Mark Desa's guest appearances

Mark Desa

Stories that Empower

OwlTail

Mark's passion and mission is to raise global awareness on ataxia, a neurological/movement disorder which affects the nervous system. When he was in his 30s, he noticed that he slurred his words, had brain fog and was losing his balance. Mark was diagnosed with ataxia. Initially, he was severely depressed and wanted to stay in bed. Later, Mark felt this presented him with a challenge with two options. He could either believe the words of his martial arts instructors, where he was taught that he can do anything he puts his mind to. Alternatively, Mark could believe the doctors and feel that there's no hope. He chose the former. Mark feels that the disease is just another sparing partner opponent and he doesn't know how he's going to do it. However, he knows he must believe that winning is a possibility. Mark shares the following nuggets of life wisdom: - humor is often our best tool in our arsenal - remain open and flexible - be willing to adapt and adjust - challenges can feel isolating, so find others like you - form your own journey and story - believe that winning is a possibility      tags:  Mark, Desa, Hope, for, Ataxia, personal, trainer, martial, arts, coach, story, stories, that, empower, empowering, empowerment, inspire, inspiring, inspiration, encourage, encouraging, encouragement, hope, light, podcast, Sean,