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Hi My name is Pam and I have had Parkinsons for 11 years. So far I have been extremely lucky in that PD hasn't taken over my life completely. I have been fighting it all the way. I moved to Syracuse, NY from Houston, Texas to be close to family 5 years ago knowing that sooner or later I might be in a situation that I would need a caretaker. I am fortunate that I can still drive, live on my own and have a job. I was doing aerobics when I learned I had PD and decided that the only way to fight was to continue to exercise. I changed my priorities and added more aerobic classes to my schedule. When I moved here I didn't have a neurologist and finally found one that didn't require a referral from another doctor. Unfortunately my appointment was delayed because this neuro had to have surgery (even doctors get sick) When I finally got to see her, I wasn't doing that well. She started me on Requip and I noticed a wonderful change within a few days. I could actually walk again. I am a big fan of Requip and am on 2 mg three times a day. I also take the generic levadopa/carabidopa 25/100 4-5 times a day. Sometimes it doesn't work all that good. Amitriptyline 50mg at night and Amandatine once a day. The neuro is pleased with me as she said I was in bad shape when she first met me and thought that I would not be driving nor working within a few years. I only work 20 hours a week but it forces me to get out every day. I have very little tremor, but once I relax a bit my hand or foot starts flapping. My biggest problem is freezing. When I am 'off' my feet turn out so that I am walking on the sides of my feet (its tough on shoes) and I can hardly walk. Sometimes the levadopa takes affect within 30 minutes and sometimes its much longer. I also have been falling quite a bit lately. I am pleased to be able to share in some of your stories. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn