I have always heard that time flies as you get older and I guess they (whomever they are) were right. It seems like it was just a month or two ago since my 5th Anniversary post last July. Yet here we are 6 years since the start of my journey with Parkinson’s Disease. Many of you have been following along for those 6 years as we became expert at researching PD, learning all we could by attending research conferences, day long seminars, and attending the 4th World Parkinson’s Congress in Portland, OR.

We have seen substantial progress in the past 6 years with researchers diving into the gene pool to look for ways to modify the progression, drug research that has resulted in several new drugs being approved, several clinical studies looking at re-purposing already approved drugs for use in PD, and new clinical trials involving implanting stem cells. And don’t forget the great Sarasota experiment that resulted in our move to Sarasota, Fl and our subsequent love of tennis.

I am pleased to report that there have been no major changes to my symptoms during the past year. I continue to exercise as much as possible playing tennis 3 to 5 days a week and attending the cycling for PD class twice a week. The biggest change has been the emergence of occasional dyskinesia, involuntary movements which are usually a result of the amount of medication needed to keep the symptoms at bay. As I wrote in the last post, I seem to have figured out the right combination of extended release levadopa/carbadopa (Rytary) , pramipexole, and regular release levadopa/carbadopa (Sinment) which reduces my “off” time if I stay on schedule.

If you saw me today playing tennis while the medication was working you would probably say “You don’t have PD.” If you saw me when the medication has worn off, you would notice my limited arm movement, my limited leg movement resulting in short steps, how difficult it is to get out of a chair, and you would probably notice my lack of facial expression (the PD mask). You still might think “He doesn’t have PD” because I don’t have tremor, but I think you would agree my issues are caused by more than being 73 years old. I feel like my progression continues to be slow and I credit exercise for keeping it that way. I know I rarely mention the need for exercise in this blog 😀 but I will make a pitch today, find an exercise you like, and start exercising. You might only go for a minute the first day, 2 minutes the next day and 3 minutes the 3rd day, but you will build up stamina and you will see a difference in your symptoms.

Speaking of exercise, yesterday during our Tuesday cycling class, the management of the YMCA announced that they were closing the Sarasota YMCA’s on September 13, 2019. Talk about a shock, we were flabbergasted! Apparently the rumored financial mis-management finally caught up with the board and the only option was to close the buildings. We are all looking for new alternative locations for our classes and hopefully we will have something by the 13th of September. The high intensity exercise we get cycling has been a mainstay of my exercise program for the last 4 years and I can always tell when I miss a class or two. Hopefully we get this worked out or I might have to take up running again or I guess I could play more tennis😎.

Welcome Summer!

This has been a hectic, fast paced and exciting spring. So much has been going on that this is the first chance I’ve had to take some time and catch you up on what’s been happening. As long as you don’t count the times I started and dozed off in front of the screen leaving a trail of dddddddddd or some other letter across the page. 🙂

When last we met, it was the middle of April and we had just completed our World Parkinson’s Day cycling class in the lobby of the YMCA. One of the pluses of living in Florida is everyone likes to come visit in the winter and spring before it gets too hot and humid. Another is, we like to play tennis in the winter and spring and fall (and summer!) so we kept busy for much of April playing tennis and enjoying our friends and family who visited during the month.

In May we traveled to West Virginia University to attend our granddaughter Breanna’s graduation from medical school. It was an outstanding event as her parents presented her with her hood during the ceremony.

We returned home and caught up on our tennis and cycling then in early June we traveled to Little Rock , Arkansas to attend Breanna’s wedding to fiancee Will. In between her graduation and the wedding, they had been to Italy for two weeks, purchased a home in NC where she will be a resident for the next 5 years, moved most of their belongings to the new location and found a chocolate lab puppy who will join them in a about two weeks. (Our first great grand dog!) And I thought we were busy!!

And now it’s almost the end of June and we are gearing up to celebrate the Fourth of July with friends and family at the beach followed by a trip to Bald Head Island in North Carolina and then a trip out to Seattle to visit family.

In between visiting, traveling and exercising I have spent many more weeks trying to determine the correct amount of Rytary and carbidopa/levodopa to take and I think I have finally hit on a combination that is working most of the time. I am taking two Rytary when I get up and then two carbidopa/levodopa 3 times a day in between with each dose accompanied by 1/2 tablet of 1 mg pramipexole and if I’m still off for whatever reason, I take an extra carbidopa/levodopa as needed. In talking with other PwP’s it seems that we all have a routine that works most of the time, and none of us want to add another med if we don’t have too so we do what we can to ‘make it work’.

