Columns

When my wife and I chat with people about having Parkinson’s disease, we often hear comments like, “My brother has Parkinson’s.” Or, “My uncle had Parkinson’s.” Or, “Both of my grandfathers have Parkinson’s.” These stories are shared by medical providers, acquaintances, and co-workers. These are people outside the usual Parkinson’s…

How do I start this? What do I say?  A few years after I was diagnosed with young-onset Parkinson’s disease, I went to my movement disorder specialist for my routine, three-month checkup. We chatted for a while and then he brought up the subject of work. How…

Who knew a year ago that our accessories would include face masks? We wear them to protect one another. For some of us with Parkinson’s disease, this mask protects us, but it hides another — the Parkinson’s mask. This mask is not an accessory. It’s a symptom that makes…

April is Parkinson’s Awareness Month. Maybe there were special awareness months in previous years, but this year has eclipsed them all with dire intensity that erases memory. It’s been one heck of a year. Mrs. Dr. C and I have managed by functioning harmoniously (most of the time) to…

“You can help me or hinder me but you won’t stop me.” I read that quote somewhere this past week. You’ll have to forgive me, or should I say you’ll have to forgive my faulty Parkinson’s memory. It is the culprit that causes me to forget the things I…

I miss the person I was as I dance around the person I am, and I try to figure out who I am becoming. Mine is an ambiguous loss. A loss that’s hard to understand with Parkinson’s disease. It is hard to be on this side of my life.

I initially started this column by writing about my menopause journey and trying to add some levity to it. This was after my friends jokingly “welcomed me to the party.” However, as I continued writing and researching, I realized there may be more to the menopause story when it comes…

Last weekend, I was exploring a South Carolinian swamp when my phone buzzed. It was my dad. “Call me after 2,” the text glowed on my phone. “OK,” I responded. After I’d wiped the swamp juice from my shoes and peeled back my muddy socks, I dialed my dad. Usually…

“It must be borne in mind that most Parkinsonian patients remain mentally alert even as their physical condition becomes severely impaired. At the same time, they are normally extraordinarily self-conscious about their infirmities. … Tremors, speech impediment, walking difficulties, all make one not only impatient with oneself, but also often…

It was a warm afternoon on the last day of March 2020. I was inundated with winged creatures hovering up and over me, fluttering to and fro, and flapping up and down in my backyard. They included everything from ladybird beetles yielding black spots on yellow shields for wings to…