The Tin Man Tries for Gold, Wins with Silver

Back in May, I had a woman come talk to our Parkinson's Disease Support Group about the SilverSneakers® fitness program. There are no Parkinson's specific exercise programs available in our area. The extreme Summer temperatures were already here and most of us had stopped doing outdoor activities, including going for walks. I thought it might be a fun way for my group to keep active and socialize, and all in air-conditioned comfort. SilverSneakers® is a fitness program for older adults and is offered as a free benefit through many insurance programs. 

My hopes were dashed when the overly-enthusiastic instructor started talking about "cardio" and "squats" and "lifting weights." By the time she left, she had scared the daylights out of our mostly sedentary group, myself included. I should have gone and checked it out, but I was afraid of falling or getting hurt. Trust me, there is nothing humorous about getting hurt when you have Parkinson's.  

In late August, I met an older lady at the Post Office. She asked if she could go ahead of me in line, because she was late for her SilverSneakers® class. She was using a walker and moving very carefully. Curiosity got the best of me and I asked how the classes were? She said they were great and she did the entire class sitting down. She proceeded to brag that she was the oldest in class, at 89!

Between the Summer heat and my foot problems, I'd

Parkie Tin Man Carl Ames

been too inactive. My Parkinson's riddled body was beginning to feel like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz; rusty and badly in need of lubrication. I decided to get some class info. It was a benefit of my insurance, and I could use all the facilities for free, not just the classes. My Wonderful Husband went with me to the first class.



Sarah, the instructor (not the one who came and talked to our group) told us to do whatever we felt comfortable doing. If you need to sit; sit. If you start to feel pain; stop. She said there was only one rule: You must keep breathing! No one was allowed to stop breathing in her class. This made the others laugh. 

As it turns out, the "cardio" is moving our feet to music. Similar to basic line dancing steps. The "squats" are done hovering over a chair, not squatting down by the floor and the "weights" are optional and start at one pound. We do stretches and balance exercises. We squeeze rubber balls or toss them in the air and try to catch them. We alternate between sitting and standing. We concentrate on different areas of the body on different days, but always move our whole body every class. The various movements change as well as the music, so each class is different and doesn't get boring. 

So, we started. I was in the back row, right next to the 89-year old from the Post Office. It only took a few minutes to realize I have two left feet. What happened to the Disco Queen of bygone years? I kept tripping over my own feet! When she added arm movements to the footwork, I found I could NOT do both. I found myself holding on to the chair for balance and I sat frequently. But I made it through the entire class! NO ONE cared that I was slow, stumbling or sat down! The others were encouraging and friendly (even though I was obviously the youngest one there, except for the instructor).

Here is a video of me I made after the first class:

Classes are three days a week and I haven't missed one yet. My Wonderful Husband decided he'd rather do the more strenuous pool exercises, so he goes his way and I go mine and we meet up after.

After a few weeks of classes, my rusty Tin Man body is feeling much better. Sure, I had a few muscle aches at first, but at least I KNEW what caused them. It is much easier for me to get up from sitting. I am standing up straighter. The biggest improvement has been in my balance! Watch my after video:

All in all, I'd say I was definitely a WINNER! I've got golden hair, silver sneakers and bronze skin to go with my Tin Man body! 

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To find a SilverSneakers®class near you, visit their website: https://www.silversneakers.com/


To watch all my videos, visit my YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/user/ParkinsonsHumor

You've Gotta Learn to Walk This Way

Exercise is a necessity if you have Parkinson's disease and walking is a great way to keep moving. One of the realities of living with Parkinson's disease is that your gait will change. These changes happen so slowly, you may not even notice that your arm no longer swings or that you walk like you have a ten pound weight attached to one ankle. 

Medications can reduce the rigidity, but if you've been walking this way for a long time, it can be difficult for your brain to learn a more normal gait. 

Prior to diagnosis, I had a very distinctive gait. I lurched. Neighbors could tell it was me from four blocks away.  

My right leg was very rigid, my right hand was always clenched into a fist, my right arm didn't swing and my right foot seemed to thud down as I walked. People, including medical folks, thought for sure I had a stroke. 

After diagnosis and medications, my gait slowly changed, and I lurched only when my meds wore off. One of these times, made for a humorous story involving a dance contest. 

As the disease progressed and I began to take more and more medications, my gait changed again. My movements became slower and my left foot would cramp. Gait changes can cause pain in your knees, hips, feet, back, neck and even shoulders due to postural misalignment and in my case, I had left hip pain that woke me every morning along with occasional charlie horses. Not fun.