Next month will be the 6th anniversary of my diagnosis and I am as active if not more active than I was before I was diagnosed. When I go back and read some of my early posts I am certainly more active now than I was during the first year or so after diagnosis and I continue to believe that exercise helps me fight PD and slow the progression. In the past six years there have been several new medications approved along with new DBS equipment and the dopamine pump which supplies a steady amount of dopamine. And if you read the Science of Parkinson’s monthly summary (click on tab above) you will see that there continues to be a lot of interesting and promising research happening around the world. So I hope I can continue to slow my progression and benefit from some of the research results that get approved in the next 6 years!

Our World Parkinson’s Day Event

As I mentioned in my last post, yesterday we moved our spin bikes out of the classroom and into the lobby of the YMCA and held our Pedaling for Parkinson’s class in the lobby . We had a good turnout of cyclists and attracted a lot of attention from Y members and visitors who stopped to watch us as class progressed. A member of the Neuro Challenge Foundation staff was there to answer questions and provide literature about PD and the foundation. And a reporter from the local news station, Suncoast News Network, was there and filmed us for a news report that was broadcast that evening. A video of the broadcast is below. A big thank you goes out to the YMCA staff for allowing us to hold our class in the lobby and to our instructors Kathy and Kelly for always challenging us to keep on pedaling. And kudos to all of the riders who participated in the event to bring awareness to PD.

Parkinson’s Patients Peddle to Raise Awareness by Jenna Brew, Suncoast News Network

Oh, you may have noticed a familiar face being interviewed towards the end of the video, yep that’s me making my TV debut. I’m pretty sure the offers for a starring role will be rolling in any day now 🙂

When last we met, we were preparing for a visit from my daughter Holly, Paul and grandchildren Charlie and Kayla. We had a great visit, spending most of our time on the lake where Charlie enjoys riding the tube and Kayla is an expert fisher person and the DJ for the ‘partyboat’. Holly and Paul tried out the new paddle boards and we squeezed in a trip to Knoxville for a nice dinner.

Now for the anniversaries. Last week, Mara and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary with a visit to a wonderful B & B in the Smoky Mountains and a great dinner at the Foothills Milling Co. After a busy month we enjoyed the R & R time which included a nice but strenuous hike to Spruce Flats Falls. The trail was steep and rocky but the beautiful falls made it all worthwhile. As we walked the trail, we remarked that I probably could not have made this trip last year and what a difference the change in medication has made in my symptoms.

We finished up the week by taking the boat out to watch the sunset and the ‘blue’ moon rise. This 180 degree panoramic photo doesn’t do justice to the beautiful sunset but it was a great way to celebrate my birthday!

July 24th was the two year anniversary of my official Parkinson’s Disease diagnosis and August 6th marked two years of writing this blog. During the year I changed to a Movement Disorder Specialist at Vanderbilt Medical Clinic and I am happy to report that his changing my medication has made a remarkable difference in my symptoms and provided me with improved gait, balance and arm movement. As noted above, I am walking at a normal pace and was able to hike the Smokie’s, something I could not have done last year. I realize that PD is a progressive neurological degenerative disease and I haven’t been ‘cured’ but I sure feel much better than last year and I am not going to worry about when things will change but will continue to enjoy the ride while I can!

Also this past year we attended several conferences including Rallying to the Challenge in Grand Rapids, Partner’s in Parkinson’s in Atlanta where we were members of a panel discussion and again in Ft Lauderdale to learn about being Fox Trial Finder Ambassadors, and the Southern Symposium in Spartanburg, SC which included the Davis Phinney Foundation Victory Summit. Again we have added many new friends to our global support group as we attended these meetings and conferences.

This year we have become MJFF Trial Finder ambassadors to help promote clinical trial participation, and we are participating in trials ourselves. We are working on a new website that will provide a list of PD resources in Tennessee that we hope to promote to PD patients, care persons and the medical community. We continue to promote the need for patient participation in the clinical trial process and will attend the second Rallying to the Challenge meeting in Grand Rapids, MI this fall.

