Caregiving Unfiltered
— Crystal Onyema

Most people first think of the physical symptoms when they hear about Parkinson’s disease. Tremors, stiffness, slowed movement, and changes in speech are the most common signs. But for many families, there’s another worry. We fear that the person we love might slowly lose the personality that makes them…

One thing I learned quickly as a caregiver is that much of the work happens where no one else can see it. Most people think of caregiving in clear, visible ways. They imagine helping someone stand, driving to appointments, or handling medications. These supporting acts are important, but…

For a long time, I saw Parkinson’s disease as a problem that just needed the right fix. Like a car that had stalled or hit a rough patch, I thought it could be tuned until it ran smoothly again. My Uncle Brandon had faced tougher challenges before. He wasn’t…

It still feels like yesterday when Tony Romo was having a monster game. By early in the third quarter, the hometown Dallas Cowboys were up 27-3, and it looked like they were finally going to pull it off. Then it unraveled. Three interceptions later, they had lost 34-30. Another season…

The drive home turned into a quiet ceremony, a gentle transition between worlds I didn’t yet have the language for. After spending long days with my uncle Brandon, who had Parkinson’s disease, I would get in the car, turn on something soothing and timeless like Sade, and let the…

I previously wrote about how Parkinson’s disease did not arrive in my life all at once, but through memory, in moments that only made sense years later, when I found myself replaying the past, trying to understand what I had missed and why it still mattered. Caregiving, however,…

Growing up, I didn’t know much about Parkinson’s disease. I’m not a doctor or a scientist. I’m just a family member who learned about Parkinson’s through real life, first by watching and later by caring for my uncle Brandon, who lived with the disease until he passed away. Before…