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Dear List-family.... This past weekend, I went to a movie with a fellow Parkie. While watching the picture (which was SO bad, watching reruns on TV woulda been more entertaining!) <grin> suddenly the screen went dark, the lights came up, flashing lights went on over both exits, and a message to evacuate the theater was repeated over the PA system! THAT was bad enough, but as it happened, my friend was TOTALLY "off" and I was somewhere between "off" and "on." This had been a PLANNED state for both of us, since we figured we'd each take our respective PD-meds right after the movie, and then would be "on" while enjoying dinner and the balance of the evening. It DID make sense at the time... <rueful shrug of shoulders> As we joined all the other people exiting the 16-theater movie house, for US it was like the "halt leading the lame." As we entered the lobby area, with crowds of people funneling into it from all 16 theaters. my friend headed right for a water fountain in order to take his meds. If the building had been on fire or an explosive had been found (heaven forbid!), my friend declared he wasn't going to be caught in an "off" state in a potentially life threatening emergency. I felt pretty much the same, but would've waited to get OUT of the theater complex and outside the mall the theaters they were in BEFORE taking my meds (but my "offs" aren't as disabling as his, so I'm aware why we each felt slightly different immediate needs). At that point the alarm was delared a "false alarm," and everyone was told we could return to our various movies. After the movie (which, since it was THAT bad, we shoulda just continued walking out the door and gone to dinner!), while eating dinner, my friend and I discussed our respective thoughts and emotions as we were making our emergency evacuation of the theater... I've gotta tell ya, being "off" was VERY scary! In fact, being "off" at that time was more scary then the actual emergency situation itself! We both felt an immediate and almost overwhelming need to get our PD drugs into our systems! That need manifested itself SO strongly that my friend was literally compelled to stop at that water fountain to take his meds NO MATTER *WHAT* WAS HAPPENING. While I'm not sure if he would have stopped to take his meds had there been actual smoke or blood, he DID stop while an emergency evacuation was taking place. The thing that really gets me, is that IF there was a stable PD drug that could be counted to permit the user to smoothly, seamlessly progress from one dose to the next, without a PWP's HAVING to balance and weigh virtually every dose we take, while simultaneously considering the entire life-span of our respective individual drugs, neither of us would've felt panic about being "off," and would've have been able to devote ALL our thoughts and energies into how best exit the theater and protect our lives. That said.... WHERE'S that Sinemet patch? Where are a variety of treatments for the variety of Parkinson's symptoms suffered by so many individuals? WHERE IS THE PARKINSON'S CURE?!? GAWD! I hate this steeeenkin' disease! Barb Mallut [log in to unmask]