Cold and it's getting colder

 I believe I have written about my inability to get off the ground.  I tell my brain to put the rest of my body and then.....and then.......nothing.  My body rebels and I can "feel" this rebellion through the absence of any muscular twitching.  I am grounded!

Now my readings have led me the conclusion that I also experience momentary "freezing" upon first standing or changing directions.  I have to be careful.  If I try to take regular steps in these cases I will probably fall so I am reduced a shuffle with momentary freezing between each stuffed step.  Now, I know this is not classic freezing, but surely the classic freezing will eventually arise, just as my momentary hallucinations led to a full-blown lengthy hallucination involving a pair of sympathy police (May 4, 2020).

classic freezing (from Wikipedia)

• Freezing is a common symptom of Parkinson’s disease, but can affect people in many different ways. Often a person freezes while walking, usually when changing direction or walking up a step, feeling as though their foot has become glued to the ground. But freezing can affect other movements, too.

More about freezing anon - maybe domani.

THE EYES HAVE IT

Eyesight - just another muscle in the body, but is it affected by PD?

Yes, it is.

I once asked my optomitrist if PD could affect eye sight. "Not that I know of," was her reply. You can't really blame her. PD was not in her purvue and since so few of us have PD in Canada (1 in 500), people don't view it as an important condition. Besides, PD is a designer disease, so that a symptom arising in one PWP may not be common in the local PD community and unless you are a fan of PD, you probably focus in on shaking hands.

Face it, you are a PWP and you didn't know PD can affect eyesight; so why would my optomitrist?.

I consider myself lucky. Eleven years post diagnosis and I am feeling good. I seem to have had visitations from most of PD's onslaughts, but they usually go away. But my eye sight is definitly changing.

My main problem involves is what the experts call it "convergence insufficiency". My eyes are not able to come together sufficiently as a target draws nearer. It affects my ability to read. I have to keep changing the position of the book to avoid double vision. It is a pain in the ass.

That's all for now. My eyes are tired and dry (both caused by my PD). The eyes are affected by PD in other ways as well. One particularly interesting article on the subject can be found on the website of the American Parkinson's Assocation.

Aphasia is not amusing

There are many causes of aphasia, PD is one of them and the aphasia can be mild to severe, depending on the cause.  It interferes with a victim's ability to communicate.

I think I have a mild case of aphasia.  It causes gaps in my speech. I know what I want to say, but when I open my mouth to speak, I momentarily forget the word I wanted.  Usually, I will make myself search my memory banks looking for simple words of description but it can be embarrassing.  

For example, I might be explaining aphasia this way, "I suffer from oh, what's the word, you know, when you forget a word .........etc"

Mine, I can often disguise.  I can't think of how I do this, but I do.

The softening of the voice is also a symptom of aphasia

Aphasia does not affect intelligence!!! and can be treated with speech therapy.  I take that therapy once a week.  It has helped, but I usually can overcome the softness of my voice by willing myself to speak louder.

Finally, in my case, it has taken away, what used to be, beautiful cursive handwriting. You would not be able to read anything I write down now.  I know because, I can't read it either.

Aphasia is a condition that robs you of the ability to communicate. It can affect your ability to speak, write and understand language, both verbal and written.

A Short History of Movement

 I can't be sure the years are correct, but the chronological order is right-on

2011- diagnosed with PD (this I am sure of)

2012 - had my first fall when I caught the edge of a paving stone on the sidewalk.  lesson learned - pick your fee up fool.

2013 - same as 2012- gave up running - reluctantly

2014 - on our annual trip to Sobe, I walked my usual 3 mile route with Sharron.  We were both acutely aware that I shuffled when I walked and had a tendency to lean forward.

2015 - gave up free style walking but used "ski" poles to aid balance.  I could really get moving using those.

2016 - 2020.  The ski poles were fabulous.  Over time I got slower.  I had no choice because when I stopped my forward motion, some part of my body convinced my brain that I was still moving until I would come to a sudden stop like against a tree or a wall, or some other immovable object.  Gave up "skiing" this past summer.

This past summer also marked the end of my bicycle career.  It seems you need balance to operate these vehicles.

I can still walk, albeit somewhat slowly but I can still find some amusement in my inability to lift my feet.  I was with my family at the beach and I got onto a flotation device at water's edge and was pushed off shore. When we returned, I hopped off about 10 feet from shore and immediately sunk to my ankles in the soft sand.  I was marooned.  I couldn't get my feet moving and required assistance. 

That kind of embarrassment won't happen again.  As usual, I will adjust, even if I have to wear snow shoes.

Still and all, I am in a very good place.  I have no complaints, just solutions. 

That ain't the way to have fun, son; that ain't the way to have fun.

 My mind is barren, a desert of pointless ideas. It has pretty much been that way since my wife died in late 2019.  Fortunately, I am writing a book of poetry and my editor keeps asking for more and I enjoy giving it to him.  However, if he doesn't give an idea, I resort to a sort of stream of consciousness and that leads to satisfaction and I am going to use that technique now to talk about falls by parkies.

The other night I was wearing my Victoria lifeline when I  turned too quickly and found myself falling sideways.  Immediately my lifeline called me to inquire about my state.  I was explaining that the call was automatic and I was OK, when the downstairs neighbour came knocking to find out what the big "thud" was.  I was telling her I had fallen but was unhurt when the front desk showed up, followed by my son (contacted by lifeline).  The rest of the time is lost. I wasn't sure if it was just an hallucination, but my son assured me it was real.

I am becoming an expert on falls.  Here are my suggestions on how to avoid them

1.    Festination - if you feel it coming on, and you will, sit down for a couple of minutes and then walk slowly to your destination.  Don't be confused with "fenestration" or you might defenestrate.

2.  Carry objects in one hand and keep the other hand free and ready to reach out, even to a wall, to get rebalanced.

3.  Turn slowly in a semi circular motion.

4.   Lift up your feet and keep one eye to the ground to avoid even tiny anomalies in the surface . 

 That is today's lesson.  Let's hope I do better in the future.  In the meantime read this:

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2020/nov/21/michael-j-fox-every-step-now-is-a-frigging-math-problem-so-i-take-it-slow