I hope you will stick with me for another year as I travel this road of living with Parkinson’s Disease. I will continue to write about PD research, how my PD is affecting me and I still plan to add a page about exercise programs for PD. I will continue to advocate signing up for Fox Trial Finder and the Fox Insight programs on the blog and in person. As I said last year, I am aware of what the future “might” bring but I will continue to fight to delay the disease and maintain a positive attitude because I believe we will beat Parkinson’s! Thanks for your support, positive thoughts, and encouraging words.

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius

Year: 2015

Anniversaries abound!

When last we met, we were preparing for a visit from my daughter Holly, Paul and grandchildren Charlie and Kayla. We had a great visit, spending most of our time on the lake where Charlie enjoys riding the tube and Kayla is an expert fisher person and the DJ for the ‘partyboat’. Holly and Paul tried out the new paddle boards and we squeezed in a trip to Knoxville for a nice dinner.

Now for the anniversaries. Last week, Mara and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary with a visit to a wonderful B & B in the Smoky Mountains and a great dinner at the Foothills Milling Co. After a busy month we enjoyed the R & R time which included a nice but strenuous hike to Spruce Flats Falls. The trail was steep and rocky but the beautiful falls made it all worthwhile. As we walked the trail, we remarked that I probably could not have made this trip last year and what a difference the change in medication has made in my symptoms.

We finished up the week by taking the boat out to watch the sunset and the ‘blue’ moon rise. This 180 degree panoramic photo doesn’t do justice to the beautiful sunset but it was a great way to celebrate my birthday!

July 24th was the two year anniversary of my official Parkinson’s Disease diagnosis and August 6th marked two years of writing this blog. During the year I changed to a Movement Disorder Specialist at Vanderbilt Medical Clinic and I am happy to report that his changing my medication has made a remarkable difference in my symptoms and provided me with improved gait, balance and arm movement. As noted above, I am walking at a normal pace and was able to hike the Smokie’s, something I could not have done last year. I realize that PD is a progressive neurological degenerative disease and I haven’t been ‘cured’ but I sure feel much better than last year and I am not going to worry about when things will change but will continue to enjoy the ride while I can!

Also this past year we attended several conferences including Rallying to the Challenge in Grand Rapids, Partner’s in Parkinson’s in Atlanta where we were members of a panel discussion and again in Ft Lauderdale to learn about being Fox Trial Finder Ambassadors, and the Southern Symposium in Spartanburg, SC which included the Davis Phinney Foundation Victory Summit. Again we have added many new friends to our global support group as we attended these meetings and conferences.

This year we have become MJFF Trial Finder ambassadors to help promote clinical trial participation, and we are participating in trials ourselves. We are working on a new website that will provide a list of PD resources in Tennessee that we hope to promote to PD patients, care persons and the medical community. We continue to promote the need for patient participation in the clinical trial process and will attend the second Rallying to the Challenge meeting in Grand Rapids, MI this fall.

I hope you will stick with me for another year as I travel this road of living with Parkinson’s Disease. I will continue to write about PD research, how my PD is affecting me and I still plan to add a page about exercise programs for PD. I will continue to advocate signing up for Fox Trial Finder and the Fox Insight programs on the blog and in person. As I said last year, I am aware of what the future “might” bring but I will continue to fight to delay the disease and maintain a positive attitude because I believe we will beat Parkinson’s! Thanks for your support, positive thoughts, and encouraging words.

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius

August 8, 2015
What I Did During My Summer Vacation (so far)!

It’s been awhile since my last post so will try to catch you up with what’s been happening since June 19th but first and most important I am proud to announce that our granddaughter, Breanna, has been accepted into the University of West Virgina Medical School and will begin classes in August! Very exciting news!

As you can see by the photos below, we have had a very busy summer! And it’s not over yet, more to come in the next post.

The 3M mini reunion while at a wonderful Pacific Coast wedding, what a lovely time. (yes that’s me with a new hat!)

After the wedding, we met up with my son Ryan and his wife Sarahfor a short visit to the wine country which included dinner at the Russian River Brewery and a fantastic wine country tour
with Jason of Boutique Wine Tours (that’s him in the middle). Without a doubt the best way to visit some little known wineries, learn about the area, all while being driven in a limo.

Next was a visit from Mara’s brother John and Kathy,who couldn’t wait to go tubing! We also traveled up to the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park for some sightseeing

Then Ryan, Sarah, Julian and Trysten arrived for the Fourth of July. Tubing, fishing, fireworks and watching the World Cup and the Tour de France! Good times.

