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Commentary: Parkinson's Sufferer Shares Her Insights By CAROLE McLAUGHLIN, Special to the Daily News February 3, 2004 I have Parkinson's disease. It doesn't have me. That's an easy statement to make, but it is sometimes difficult to live by. Parkinson's is a debilitating, degenerative brain disease. A cause, as yet unknown, destroys tiny particles of the brain known as receptors. Their function is to instruct the various parts of our bodies, what to do and when to do it. As more and more of these receptors die, a Parkinsonian's ability to live normally becomes impaired. It is insidious. It usually starts with a tremor in one of your limbs, while that limb is at rest. Mine started in my right hand. There was no pain or stiffness. In fact my husband noticed it before I did. When he questioned me about it, I passed it off as nothing. I thought I was over tired. At the time. my mother had terminal colon cancer and my husband and I were her principal caregivers. There were few minutes for relaxation. The tremor persisted and became more obvious. It started to interfere with my ability to cook and clean. Soon I couldn't beat an egg or brush my teeth or hair. As a student, I had been proud of my penmanship, but now my writing had become a squiggly mess — small and almost illegible. But worst of all, I decided that I wasn't safe to drive. In the small town where I'm from, driving is a breeze because there is very little traffic. One day I made a left turn so badly that it unnerved me. I suddenly realized that I was no longer in control. At the time of my first tremors, my adult onset diabetes was not as controlled as it should have been and when I discussed my new problems with my family doctor, he blamed it on my diabetes. Because my blood sugar was not well controlled, I was seeing him regularly. Although my problems were worsening, he continued to poo-poo my symptoms and insist that the problem was diabetes. One morning, my husband was away and I had stayed overnight with my mother. A friend stopped by to say "Hello" and when she saw the state I was in, she said, "We're going to (the emergency room) and find out what is the matter with you. It just has to be something other than diabetes." The doctors gave me a thorough examination. I had a full blood work up, a CAT scan, an MRI, an EEG and an EKG, and I was interviewed by both a heart and a diabetes specialist. After about nine hours, I was told that I would be kept in overnight and see a neurologist in the morning. Instead, he stopped in, on his way home. He asked me to write my name in his notebook, told me to get up from the side of the bed without holding on and to walk across the room and back. "My dear," he said, "you have a classic case of Parkinson's disease. Get this prescription filled and see me in my office next week." I didn't know anything about the disease, but I was thrilled to know what I had. The prescription worked like a miracle. My tremor disappeared, my small motor control returned, I could drive and be myself again. Parkinson's disease is a chronic, progressive affliction of the nervous system. It probably will not kill you, but there will be days and weeks when you wish it would. The cause remains a mystery. Its major symptoms are tremor, muscle rigidity, slowness of movement, difficulty with balance and walking, and often a mask-like face that seldom smiles. Parkinson's is caused by the lack of the chemical neurotransmitter, dopamine. It is a complex disease, for in any group of people, it is unlikely that two will share the same symptoms. It's seven years since my problem got a name and my miracle has lost some of its brilliance as Parkinson's continues to take its toll. I'm a snowbird who has spent the last 14 winters in Naples. The year my Parkinson's was diagnosed, my husband found a public service announcement in the Naples Daily News for the Parkinson's Association of Southwest Florida and took me to the support group's meeting. We have been taking support from that group ever since. The association's impact on our lives is immeasurable. It has helped us understand my problem and eased my fears about what the future may bring. That is why I am going to participate in the Poker Walk for Parkinson's on Saturday at Vineyards Community Park, 6231 Arbor Blvd. West, in North Naples. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. Please come and join us. Unlike some charity walks, you aren't asked to pledge so much money for every mile the participant walks, but just to have faith that the person with Parkinson's will be able to make it to the start of the walk and do the best his body allows. All advocacy groups for devastating diseases need funds for research. With everyone's support, we will find a cure. If you would like to pledge your support or join the walk, please call the Parkinson's Association of Southwest Florida at 948-5303. Carole McLaughlin is a winter resident of Naples SOURCE: Naples Daily News, FL http://tinyurl.com/2gzww * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn