Dear Cyclelops,
Thanks so much for the understanding and support -- it's taken me a long, long time to even figure out that my mother's side of the family had an actual faulty gene to explain all of their problems in the first place. Yes, the concept of genetic testing is quite subjective and personal -- oddly enough however, I felt just the opposite of what you stated re: genetic diseases disgracing the family. You see, as a kid and young adult, I was always ashamed of my "crippled" relatives, basically because they were what they were, period, and that there was no explanation or personal drive to research whatsoever. The thought of it being possibly genetic never even dawned on them -- be it lack of medical knowledge in the past, concern for future generations, personal interest, money, whatever. But thanks to major medical breakthroughs in the past decade re: Ataxia (I'm referring to the disease, not just the symptom here -- FYI, and that is why the 'A' is capitalized), the sky's the limit.

And so I truly believe that things are so much more comprehensible and acceptable, from both a personal and public point of view, when you at least have an inkling as to what's going on down under...

Thanks for listening!