Journeying Through Parkinson’s Disease
— Sherri Woodbridge

If you were to go to a Parkinson’s disease website, you’d probably find a post on signs and symptoms of PD. The problem is that it can be hard to notice the signs if you are…

Someone told you that you or someone you love has Parkinson’s disease (PD). You’ve also heard that it is incurable. Nevertheless, can it be treated? If so, what medicines are used? First, let me say that I…

My husband and I recently tried out a new restaurant in town (new to us) for lunch to celebrate our 38th wedding anniversary. We decided to sit outside as the weather was nice and it wasn’t smoldering…

A few weeks ago, I came across an Everyday Health article about Parkinson’s disease (PD) movies. Not just any Parkinson’s movies, but the best Parkinson’s movies. Using the label “best” is pretty risky when assessing movies,…

My knees are shaking and it’s not from nervousness. This is Parkinson’s disease. Stiff muscles abound throughout my aching body. This is Parkinson’s disease. My lips quiver, my teeth click, smiles turn into frowns. This is…

Fourth in a series. Read part one, two, and three. In this column, the letter D is for dystonia, drooling, and dandelions. Dystonia Dystonia is a neurological movement disorder that causes sustained muscle contractions…

Serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine are all chemicals involved in regulating mood, energy, motivation, appetite, and sleep. Also, the brain’s frontal lobe, which is important in controlling mood, is known to be underactive in people with Parkinson’s disease. It’s…

“Invisible” disease: a disease that is not necessarily visible to the human eye; hidden; concealed from others. Parkinson’s disease (PD) can be known as an “invisible” disease. However, since PD is most commonly characterized by tremors in…

Grieving can, and often does, involve suffering, sorrow, sadness, hurt, depression, a feeling of affliction, and more. Grief is most commonly related to, and thereby put into, the categories of death and dying. However, grief covers so…

Third in a series. Read part one and two. In this column, the letter C is for cognitive changes and caregiving. Cognitive changes Some possible Parkinson’s disease symptoms are obvious because they are visible: tremors, abnormal…

There is an acrostic I have seen for “fear”: False Evidence Appearing Real I am sure the author of that acrostic meant well, and while there is some validity to it, it is not…

Second in a series. Read part one. The letter B is for balance and Botox. Balance Many people with Parkinson’s experience walking or balance problems, which can occur in differing degrees. Gait problems can range…

For several years I have done a post a day on my blog for Parkinson’s Awareness Month in an attempt to make others more aware of Parkinson’s disease. I was thinking about some of those articles not…

In third grade, I learned to write cursive. I loved — no — adored my teacher, Mrs. Nigerian. She was short, petite, dark-haired, and so very kind. She even had me over after school a few times,…

Today it is raining here in Oregon, the state where many believe it rains all the time. But you know what’s good about so much rain? Everything stays green. All year. Sometimes, I know, it can seem…

Everywhere you turn these days there is so much negativity. It’s hard to wrap your head around the fact that there are some encouraging stories out there. These are stories of people who have fought fear while…