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Hi Don. To Sinemet or not to Sinemet... that seems to be the question in a lot of posts. When I was officially diagnosed over 9 years ago the first thing the neuro wanted to do was put me on sinemet or another med. I declined because I was breastfeeding my daughter at the time. [That neuro was not a good"fit" anyway] When I was ready to take meds 1 and a half years later, I started with the dopamine agonists and after about a year or so started on sinemet. It was what I needed to do at the time to keep my life on track. After about 5 years more I decided to go for a thalamic DBS for my right side. Again, this brought me back on track for ADLs and work. I have spent most of my time on meds forgetting that I have Parkinson's. The reminder comes when meds wear off and I take another dose. I couldn't imagine *not* having been on sinemet. It has improved my quality of life tremendously. I, like you, would rather have my Sinemet now and live as full a life as possible. If it does mean I will reach end-stage PD sooner (I've never seen an estimate of time - what does holding off buy you -3 months? a year? 3 years?) then so be it. Is there any guarantee Sinemet will bring you back to normal functioning if you hold off til you're *really* bad? Will you need higher doses because you have deteriorated for another year? I don't know. The progression of PD is so different in different people. What about the alternative "stuff" that has dopamine in it - does it count towards your "Sinemet debt"? I'm reminded of the often repeated story of people that save all their money being workaholics so when they retire they can 1) take that trek through Europe that they've always dreamed of 2)buy a motor home and spend the next year visiting all their grandchildren 3) retire to Florida or 4) fill in the blank__________... only to find that one member of the couple becomes ill or dies without having the opportunity to do the things they put off. A friend of mine who has a son with Down Syndrome coined the phrase "pre-disastered". Meaning the view that since he has Down Syndrome - nothing else bad will happen to him. It's easy with Parkinson's to feel the same way. Somewhere in the back of your brain you think "I won't get cancer or heart disease or whatever - I have PD". My favorite bumper sticker says: Enjoy life. This is not a dress rehearsal. Gail H. age 42 PD for 13 years ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn