The truth is you don't know what is going to happen tomorrow. Life is a crazy ride, and nothing is guaranteed. (Eminem)

So here I am, going happily through life. Retired(well,sort of), great family, nice home & cottage, annual trip to South Miami Beach. Had it all and then, out of the blue, my right hand starts doing the cha cha on its own volition and the next thing I know, an old doctor tells me he is confident I am in the early stage of Parkinson's. My life continues as before, I still have it all, but now it is all under the cloud of PD.

Anyway, I wanted to learn about PD so I went to work and found some interesting facts:

1. Body movements are controlled by a part of the brain called the basil ganglia.For proper body movements, there must be a balance between dopamine and acetylcholine. Both substances are neurotransmitters. Parkinson's begins when the cells that produce the dopamine begin to die and the balance between the two substances deteriorates. When about 80% of the dopamine-producing cells have died, parkinson's symptoms begin.
2. The risk of developing PD is directly proportional to age. Most symptoms appear over the age of 50; although, 1 in 20 people are diagnosed under the age of 40.
3. In the USA, a person is diagnosed with PD every 9 minutes and as the population continues to age, so will the incidence of parkinson's.
4. PD is second only to Alzheimer's as a degenerative, neurological condition. In North America, the number of people with PD outnumbers the combined total of the victims of MS, MD and ALS.
5. There is no cure for PD however, drugs have been found that can control the symptoms, giving the PWP a better quality of life (mine is usually completely normal, on the outside). Meanwhile, researchers continue to look for better drugs and a possible cure.
6. About 100,000 Canadians have PD. Those are long odds. PWP should not waste their money on lotteries. For us, the odds of any of us winning are bad; it would just be a tax on stupidity
7. PD is a designer disease. It is different for everyone. Progression can be rapid or glacial paced. Not all of the symptoms appear in each case. Sometimes, only one side of the body is affected, etc, etc. That is why it is no use comparing yourself to a vetern of the disease.

I remain optimistic. Things are going well for me............ I must have overlooked something!!!