I am 52 years old and retired with a disability from teaching in January of
1994. I have had PD since 1982. I had been considering my effectiveness as
a teacher for about a year. My tremor was so bad that I took heavy doses of
sinement to control it resulting in less tremor but led bad dystonia in my
feet and toes and lower back. It was difficult for me to stand in front of
my classroom for an hour at a time. Not to speak of my handwriting which was
horrible on the chalkboard which I used extensively being a teacher of
mathematics. I found myself unable to give individual assistance with the
tremor affecting my presence and my inability to write legible. To top off
my physical problems my voice was very shallow. I returned to work on
January 3 coming back from Christmas break to discover that I had not
improved even with a rest. The stress just became to much on that day back
and I had to go home. I had chest pains and generally felt bad. My wife
took me to the hospital emergency room and they checked me over for three
days. The best they could do was call it an anxiety attack. The heart
checked okay. At that point I knew the writing was on the wall so to speak
and I notified my principal to get a full time substitute because I wasn't
coming back. Needless to say the next couple of weeks were the worst of my
life. To sum it up, I quit because I felt ineffective as a teacher.
Dick
