and EDS seven years ago. In addition to her responsibilities at DINET, she works part time in the reference department of a public library.

Michelle is married to Kenneth, an automotive painter. Kenny, their son, is eighteen years old and is enrolled in his first year of college. Three dogs complete the family: Gusto, a Great Dane; Ted, a Belgian Tervuren; and Buffy, a Pomeranian. The dogs are wondering about the four little canaries Michelle has recently brought home. We need to wish Michelle luck in the breeding department. (FOR THE CANARIES);-)

Michelle's nickname is Roni. When asked what it means, Michelle said with a laugh, “don’t ask.” Her hobbies are bike riding, boating, bird breeding and crafts (which we all look forward to seeing at the next auction)!

When asked what her favorite childhood memory is, she replied “Excitedly sneaking into the family room with my friends to spy on my dad, who was putting together a bridle.” This meant she was getting a pony!

Michelle’s high school teacher, Gloria, has been her inspiration in life. Gloria devoted her life to helping troubled youth. “She made a huge impact on my life,” says Michelle. “Without her I might not have finished high school, let alone college.”

With Gloria's help, Michelle was awarded one of only three college scholarships given the year she graduated. Gloria drove Michelle to take her college entrance exams and helped her secure a work-study position to pay for childcare. Michelle graduated from college with honors, earning a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology. “I’ll never forget all that Gloria did for me,” say Michelle. “About ten years or so after graduating I looked Gloria up and wrote her a letter, thanking her for being such a positive, guiding force in my life. I’m so glad I got the chance to write her that letter. She died from cancer a few months later.”

There are times in our lives that we all need a “Gloria.” Michelle says, “Life has been good to me, and I am happy.” That statement should be an inspiration to us all.

Megan McLarin

On behalf of DINET, we thank you, Megan, for the thousands of brochures that you mailed out for this organization. Your time and dedication is appreciated by all of us.

Megan’s user name on DINET is Lukychrm42 (if you have read the Hitchhiker's Guide Series by Douglas Adams you know where the number 42 comes from).
Megan has three nicknames: Meg, Pequena and Pumpkin. Her hobbies include reading, cooking, foreign films, napping, listening to music, surfing the web and studying languages. She is also running up her phone bill talking to her Scottish boyfriend.

Megan is 23 years old. Though she feels like she has had Dysautonomia forever, it has gotten more serious in the past several years. She’s been diagnosed with POTS and JHS (I had to ask her what JHS stands for and learned that it is the same as EDS Type III). Sometimes she finds it hard to not let her illness define her, as people look at her differently when she is using her seat cane on campus. Currently she is a senior, attending the University of Colorado, majoring in Italian. (If you own or are working in an Italian restaurant you might want to check the spelling of each and every item served on your menu. If Megan happens to stop in for a meal, any misspelled words will surely be noticed. haha!). Following graduation in May, Megan’s off to Graduate School in the UK. Her goal is to become a literary translator.

Megan's parents, Mac and Anita, live in Richmond, VA. Her sister, Corinne, is 25 and works for Estee Lauder. Carter, her brother, is 21 and is a junior in college studying economics. Megan misses her cats, Tigger and Kanga.

Megan says her family is her inspiration. They are supportive of her whims, ideas and dreams. Her wonderful cardiologist, Dr. Abdallah, also inspires her and pushes her to achieve what he believes she can. On a day-to-day basis, she is inspired when she sees anyone go out of his or her way to show kindness to someone else.

Her favorite childhood memory is when she was 3 or 4 years old and living in Houston. On Saturday mornings Megan and her siblings would run into their parent’s bedroom and wake them, so that the family could watch hot air balloons from their balcony.

Megan considers herself to be shy, yet also very friendly. She loves to laugh. Surely she can look forward to many days filled with laughter as she embraces her dreams with the support of family and friends who love her.

Nina Wilde

Nina, aka “Mighty Mouse,” is the administrator of DINET’s forum. Her user name is in reference to two things: 1) Her actual size - objects in your monitor may be smaller than they appear ;-) 2) As a reminder to herself to keep a high attitude every day, and to “save” her own day and not expect others to do it for her (from Mighty Mouse’s theme song “here I come to save the day.”) “Even if it is a small victory, there are victories EVERY day. You just might have to look long and hard (think long and hard) to find them,” says Nina.

I happened to notice that Mighty Mouse has 3,369 posts on DINET’s forum at the time of this writing, which tells me that she really cares about us. She has probably “come to save the day” for many of us.

Nina is forty-one years old and has three nicknames: Neen, Nina Beena and Moogie. Her family consists of her partner of more than 14 years, Teri. She has two sisters, a half brother, and five stepsiblings. Though she and Teri have no children of their own, Nina is a Behavior Analyst specializing in autism. She cares for hundreds of kids with special needs who she says are “mine forever in the heart.”

In her free time Nina enjoys jewelry making, learning languages, and admits to being a “computer geek” as well as a “closet sci-fi freak.” She also loves spending time with her cat, Abbigail. She just recently lost her other cat, Jeronimo (Jeri), for whom she cared for and loved for 20 years.

When asked about her favorite childhood memory, Nina says there are three: sleepovers at grandma's house, summer vacation's in Maine and eating apple crisp at her friend Marcy's house. (YUM-makes me hungry).

Nina was diagnosed with CFS/CFIDS at age 24, POTS/NCS at age 32 and EDS at age 38. She has had symptoms since birth. The disorders began impacting her daily life when she was around 10 or 11 years old. Nina became highly symptomatic during her teens. While attending college, she was very ill.
Nina admits that her partner, Teri, spoils her. She says she would not be functional without this support. Everyone might be jealous when they read that Nina has someone who loves to cook for her, does most of the cleaning and shopping AND still has time to laugh and spend good times together.
Nina thinks of DINET as her extended family and is excited to see how much DINET has grown in the past year.

Nina says the children and parents she works with every day inspire her. When she reaches her goal of earning her PhD, she requests that we all refer to her as Doctor Wilde for a few days, as it would make her laugh. She thinks it sounds like a stage name for some terrible “B” movie--”paging Dr. Wilde in the ER...”

As you can see, Nina has a great sense of humor and a positive spirit. We’re lucky to have such a fine person taking care of us on the forum.

Does your place of business or family give to charity? If so, please let them know about the Dysautonomia Information Network, www.dinet.org. DINET is completely funded by member's donations and can't exist without them. Thank you!

Dysautonomia News is a quarterly publication of the Dysautonomia Information Network.
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