Today, Carolyn and I went in to see my neurologist for a routine exam regarding the progress of my Parkinson's disease. I asked him about my medication levels in the hopes that there was some dosage level that would make the disease symptoms go away. Unfortunately, he said, the current drugs approved for Parkinson's don't really help much with the gait or speech which just happen to be the two areas where I feel I'm most impacted.
He watched me walk down the hall and back. He also tested my upper body muscles and reaction time. He said I don't appear to be exhibiting tremors although they could still be sporadic. His main advice was to continue to exercise and be more faithful in following the regimens taught me by the speech and physical therapists. He even claimed that by doing so I could avoid some loss of function in those areas. I was surprised because I thought Parkinson's would eventually take control away from me even as I tried to avoid it.
The doctor did confirm that I indeed have Parkinson's. It isn't just a working diagnosis.
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