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Matt

One of the side effects of Parkinsons drugs is a more compulsive nature. Recently my compulsion has been to write so I started this blog. Hope you find something of interest. I post under the username fizzgog.

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Waiting for the Man

I'm in a bit of a spot. I've run out of the medication that manages my Parkinson's symptoms and it seems there is little prospect of getting more for at least four days. When I was first diagnosed, the disease was mild enough for medication to mask many of the symptoms so effectively that some people didn't seem to notice. People with Parkinson's are described as being 'on' when they have taken their medication and that medication is active in their system. As the disease progresses, that 'on' period shrinks and we have to take our meds more frequently. Ten years on from that diagnosis I think most people that I encounter realise that something is not quite right even when I'm 'on'. The drugs effectively top up the dopamine that is lost as a result of Parkinson's so that my brain can continue to regulate what my body is doing. The difference between being off and on feels a bit like the difference b...

Black Dog

I used to think that the surest way to kill a conversation was to announce "I work in Computing." Panic would grip my respondent and their eyes would dart around the room like a trapped animal. "Err, I'm just going to get another drink," they might say after hastily draining their glass. They would slope off before latching onto someone (anyone) else. I was wrong. There were occasions where somebody had a problem that they thought I might be able to help with so we would talk for a while at least. In my last blog entry I described how Parkinson's was affecting my concentration and how that was making it difficult to do my job. At the time I was hopeful that I would be able to push through those problems and persevere but it hasn't turned out that way. I've been off sick for some time now as we seek a resolution. I keep busy by doing stuff around the house and garden (you probably would not believe m...

How Did This Happen?

For months, maybe years, after I was diagnosed with Parkinsons Disease I picked at my memories trying to determine how and when I developed it as if I could go back in time and change it. It is a completely pointless exercise since current research is unclear whether the cause is genetic or environmental . I have mentally dismissed the genetics component so that I don't have to contemplate the implications for my children. That leaves me with plenty of scope for trawling through all the stupid things that I have done in my life that might have been the decisive environmental factor. Could it have been the time when, after an all day drinking session I fell into a deep sleep while I was sat on a bar stool? I toppled backwards, still asleep and my fall was broken by the back of my head hitting the corner of the skirting board. Head injuries do seem to be quite a common factor in the development of PD so its possible. That was 20 years ago and I was diagnosed only five years ago so t...