"My person with Parkinson’s won’t do anything. I can’t get them to exercise, and I don’t know what to do."

“My person with Parkinson’s won’t do anything. I can’t get them to exercise, and I don’t know what to do.”

The Davis Phinney Foundation (DPF) has an article on their website that is an interesting read. Apparently, one of the most common questions they receive from friends and care partners of people with Parkinson’s is this: "My person with Parkinson’s won’t do anything. I can’t get them to exercise, and I don’t know what to do." If that is the situation that you find yourself in, I can appreciate the sense of desperation and the desire to help. However, if you truly want to help, begin with some self-examination. If your friend or partner overhears you making a statement like this, you may actually ...
June 10, 2019 - Parkinson's Weekly Update

June 10, 2019 – Parkinson’s Weekly Update

World Parkinson Congress 2019 Highlights: Remembering Tom Isaacs; Advice to caregivers: "Be a bit more of a selfish pig"; triple amputee with PD exclaims "If I can do it, you can do it. Get out and go!"; PD diet & nutrition study analyzes real world diet of people with PD to determine what helps and what doesn't; “Living Well, Running Hard: Lessons Learned from Living with Parkinson’s Disease”; plus a weekly roundup of Parkinson's related news ...
WPC2019 : Lyndsay Isaacs - PD caregiver breaking points and lessons from a selfish pig.

WPC2019 : Lyndsay Isaacs – PD caregiver breaking points and lessons from a selfish pig.

Lyndsay Isaacs speech was one of the highlights of the WPC2019 opening session.  A large portion of the WPC2019 opening, not just Lyndsay’s portion, was dedicated to remembering her husband Tom Isaacs, co-founder of UK-based charity Cure Parkinson’s, who passed away since the last WPC. Obviously, any discussion of Tom Isaacs is going to be a mix of sorrow at his passing and smiles recalling memories. But I found her personal story as a caregiver to be extremely insightful, as she touched on her struggles, reaching her breaking point, and finding a way forward. When she was struggling, she found ...
March 3, 2019 - Parkinson's Weekly Update

March 3, 2019 – Parkinson’s Weekly Update

This is a recap of the most interesting news and discussions relating to Parkinson’s Disease this past week. There was a lot of talk last week about the results of the Parkinson’s Disease trial in the UK involving a surgery that implanted tubes in patients’ heads that could be used post-surgery to deliver GDNF and would hopefully regenerate dying dopamine brain cells. On, the other side of the pond, the FDA is allowing a Fecal Microbiota Transplantation (yes, we’re talking about poop transplants) study to include Parkinson’s. Meanwhile in California, a stem cell PD trial moves closer to FDA approval. And ...