And we just enjoyed a short visit with Don and Mary Ann (one of the 3M’s) this week. They stopped by after Don participated in a tennis tournament in Asheville, NC.

Despite our busy schedule, I found time to join the Michael J Fox Foundation wearables study being conducted as part of Fox Insight. The program is open to PwP with an Android phone. They have provided me with a Pebble Smartwatch at no cost which is linked to my phone via the Fox Insight app. Currently they are tracking my activity and tremor via the watch. The data is transmitted to my phone via Bluetooth and uploaded with no identifying data for analysis. The app shows you the activity and tremor in graph form and also provides a medicine reminder, a way to report when you took your medication and to report how you are feeling. The only commitment is to wear the watch for at least 6 weeks. Click here for more information and to sign up.

And, as always, remember to sign up for Fox Trial Finder and Fox Insight – despite my haranguing with every post, only 2300 people have signed up so far for Fox Insight. No travel is required, it’s all web based and remember they need subjects without PD too, so get your family and friends involved.

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius

July 20, 2015
On the Road Again!

Yes,we are on the road again. We are working our way to San Francisco to attend a wedding which will also be another 3M reunion. I say working our way because we left home at 8:45 AM for a 10:50 flight to Houston for our connection to arrive in San Francisco around 5pm. But the Houston flight was delayed and we would miss our connection. Sam, a very helpful United employee, was able to get us on a US Air flight to Philadelphia leaving at 3pm and connecting to a San Francisco flight arriving at 9pm.

So, with plenty of time to kill, we took a walk around the airport and on the way back to our gate I see that the Philadelphia flight was delayed and we would again miss our connection! So back to Sam at the United desk where they were able to get us on a 3:55pm US Air flight to Charlotte for a connection arriving in San Francisco at 8:30.

With more time to kill, we decided to get some lunch and on the way back to the gate we see the Charlotte flight is delayed 30 minutes! This meant,if we left at the new scheduled time, we will have 20 minutes to change terminals. A small challenge for me and Dr. Parkinson but all that walking we have been doing paid off and we are in the air, bouncing our way to San Francisco.

Once we get there,we will have a new challenge,finding the little house we are renting in Bolinas, north of San Francisco,in the dark!

Well it is the next day and we are sitting in the little house we rented looking out at the ocean as you can see in the picture. We finally arrived here around midnight and this morning we took a nice walk down to town for some breakfast and a walk on the beach. Good times, good times.

After the wedding and 3M reunion we are going to Sonoma for a couple of days where we will meet up with son Ryan and his wife Sarah for some wine and beer tasting and probably some fine dining. More good times.

This week I finally completed the long promised list of blogs and bloggers I follow. Click on the tab at the top of the page and check it out. Next I hope to work on the post about exercise. Last week the results of a longitudinal study were released showing the benefits of exercise for Parkinson’s patients. Here is a portion of the press release:

SAN DIEGO – Regular exercise and increasing physical activity is associated with a slower decline in quality of life in Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients, according to a study released today at the 19th International Congress of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders. This study evaluated 2,940 patients from 20 sites affiliated with the National Parkinson Foundation Quality Improvement Initiative. The cohort was assessed using the Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39), and patients were measured at baseline, 1 year, and 2 year follow up appointments. Those who were classified as non-exercisers at baseline and began to exercise after their initial visit had significantly less worsening of PDQ-39 than non-exercisers. Ultimately, the study found that increasing physical activity greater than 2.5 hours of exercise per week is associated with a slower decline in total PDQ-39 scores.

Michael Okun, Professor of Neurology at the University of Florida Center for Movement Disorders and Neurorestoration states, “This study makes clear that everyone with Parkinson’s should be exercising. This longitudinal study of patients selected without exclusions shows that patients suffer from delaying starting their exercise program. It doesn’t seem to matter what they do, they benefit from just getting up and out and from moving.” Okun adds, “This study adds to mounting evidence that exercise is good and sooner is better than later.”

I can certainly attest to the benefits of exercise and we are trying to average at least 5 hours a week so maybe I’ll get double the benefit! Hopefully that post won’t take as long as the blog list! In the meantime, check out some of the blogs on my list while you are waiting for my next post and don’t forget to sign up for Fox Trial Finder and the Fox Insight trial. Remember, they need control subjects too, not just Parkinson’s patients so sign up!

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius

June 19, 2015