Fighting Parkinson’s, by Lisa Cargile

I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in April 2017, after more than a year spent trying to figure out what was going wrong with my body.  Doctors suggested tendonitis, low blood pressure, vertigo….Parkinson’s was never conceived of, perhaps because of my age.  I am 48 years old. After seeing 2 neurologists who said I was fine, I saw a motor disorders specialist who took one look at me and said, “Parkinson’s”.  Now I knew what I was dealing with and I could fight.  And fight i do.  I fight to slow progression, I fight to maintain fitness, I fight to stay alive as long as I can. I have 2 daughters and I fight for them.  Every week I attend Rock-Steady-Boxing, yoga, water aerobics, and PT. In between I go to the gym and do home exercises. Not to mention taking a daily regimen of 18 pills! I focus on the now (as best I can) and try not to worry about the future.  Meditation helps.  I still work part time as a speech language pathologist in the schools and I still drive carpool for my daughter. In short, I try and live as normal a life as possible, but I can’t say I’ll ever live a normal life again.  Fighting Parkinson’s is my new life and taking part in Moving Day is part of that.  I’m looking forward to raising funds for the Parkinson’s Foundation, a group whose mission is to help every person diagnosed with Parkinson’s live their best life possible through better research, better treatment and a search for a cure.

Walking alongside of me is the best support team you could ask for.  My team is comprised of family, friends old and new, neighbors and even my 85-year-old dad!  These are my greatest champions and they have given their time as well as their money. I am forever grateful to everyone who donated in order to help people with Parkinson’s.