I have been on my Parkinson’s journey since 2016 when I was finally diagnosed on my birthday – not much of a gift!
Life at that time was somewhat tricky I had just had a hip replacement after breaking my leg in France on a skiing holiday two years before. My mobility had taken a definite downturn and family life was challenging as my husband had been diagnosed with dementia and passed away in 2019.
My Parkinson’s nurse referred me to a Stable course – introducing how important exercise is in managing Parkinson’s. During this course I met Symon Vegro who told me about Fighting Fit, and I attended a weekend in Aylesbury in November 2019 which was a great experience. There were taster sessions of exercise, dancing, singing and lots of informative sessions on subjects such as nutrition, medication, sleep etc. It was so interesting and the best part was meeting others who understood so well what life with Parkinson’s is about and to share experiences.
As part of my personal Parkinson‘s journey I travelled to Italy in September with my daughter Polly to the European Parkinson therapy centre for a week. This comprised individual therapy every day, intensive exercise sessions in the morning and then group sessions late afternoon on subjects such as cognitive therapy, stress, diets and medication. The centre’s treatment focussed on four pillars – medical, physical, lifestyle and psychological therapies. It was an amazing trip and I’m so grateful I was able to go. Everyone was so friendly and encouraging and the takeaway message was that exercise is medicine and is as important as our drugs and will help us to take control of our Parkinson’s.
I would thoroughly recommend this trip to a beautiful part of Italy, and even though it is hard work, it’s also a holiday!
I’ve been asked to say what my top 3 tips for living well with Parkinson’s are so here we go:
- Exercise is so important and really makes a difference to your physical and mental health
- Be positive in your outlook on life, look outwards to see the beauty of our world
- Join a group and talk to others and why not come on a Fighting Fit weekend in 2021.
Hopefully we’ll be up and running again by then. You will be assured of a warm welcome and make some new friends.