Columns

Do you ever notice how symptoms of Parkinson’s disease sometimes seem to start at the perimeter? You might first get a twitch in your pinkie finger or thumb, or it might be some other subtle problem, possibly starting on one side of your body or the other. At the…

I’ve been fortunate to have the opportunity to tell our story through this column, “The Bright Side.” My main goal in sharing our family’s story with the world was to help others dealing with similar situations. I also hope readers won’t feel so alone in their fight against…

Why do we often neglect our mental health? Although the term contains the word “health,” we don’t always care for the health of our minds as well as we do that of our bodies. If we’re feeling under the weather, for instance, maybe with cold or flu symptoms, we…

When my daughters were young, I used to joke that my superpower was the ability to worry. Now that they’ve grown into capable young adults, I don’t worry quite as much. Plus, what’s left to worry about? I already have an incurable illness, as I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s…

Living with a chronic illness that isn’t visible to others can be lonely. Friends and loved ones might not understand why you make certain choices, which forces you to justify your actions. If you skip a social outing, you might experience resistance from those who don’t understand your plight.

My husband, Arman, has undergone several surgeries since he was diagnosed at age 38 with early-onset Parkinson’s disease. When I learned that he needed cataract surgery, I hoped that the procedure would be easier than the others. Still, the thought of another surgery brought back some difficult…

“I would trade places with you,” my friend said. “You have Parkinson’s disease, but you also have people who love you. That matters.” I was speechless, but it’s true. We may take love for granted, but others notice it and wish they had it. I chose this column for…

Flash back with me to the mid-1980s to early ’90s, the acting heyday of our beloved Michael J. Fox and his “Back to the Future” film series. Remember how time travel in the films was made possible by retrofitting a DMC DeLorean vehicle with a flux capacitor device?…

It was a beautiful summer night in northeastern Ohio; the sun was setting, and a warm evening breeze drifted in from Lake Erie. We had spent the last few hours watching our son, Jake, play baseball. As parents, our favorite activity was watching our kids enjoying their respective hobbies. As…

It’s hard work being an optimist when you have a disease that is progressive, neurodegenerative, and — wait for it — incurable. So what do I do? I work hard at it! The work began in 2015, when I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. There is nothing like a…