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Miranda’s NMOSD Story – I Trained to Push My Limits, Until My Body Pushed Back

Posted by: The Sumaira Foundation in NMOSD, Patient, Voices of NMO

Just a few months ago I was diagnosed with NMOSD—and my life changed over night.

Before that, I was an Ironman in training. I was two months away from my first race, and exactly six months from the race that could qualify me for the World Championship—in my hometown. I was at the peak of my game. Strong, disciplined, and fully in control of my body.

Then the numbness started.

Not long after, my heart rate became uncontrollably elevated. I told myself it was overtraining. I took a full week off, convinced rest would fix it.

It didn’t. It got worse.

On New Year’s Eve, I ended up in the ER. By New Year’s Day, I was being airlifted to Oahu and was admitted into the Neuro ICU. I didn’t even know that existed—I thought ICU was just ICU.

Everything moved fast after that.

A catheter was placed in my neck for PLEX treatments. I remember the exact moment it went in.

I felt like a branded cow, like my identity had been stripped away. Like I had gone from being an athlete in peak condition to something unrecognizable. I felt exposed… powerless… like I had lost ownership of my own body.

The days blurred together—countless hours in MRI machines, endless tests, and blood being sent to major hospitals across the mainland. No one had clear answers yet, only urgency.

Then, two days before I was supposed to be discharged, the Mayo Clinic found it.

AQP4+ NMOSD

A disease I had never heard of in my life was suddenly my reality.

And yet—despite everything—this is the part that surprises people the most:

As much as this diagnosis is not ideal, I would not change it for the world.

Because somehow, in the middle of all of this, doors started opening.

I’ve been asked to speak at in-person events about my condition. A camera crew flew themselves out to film my story. I’ve been invited to speak to university physical therapy students—future providers who may one day work with others living with this disease and actually know what it is because of stories like mine showing up in their university.

And this is only the beginning of what I know will be a very unique journey.

Am I one of the lucky ones?

Yes.

It took only three weeks from my first symptom to a full diagnosis. I still have my vision. I can still walk… mostly.

But now, every single day is a reminder of how fragile those things are. How quickly they can be taken. How much they matter.

NMOSD has changed my life in ways I never asked for. But it has also given me perspective, purpose, and a voice.

And I intend to use it.