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My PD started 11 years ago with a frozen shoulder.  Bradykinesia and
micrographia followed, but the doctors attributed my symptoms to the effects
of the frozen shoulder.  It wasn't until 21 months ago that I was diagnosed
with PD. After 11 years with PD, I am still in stage 1. I take only 5mg of
Eldepryl daily and have recently started to take Mirapex.

I am telling you this so you will understand my motivation for doing the
survey.  I have been amazed at the different rates at which PD progresses,
 the different symptoms in each person and the different ways that each
person is medicated.  I came up with a premise that the progression and
symptoms of PD must relate to either personal lifestyle or to how PD presents
in an individual .... or possibly to a combination of both.  I had hoped to
use the resources of this list to find a pattern that made the progression of
PD more predictable.  I have done some successful research in the past,
although not in the medical field, and felt there were clues out there
waiting to be uncovered.

Unfortunately, with only 18 responses, it was impossible to draw any
conclusions.  I had hoped for 100 responses, or more, out of the 1500 people
on the list.  What really upset me was the responses i received as to why
people didn't respond.
" I'm too busy to reply".  The whole survey couldn't have taken more than 5
minutes to fill out. Most questions required only one-word answers.
"I'm tired of all the surveys on this list."  In the year and a half I've
been on this list I recall only two persons doing a survey.  I answer surveys
in the small hope that maybe something will come out of it that will help.
"The PD organizations can"t get together".  So let them do their research
separately.  I have great respect for the researchers at the Parkinson's
Institute and for my neuro who also does research and whom I thought would be
interested in what we had to say.

I'm sorry to be so wordy.  I put in several hours of work on the survey and
was annoyed to find my efforts denigrated.  I'm probably only having a bad
day, but I'm disappointed because I honestly thought we might put our heads
together and discover something.  I will shut up now and in the future will
avoid initiating surveys .  Thanks for letting me vent.

Mary