Fortunately, the last foot cramp I had was the morning of my DBS surgery and as the settings got optimized and I reduced the amount of medications I was taking, my gait slowly changed again. The charlie horses disappeared but I now added left knee pain in the mornings. I would get out of bed and within ten minutes, I'd be out walking. It seemed the only way to relieve the hip and knee pain.

Sometime in the last year or so, I realized that my left knee and hip had stopped hurting and therefore, I was sleeping longer. Yippee! Hooray! 

However, I began to notice something new a few months back. When I would first get out of bed, the bottom of both feet would hurt for the first three or four steps I'd take. Since walking seemed to relieve the pain, I began walking even longer distances. But each morning, the pain was worse and then, throughout the day, if I sat for more than 15 minutes, the first few steps I took were very painful.

I considered going to a foot doctor, but decided to ask others with Parkinson's first. They came up with a possible answer: Plantar Fasciitis. It seems my gait had changed again and my feet were slapping the ground as I walked instead of rolling normally from heel to toe. The more I walked, the more I aggravated my feet. 

I had my DBS settings adjusted, bought brand new walking shoes, reduced the amount of time I walked and paid close attention to exactly how I took each step. If I get distracted, I begin slapping my feet again, especially my right foot. It's been a few months now, and my feet are slowly getting better, but I am still walking.

Here I am, at age 55, trying to learn how to Walk This Way.


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May Flowers

There's an old saying: 
April showers bring May flowers. 

We seldom get ANY rain in Yuma, Arizona, and this year we got none in April but we still have the May flowers.

I, however, grew none of them. While my Mom had a green thumb, mine is brown. I can even kill fake plants. Many of my neighbors do have green thumbs and since most of them have already left to go back North for the summer, I get to enjoy the fruit of their labor on my morning walks. It's a shame they do all the work and never get to see the blossoms.

All of these beautiful cacti have bloomed in the last few days. The flowers open very early in the morning and by mid-afternoon, they are already dying. The flowers are huge, but only last one day. Some will bloom again in the next month or so, others won't bloom again until next year. If I didn't walk every morning, I would miss seeing them. 

This is the Sleeping Cactus from a couple years back. It sure has grown and to think the nursery was going to throw it in the trash.

This is the cactus that my photo won a Facebook Contest and was featured in the University of Arizona's Co-op Extension brochure a few years ago.

I have to be very careful when I take these photos, because one false step and I'd end up with prickly needles stuck in me. OUCH!

Today, on my walk, I noticed a different kind of tree, one that perhaps, even I could grow myself. It's a bottle tree...

Have a Happy Parkie Day!  

PS:
As luck would have it, the neighbor with the bottle tree left a few days ago. As he was leaving, I jokingly said, "I'll keep an eye on your bottle tree while you are gone." We both laughed and he headed north for the summer.

Well, guess what? I walked past his place today on my morning walk and this is what I saw:

Yup, all the bottles were gone off his tree! 

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Walk Quietly and Carry a Big Stick

My Parkie friend Rick lives in northern Maine and makes walking sticks in his spare time. Last Spring, I traded him a copy of my Parkinson's Humor book for a walking stick. I didn't get to use it over the Summer. Since my DBS surgery, I sleep later and I have missed many sunrises. By the time I would get up, it was just too darn hot to walk.

However, now that the weather is cooler, I started walking again. Usually, I walk late in the afternoon, about 4:30 pm. My neighbor, Freida, walks with me. 

Sometimes I walk by myself, in the morning, and the one day I forgot to take the walking stick with me, I needed it. Not for walking, but to fight off a fierce dog that decided to chase me; barking and trying to bite me. So, I turned around and in my gruffest voice possible, I barked right back at it and then stomped my foot and finally, it decided to run off back home. Needless to say, I don't walk past that house anymore, but from now on, I always remember to carry my big stick.


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YumaBev becomes the Top Banana

For the last couple of years, I have been attending our local Parkinson's Support Group meeting. I am the youngest member and the silliest one, too. In January, our current leader, Greg, decided to step down and asked me to take over the group. I said yes and within an hour or so, all the official paperwork was done. So, now I was the Top Banana and even had the costume to prove it.

February was my first official meeting and mostly I just gave people information about upcoming seminars, what to do if you have to go to the hospital, the dreaded "exercise is best" talk and threw in some laughs as well. 

NPF's Aware in Care Hospital Kit

At the March meeting, I played my before and after DBS videos and we all sang along to my song parody called Winter Wondering. 

I try to keep the meetings upbeat and informative; this time handing out flyers for a little known benefit that might help some of our Parkies who are Veterans, and another about a USB Medical Bracelet from the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center. 

