Daana lives in Milwaukee, WI. She was diagnosed with RRMS in 2004. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Africology, a Master of Science in Cultural Foundations of Education, and is a PhD candidate in Social Foundations of Education, with a specialization in Sociology. She is resigned to the fact that her PhD candidate status will likely be in perpetuity, as finishing her dissertation presents a unique set of challenges in combination with health issues.
Daana’s DMDs have ranged from Avonex, to Tysabri to LEMTRADA (final infusion in 2016) — with IV steroids, plasmapheresis, and botox injections in between over the years. She began Ocrevus in December 2018, after new lesions were found post-LEMTRADA.
She is also the creator and curator of the @retrosoul__ social media account (which highlights the queer, Black writer James Baldwin; and things JB adjacent) and has over 25,000 followers across platforms.
She has been teaching Sociology, Community Studies, and Africology for over a decade at colleges and universities throughout the state of Wisconsin, as well as students incarcerated in the Wisconsin Department of Corrections (DOC).
She is a panelist, patient expert and leader with national and international pharmaceutical companies and health organizations and gives voice to her experiences as a Black, disabled woman living with chronic illness.
She loves James Baldwin, Black culture, being an Auntie, making playlists on Spotify, and red lipstick.
Find her on Instagram @retrosoul__