<h1>Hither, page and stand by me</h1>

You might recall the legend of Good King Wenceslas helping his page to carry on through the deep snow. Well, we people with parkinson's eventually will need a good king or queen to help them along their journey. They are referred to as "caregivers". I don't need one now but when I do, I know I will have the best. My wife already tracks my doctor's appointments, my medication, my nutrition and my general well-being. She knows that in the afternoons a wave of fatigue consumes me and I am pretty much useless for a couple of hours. It is during this time that she makes sure of my comfort - taking on tasks that were on my list of things to do. We should all be so lucky.

Anyway, I thought I would pass on these gems of wisdom for the caretaker.

1. Don't panic when you first hear the diagnosis. It is not a death sentence. It usually means that somewhere down the road, the PWP might have significant physical problems. Until that time, read and become acquainted with the condition.
2. Learn to recognize any deterioration in the PWP and attend any doctor's appointments with your charge to make sure he or she knows about any new symptoms
3. Be supportive but don't try to predict the future, you might raise false hopes and besides, believe me, the PWP knows what is in store for him.
4. Keep track of his medication but don't be a pain about it. If you are going on a trip for instance, make sure he has sufficient supplies of his drugs. Just ask, gently, "Do you have your meds?"
5. Realize and understand there will be good days and bad days for both of you. During his bad days, check for depression, it can attack at any moment.
6. Make sure he is eating well. Good nutrition is thought to play a role in slowing the progress of PD.
7. Encourage him to exercise. This is the best medicine for slowing the deterioration of the PWP.

I could go on and on but these are things that are in the arsenal of my good queen and so far we manage quite well. Five years into the "disease" and I can define PD as just an annoying inconvenience.

As Michael J. Fox once remarked, "In fact, I lead a remarkably normal life."

Me too, M.J., me too.

Thanks to my wife and the drugs!