Columns

“Challenge yourself!” a fitness instructor once said to me. It was some of the best fitness advice I’ve ever received. In fact, it will be my mantra for 2024. In 2015, I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Six years later, I had deep brain stimulation surgery. Before I…

There’s a time and a season for everything, as the familiar passage notes, but I didn’t appreciate that sentiment until now. Growing up in Pennsylvania allowed me to experience the changing seasons in all of their glory. Winter brought snow, spring brought new life with flowers, summer was for swimming,…

The last chaotic push for holiday shopping is upon us. Whether you’re buying, giving, requesting, or using gift cards during day-after sales, following are a few suggestions for gifts that might benefit the people in your life with Parkinson’s disease. Above all, it’s important to remember the benefits of…

I’m on the phone with a technology expert from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department — the biggest sheriff’s department in the world — when the idea strikes me: Dad could use an Apple Watch to help monitor potential falls caused by his…

About a year or so after my husband, Arman, was diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s disease, we were attending a party. I remember an acquaintance asking me that night, “Why don’t you ever let loose and have some fun?” At that point, Arman was early in the progression of…

The warm and comforting scents of Christmas infuse my memories. Yes, these smells are only memories since Parkinson’s disease snuck into my life and took away my sense of smell, like the Grinch that stole Christmas. It can’t take away my memories, though. One of my favorites goes…

“Hi, Mom,” I say after hitting the green button on my phone. “How are you?” “Hi, honey. I’m doing well,” she responds. It’s an early Sunday afternoon and she sounds chipper. We don’t connect often, so I’m grateful to hear her voice. But I’m curious about the call. Is something…

Some days when I look at our bathroom closet, it resembles a miniature pharmacy. While my husband, Arman, takes significantly fewer oral medications since his deep brain stimulation surgery in 2017, he still averages about 30 pills a day. We have three large plastic bins containing medications, vitamins,…

Some of life’s greatest blessings are the ones we don’t even notice. For instance, I’m typically unaware of how natural it is for me to walk, talk, and get myself dressed and fed. Or how about the little conveniences, such as taking my cellphone out of my pocket? How…

The winter of 2022 was spectacular here in southwestern Ontario. It was cold enough for our pond to freeze for the first time in many years. Most weekends were sunny and icy cold, and our extended family and friends would come to our farm for a skating party. When we…