- Tiffany Fransen, diagnosed with Friedreich’s ataxia, faces challenges from this rare disease.
- The genetic disorder affects her mobility and speech, altering her daily life.
- Despite difficulties, Tiffany maintains a fulfilling life with family support and adapted routines.
SALT LAKE CITY — Tiffany Fransen was having a good time with her cousins at a Taylor Swift concert in Glendale, Arizona, in 2023 when a police officer confronted her to ask if she was drunk.
She wasn’t, but it wouldn’t be the last time she’d be asked that question. The same thing happened with another officer months after that. And a flight attendant asked her that question when she was boarding an airplane for a family vacation.
Tiffany, now 27, staggers, stumbles and sometimes falls. If she’s tired, she may slur her words. So she spends a fair amount of time explaining a neurodegenerative disease she’d never even heard of growing up, but which now plays a large role in not only her life, but that of her family…