March 25, 2014
The following words were shared by our Marblehead Parkinson’s support group leader, who read them recently in her March issue of Guideposts magazine and felt that they were appropriate for posting here. The statement was submitted to Guideposts by another reader, Jim Koski, of Saginaw, Michigan.
“Failure is never a person, it’s only an event. And the person who sets a goal, makes a plan, takes action, evaluates results, adjusts their plan, learns from their mistakes and continues toward their goal, never fails.”
WOW! Jim could become a good motivational speaker!
March 23, 2014
In a January 2014 Science Daily article, the University of Alabama at Birmingham summarized recent study results, stating: “Researchers say that high-intensity strength training produced significant improvements in quality of life, mood and motor function in older patients with Parkinson’s disease.”
We’re sharing the article in its entirety for you. Please visit the following site to learn more.
March 19, 2014
Nine bowlers and three “cheerleaders” had a wonderful time together at the Metro Bowl lanes on Foster Street in Peabody this morning!
It was our first field trip together as friends that didn’t involve attending a medical seminar or some other kind of informational event. Why did we choose bowling? It was a unanimous decision made during one of our weekly Parkinson’s exercise sessions. We were focusing on balance and stability, when someone mentioned that what we were doing was similar to bowling. That’s all it took and today’s plan was put into motion!
The Metro Bowl owners and employees were really friendly, helpful people, right down to giving permission for our members to use their canes while bowling, if balance was a concern. Those highly polished alleys are slippery, so our fun activity also provided a combination of balance, exercise and concentration. All the laughter and cheering one another on was good for exercising the facial muscles, as well as voice projection, too!
We’ll “spare” you any other puns, except to say that this idea was a lucky “strike”!
March 14, 2014
Ongoing Parkinson’s studies at Boston University Medical Center include examining the effects of vision on perception, cognition and gait. Vision is closely associated with balance, which of course is one of the major Parkinson’s challenges. For more information about the study and, hopefully, to interest you or someone you know to participate, visit the APDA web site at http://www.bumc.bu.edu/parkinsonsdisease/files/2011/05/PCG-Flyer.pdf
March 10, 2014
We had a great speaker at the Marblehead Parkinson’s support group meeting this week!
Cathi Thomas, a registered nurse and coordinator of the APDA Mass Chapter Information and Referral Center at Boston University Medical Center, spoke about Parkinson’s sleep disorders. Cathi and Dr. Joseph Friedman, highly respected for his work with Parkinson’s and author of Making the Connection Between Brain & Behavior (2nd edition, 2013), presented valuable information at the World Parkinson’s Congress in Montreal, Canada, in October, 2013 that our own Keith and Linda Hall attended. But what do sleep disorders and exercise have to do with one another?
At the support meeting in Marblehead, Cathi reviewed two case studies and treatment approaches from the Montreal presentation. Interestingly, from our perspective, at the top of the recommended sleep hygiene list was “exercise during the day”, as well as “exercise regularly and with specificity”.
If you’re experiencing trouble with sleep, please remember to explore the idea of some type of regular exercise as part of a treatment approach.
