Recently, Milo V. Anderson, Ph.D. wrote in part:
>...................................... Since the medical
>profession has no solution to the problem of PD, and since they can only
>treat the symptoms, It is my opinion that one should become as well informed
>as possible and make the final decision yourself. The human body is a
>self-repairing machine and we need to depend more an its ability to do that
and >stop depeding on a "magic bullet". (see the book, Spontaneous Healing
by Andrew >Weil, MD
>published by Alfred A. Knopf, NY 1995)
>
>When I fix a peice of electronic equipment or mechanical equipment, my first
>task is to find out how it is supposed to work. Only then am I prepared to
>take it apart with real understanding to fix its problem. With PD we need to
>emphasize more than we do the basic research that would give us the real
>understanding of the mechanism involved instead of seeking the drugs that
>will give symptomatic relief.
I can't support your statements strongly enough, but I would take it one
step further - my father developed YOPD (or what we now know as YOPD) in
1950 in his late 30's. I grew up watching him search for that "magic
bullet" jumping from one treatment regimen to another, to cryosurgery, to
l-dopa/artane/simetryl. He never tried to develope any understanding or
acceptance of the mechanism of PD, or any ability to separate the
side-effects of the medications from the effects of PD. Worse, neither did
our family. He died of complications from end-stage PD in 1983.
I developed what I recognized as my first PD symptoms about 6 years ago and
was formally diagnosed 4 years ago - at 43. I've come to realize that many
of the "symptoms" of PD that I saw in my father were actually side effects
of the meds he was on; side efffects he could possibly have managed much
better if he had taken a hand in his own treatment, rather than blindly
following prescribed medication regimens. I realize that this concept is a
horror to many doctors who feel that their patients should closely follow
prescribed regimens so that they can evaluate the results, but the issue
here is one of quality of life, not the cure of a desease. Only we, the
patients, can really evaluate what combination of symptoms and side-effects
produces the best quality of life for the longest period of time. Because
the symptoms of PD (and the responses to, and side-effects of the
medications) are so variable and unique, we have to learn as much as we can,
individually, and use that information (together with information, advice,
and medications from our doctors) to develope what works best for each of us.
Charlie Anjard
[log in to unmask]
Always remember:
When you're up to your ass in alligators, it's hard to remember
that the original objective was to drain the swamp!!