I'm hoping to get the Mayor of Yuma to come to our April meeting and personally bring the Parkinson's Awareness Month Proclamation. And after that, who knows. Most of our members will be heading back north soon, but the rest of us will find something to do over the long hot Summer. 

You can find all my videos on my YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/user/ParkinsonsHumor

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Visiting with Roy and Lynn

I first came in contact with Roy Roden six months ago through my Facebook page. He had just had DBS surgery and told me how pleased he was with his results. Roy and his wife, Lynn, were in Miami, Florida which is pretty far from Yuma, Arizona. However, they would be coming through Yuma in a few months, so we made plans to meet.

Roy and Lynn had an ambitious plan, they were going to ride bicycles from Seattle, Washington back to Miami, Florida, a distance of over 4500 miles to raise awareness about Parkinson's. Now for those of you in other countries, that's like riding from London to New Delhi, or from Sydney to Perth and back again, or from Cape Town to Casa Blanca. In other words, it's a very long way to drive in a car, much less ride a bicycle.  

They started their trip in November, and spent a great deal of time riding in the rain (it was the rainiest November/December the Pacific Northwest ever had). I promised them sunshine when they came through Yuma and, fortunately, I was able to deliver. 

YumaBev singing

They arrived here on Thursday, Jan 3rd, and my Wonderful Husband and I met them for dinner at Daybreakers Cafe (which also has karaoke). We ate dinner and then went and sang karaoke. We had a good time, no one threw tomatoes at us and we stayed until closing time of 9 pm (Yes, 9 pm, Yuma is a town filled with seniors, so places open very early and close early, too). 

Friday and Saturday, we both had other things to do, so we didn't get together again until Sunday, Jan 6th. We invited all four of them (Roy and Lynn have her brother David and a friend Holly traveling with them) over to our house to go Jeeping. Most of my neighbors have Jeeps, and since the area around Yuma is desert, Jeeping is a favorite pastime around here. The four of them piled into Jeeps and my Wonderful Husband and some neighbors took them on a ride down the Wash and over some dunes to a nearby place where people fly radio controlled planes. When they came back, my Wonderful Husband took David (Lynn's brother) out for a ride in a Polaris RZR, a smaller all terrain vehicle designed just for playing in the sand and climbing over rocks.

Then we all met for dinner at Pizza Hut. We had a great time and even though we could have gone back to the cafe for karaoke again, we passed. We were all tired, so we called it a night. 

Monday started off early for all of us. Roy and Lynn were our guest speakers at our local Parkinson's Support Group meeting (which also happens to meet at Daybreakers Cafe). He talked about their bicycle ride, the wonderful people they'd met along the way and the importance of exercise. Then our support group gave them a donation, we exchanged t-shirts and posed for pictures and they got ready to continue their bike ride back to Miami.

Please go to their Facebook page and if they will be riding near you, please give them a call and meet them for lunch or dinner, or invite them to speak at your local PD support group. They are all wonderful people and it was a privilege to meet them in person.

Lynn and Roy Roden

Holly and David 

YumaBev, Roy and Lynn

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Parkinson's Disease: Marching to a Different Beat

In the summer before I started Junior High school, I decided to play clarinet. Why? Because of Barbie. Barbie was my best friend and lived next door. She was a year older and had everything this twelve year old did not. She was pretty, with thick wavy hair and straight teeth. And while I was still wearing clothing sized for first graders, she wore teen size clothes and needed a bra . Barbie played clarinet, so I wanted to play one, too.

Barbie

The school held a band camp. The first thing they taught us was how to march, not how to play anything, just how to march. We had to take two steps for each yard line on a football field. I marked lines on my driveway with chalk and practiced until I could step off exactly eighteen inches, even with my eyes closed. I never was a good clarinet player, but I was an excellent marcher. For years, I could accurately step off how many yards something was, until Parkinson's Disease affected the way I walked and stole my built in yardstick.

In my ongoing effort to learn how to undo what Parkinson's has done to me, I attended a Music Therapy program at the Parkinson's Conference in Irvine, CA, a couple weeks ago. The speaker stated that music could be used to improve your gait and help your brain re-learn how to walk normally. I was already doing Treadmill exercises recommended by another speaker at the same Conference, so I decided to add some music. I picked out some favorite tunes, including some I used to play in my school band days (Louie Louie and Tequila) and concentrated on walking to the beat. I noticed a big difference right away. My gait evened out and my arms began to swing like normal, plus it was fun thinking about those teenage years. 

I actually enjoy Marching on my treadmill and the improvement in walking seems to be lasting all day. Maybe I'll get my built in ruler back. (Honey, where's the chalk?) 

Bev playing clarinet

Hmm, I wonder what ever happened to that old clarinet?

