Columns

I wouldn’t mind having a chronic illness if I didn’t have to feel sick all the time. But there is no good reason everyone around me must endure my complaints. Negative self-talk is what I call “misery moaning.” Moaning and complaining about misery consumes otherwise productive hours in a day.

It started with a dry throat, which isn’t unusual for us in winter. After a lifetime of living in chilly Cleveland, we’re used to the dryness from forced-air heat. But the minute my husband, Arman, and I both woke up to this dry throat, we immediately tested ourselves for…

I visualize my Parkinson’s disease as a form of brain injury — specifically to small portions of the midbrain. I imagine the total volume of damaged area to be about the size of a golf ball. This means I have the rest of my brain to use for…

Congratulations! We made it to 2023! This is our year to turn our lives around. It’s time for us to make our New Year’s resolutions. I challenge you to choose any number of aspects of life with Parkinson’s that you want to improve upon in the coming year. The…

Now that we are in the first week of January, how’s your New Year’s resolution going so far? Many of us with young-onset Parkinson’s disease have already spent years caring for our families at the time we’re diagnosed. Then we must also do our best…

Several years ago, my dad decided he was ready for deep brain stimulation (DBS), a procedure that would implant electrodes into his brain to target common Parkinson’s symptoms like tremors and dyskinesia (involuntary, erratic, writhing movements). I’ve written about the massive impact that the procedure has…

While I have talked a lot in my columns about staying positive and looking for the good in all situations, I want to reflect on this. When you live with a loved one who has Parkinson’s disease (PD), there is never a break from the illness, for the patient,…

I have scars on my retinas I can’t see through. Parkinson’s disease doesn’t cause them, but they do significantly limit my vision. Imagine you’re in the car, looking through the front windshield. A bird flies by and leaves a big dropping right in the middle of your view. It’s…

In today’s world, information is available at our fingertips. All day, every day, information bombards us. If you’ve ever used a search engine to research Parkinson’s disease, you’ve likely encountered sites with the latest statistics, which are alarming. According to the…

Every year, the holidays sneak up on me, and I’m left scrambling for the perfect Christmas gifts. My dad, who has Parkinson’s disease, is particularly tough to shop for, so I’ve taken to looking for Parkinson’s-friendly gifts over the past few years. One year, I set up a…