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Tim Sanderson wrote: > > Hello everyone - I'm new to this list, and I'm impressed by the knowledge, > energy and sheer liveliness of the group; no evidence of loss of brain > function here! > > I'm 42, from London UK, and was diagnosed 9 months ago (though I've had > problems gradually developing for 3-4 years). My symptoms are very mild so > far: loss of dexterity in left hand and foot, fatigue, sometimes unsteady > gait and stumbling speech when I'm tired, but negligible tremor. > > I've kept off medication so far, and I'm reluctant to start - I've always > been wary of drugs (and don't normally even take aspirin/paracetomol for a > headache!) as I prefer to be in touch with the state my mind/body really is > in. And I find the potential side effects of L-dopa daunting. > > What I'm interested in is any experiences, ideas or suggestions anyone has on > drug-free ways to stabilise the progress or symptoms of the disease (I know > this is a bit of a Holy Grail question). Diet? Vitamins? Exercise? Herbs?? > Has anyone out there successfully stayed off drugs (and stayed mobile) for > 5, 10 even 20 years? Incidentally, in the UK the standard professional > advice we get is that PD patients should try and delay the start of > medication as long as possible; I think perhaps the philosophy is different > in the US? > > I've already devised my own regime of therapy, based on a range of scientific > and unscientific advice: > - stretching exercises morning and night > - sleep/catnap in the afternoon (1-2 hours) > - Antioxidant vitamin pills (C, E Selenium etc) > - Cod Liver Oil (Vit A) and Evening Primrose Oil > - Aromatherapy massage (don't know if this works, but it certainly feels > good!) > - conductive education exercise class 2 hours/week. > Incidentally I don't see any obvious mention of Conductive Education on our > Web sites - it is a form of rhythmic physiotherapy developed by the Peto > Institute in Hungary, initially focused on treating cerebral palsy. It also > seems very positive in re-educating brain motor functions for PD patients. > > So - any anecdotes, advice or war stories? I'm in pretty good shape so far, > still officially working full-time (though in practice at about 60% > efficiency), and doing my best to help my wife bring up a young family of 4 > lovely little girls (9, 7, 3 and 1 years old). > > Best wishes to you all. > > Tim Sanderson ([log in to unmask]) Welcome to this list Tim, I wish I could have answer to your question.The best I can say from my experience up to now(I too have a light or mild PD) is to consult at least 3 specialists in the area and then decide what should be better to you.I am taking levodopa for about 3 years and so far so good...playing my soccer or volley in the beach and keeping me busy all the time. :-) Good luck to you, +----| Joao Paulo de Carvalho |------ + | [log in to unmask] | +--------| Salvador-Bahia-Brazil |------+