Voltaire said something to the effect that good medicine amuses the patient while nature cures the disease and somewhere in the Bible is found “A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.” What an idea! Laugh in the face of a dreary future.
When I was diagnosed I was confronted with two options:
- I could moan my misfortune and wither away, living my life filled with self pity or
- I could look for humour in my situation and make good use of the time I had left before my body withered away, but not my mind.
Initially, I chose to do both. Well not really. I was taken aback, but I didn't know anything about PD, so I wasn't too upset. Thus only the second choice was available to me......Humor. I still have moments of doubt, but they are just that - moments. I truly believe there will be advancements in the treatment of PD in my lifetime and I choose to chortle my way into the future.
In his book, The Anatomy of an Illness, Norman Cousins wrote about the effect of humour on his ankylosing spondylitis, a very painful condition. He remarked that 10 minutes of belly laughter allowed him 2 hours of pain free-sleep. Humour deflects our negative thoughts. No more dwelling on our problem. In a sense, there is a negative correlation between laughter and pain. The more you laugh, the less you hurt. Sounds good to me.
Yes, we have a devastating "disease". Declare war on it. We have two weapons to slow down its progress while waiting for a brilliant young researcher to find a cure, exercise and laughter. It will take time but a cure is on the horizon. Be patient.
In the meantime, did you hear the one about the fellow who was shaken when diagnosed with parkinson's?
Get it?
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