This is video of me walking on treadmill, and then adding music. Click on > below. 

So, my Parkies friends, put on some Marching music and get walking to a different beat.

You can find all my videos on my YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/user/ParkinsonsHumor

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Thank you for reading this story, I hope you enjoyed it. This is just one of a hundred stories in my book, Parkinson's Humor - Funny Stories about My Life with Parkinson's Disease. Please consider purchasing a copy from Amazon or your favorite online book seller. Thank you and have a Happy Parkie Day!

Parkinson's Disease Research: Exercise

I went to three Parkinson's Disease seminars recently and the common theme was exercise is good for people with Parkinson's Disease. I can't say this was news to me, but I did learn the science behind it. 

YumaBev and Anna from NPF 

I heard some humorous quotes like "Would you rather exercise one hour a day or be dead twenty-four?" and "Exercise can slow down the escalator to Parkinson's hell". Both of these are paraphrased because I've lost my short term memory (if you find it, please return it). 

So, here's the scoop. People are lazy and people with Parkinson's Disease are worse. We can blame the laziness on the loss of dopamine, which not only helps control movement but is also one of the "feel good" chemicals in our brain. And since doing the things we used to do no longer "feels good", we Parkies tend to get lazier. 

Researchers know this, so they gave rats, which are also lazy, Parkinson's Disease symptoms by injecting them with MPTP or something similar.  They then measured the movement abilities of the Parkie rats and compared them to non-Parkie rats. They took brain scans of both as well, and carefully documented the results. 

They then split the Parkie and non-Parkie rats into two groups: One group was allowed to do as they wished and the other group was forced to exercise by placing them on treadmills. It seems cruel to force them to walk or run, but I guess that's why they use rats and not cute little puppies or kitties, most of us don't feel sorry for rats.

The results were exciting. The Parkie rats who were forced to exercise showed vast improvements over the Parkie rats who did nothing. The difference was noted not only in their movement ability, but changes were visible in the brain scans as well. The forced exercise didn't show much change in the non-Parkie rats (except maybe they were skinnier). 

This proves that exercise is a very good thing, but you can't force people with Parkinson's Disease to walk on treadmills, so we need to be motivated. Those quotes I mentioned above motivated me. I usually walk every morning, but now I have added walking on a treadmill to my daily routine and I feel better already. Here is my first day and third day video (and I'm much prettier than a rat).

Did you see the difference? 

So, my Parkie friends, don't be lazy rats, get up and exercise (and if you have a treadmill, use it).

You can find all my videos on my YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/user/ParkinsonsHumor

Clicking on colored words will open a new window and take you to a different story or link.

Thank you for reading this story, I hope you enjoyed it. This is just one of a hundred stories in my book, Parkinson's Humor - Funny Stories about My Life with Parkinson's Disease. Please consider purchasing a copy from Amazon.com or your favorite online book seller. Thank you and have a Happy Parkie Day!

Exercise helps Parkinson's Disease

Do I exercise?  Exercise is a "four letter word" to me and I really don't know how to answer this question when I am asked. 

Morning stretches

I walk around the house early in the morning standing on my tiptoes with my arms stretched towards the ceiling, but I wouldn't call it exercise.  I'm just trying to un-kink all the tightness in my body caused by the Parkinson's Disease and sleeping in the same position all night. 




I dance to music, but that's fun, not exercise.  

I usually park my car at the far end of the parking lot and grab the nearest cart to help me get to the store, but that's because I don't want the car to get dinged, not for exercise.  

At night, while we watch TV, I stretch my arms above my head and out to the side with fingers stretched wide, to un-kink myself before I go to bed, but not for exercise. 

Walking with neighbors

I walk every morning with my neighbors, but I don't consider it exercise.  We talk and laugh and stop to visit with anyone who is outside so it's more like a social outing.  



I walk from room to room in my house, a LOT, but it's because I can't remember WHY I went into the kitchen, not for exercise.  

So, I guess the answer is no, I don't exercise, but I know I should.  I will start tomorrow, I won't have time today, I have to walk with the neighbors, do

Dancing with Erv

laundry, go grocery shopping, and I promised my 80+ something neighbor Erv that I'd teach him how to waltz (he thinks it will help him pick up gals at the senior center) and later is karaoke, but tomorrow, I will start exercising tomorrow, I promise!


Thank you for reading this story, I hope you enjoyed it. This is just one of a hundred stories in my book, Parkinson's Humor - Funny Stories about My Life with Parkinson's Disease. Please consider purchasing a copy from Amazon.com or your favorite online book seller. Thank you and have a Happy Parkie Day!