By Guest Blogger, Phil Ash, GRIN2B Foundation Board Member
Hello! This is Phil Ash, teacher, father, Treasurer of the GRIN2B Foundation, and the host of Celebrating Rare: The GRIN2B Podcast. It took until the very last day of GRIN2B Awareness Month, but, as promised, here is the first episode of our very own podcast, Celebrating Rare: The GRIN2B Podcast. When The GRIN2B Foundation started planning our #Grin2bAwareness month, I thought this would be a small way I could contribute to the cause. I am a radio and television teacher, and using media to connect and inform GRIN2B families sounded like a good idea. I hope you enjoy the listen, and understand that we will get better as we go along. This first one will hopefully be unique, in that it only features my voice. Over time, I hope to bring in other GRIN2B family members as guests so they can add their voices to each episode and share their own personal journeys with GRIN2B.
Even though I have done live radio countless times, this was the first time I have produced a podcast, and I was a little unprepared for the process. In live radio, you open your mouth, say stuff, read off of a page, and hope for the best. Most errors are understandable, as no live production is ever perfect. Human error is always a presence. Podcasts are different in that they are recorded beforehand. Despite this, I still treated the production process as if it were a live situation, and, consequently, there are some mistakes I want to point out for you all. First, I refer to GRIN2B as a protein we all have, when in fact, GRIN2B is a gene that encodes our proteins. I also state that GRIN2B affects our NMDA receptors, but I continually refer to this by an incorrect abbreviation, calling them NDMA receptors. Did I mention we’ll get better at this? In spite of these obvious mistakes and a few others, I hope you’ll enjoy the podcast and the spirit in which it was intended: to connect and inform listeners. If you have comments or suggestions for future topics, or are interested in being a guest on future episodes, please send an email to phil.ash@grin2b.com, or send a tweet to @grin2bsyndrome, using the hashtag, #CelebratingRare.
To further protect myself from any unintended mistakes, each episode will have the following written disclaimer when you click on the link:
PODCAST Disclaimer: While I make every effort to broadcast correct information, I am still learning. I make every effort to double check my facts, but realize that medicine is a constantly changing science and art. I am simply sharing my views and personal experiences as a GRIN2B parent. I am not a medical professional. I welcome any comments, suggestions, or correction of errors. This entire disclaimer also applies to any guests or contributors to the podcast. Under no circumstances shall Phillip Ash, The GRIN2B Foundation, any guests or contributors to the podcast, or any employees, associates, or affiliates of The GRIN2B Foundation be responsible for damages arising from use of the podcast.