Snowflakes

A couple of weeks ago, Parkinson’s support groups all over the country met for viewing parties to celebrate the launch of Michael J Fox’s new sitcom on NBC.  Here in San Antonio we celebrated with pizza, soda and the chocolate-y-est brownies I’ve ever had.  We ate and watched the premiere episodes and met with other PD pals from around the city.

I have heard Parkinson’s described as the snowflake disease because no two persons' symptoms are exactly the same.  How can the same disease cause bradykinesia (slowness of movement to the point of freezing) and dyskinesia (the quick, spasmodic movements people associate with MJ)?  Can trouble swallowing really be from the same disease that causes micrographia (teeny, tiny handwriting)?  How about tremors, soft or slurred speech, weakness, fatigue, restless leg, urinary urgency, memory loss, flexed posture, drooling, constipation, balance problems and asymetric arm swings?  There’s more but I’m tired of typing.

The answer is yes.  Parkinson’s is a brain disease so it only affects the parts of the body that the brain controls.  Duh, that’s everything.  So, in a room full of 50 PD pals chomping on pizza, watching TV, you’re going to see some hands shaking, hear some soft voices, see some unexpected movement (or not).  Each of us has our own unique set of symptoms with our individual therapies and coping mechanisms.  As one of my group’s facilitators says, there are no rules:  if it works for you, it’s the right thing to do. Snowflakes all -- unique and beautiful.

So what’s great about snowflakes is that individually they are extremely fragile, but put them all together and you can build a snowman.