Last night a local family put on an amazing event to raise money for Parkinson's research. I was surprised by the people that came to show their support. I had posted this on Face Book a time or two, and there were fliers around town. This family had really put a lot of time and love into this event, but one person in particular touched me like no other. "Touched me like no other" that sounded funny. I will rephrase that, one person that showed up had driven an hour and a half to get there. I had not seen Becky in a very long time and when I seen her, I asked "do you know the family?" She had a weird look on her face and she said "I'm here for you girl." She went on to explain that she did not know that Parkinson's could effect young people. She had spoken with one of her coworkers and they had told her about an NBA player they knew, fighting the shit pot disease as well. When she seen the post on FB, she then began to read this silly blog and she wanted to show her support. I truly hope that she reads this post, and knows how much it meant to me that she would take three hours of traveling time to come to the benefit. I apologize for not getting to visit with her more, and one of these days, this well nourished girl is heading to the Quad Cities to see her.
If there was one thing I heard over and over again last night, it was "You're how old?". Mostly this came from people I didn't know. Obviously, people who know me, pretty much know how old I am. There were several people that started out the conversation that way. This inevitably lead to the fact that they had no idea Parkinson's effected
young fairly young people. In really simple terms, ten percent of all people diagnosed with PD, are forty or younger. Approximately 50,000 new cases of Parkinson’s Disease are diagnosed each year in the United States alone. So, I'm no math wizard but that means, I am far from alone in this battle. I guess, I really shouldn't be so surprised that people aren't familiar with the
disease disorder. Why in the hell would you waste precious time reading up on something like that? When my Mom was diagnosed a few years ago, I did my best to learn about it. I knew the symptoms, the drugs used, the importance of exercise, but you read things differently when they pertain to you. Things that worry me about this fucked up disorder, would not necessarily cross the mind of someone thirty years older. Not to many seventy year old people worry about their teenage sons friends asking questions. Well, unless your Rod Stewart and continue to have babies in your sixties. I was glad to be able to "educate" a few people on the fact that it indeed does happen to youngens. Unfortunately, I was educated on the fact that many young people with this shit pot of a disease prefer to be on the down low about it.
PWP (people with Parkinson's) may share symptoms and some of the fears that come along with the diagnosis, but depending on your age it effects us very differently. I would love to talk to someone my own age that is suffering with this as well. So many nights I lay in bed and wonder if the things I think about are normal and do others feel the same way? I have the best friends and family in the world, but it's just not the same. I would compare it to girl talk. Some things you only talk to your girl friends about. Some things only another PWP would understand.
Today has been a good day.
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