Sunday, May 17, 2015

Dropsy

Last week was memorable for the fact that I dropped and broke 2 dinner plates while getting them out of the oven to warm up. No, they were not too hot and not laden with food.

Then I was under the house in the basement putting a jar away and next minute I lost my balance toppled over slightly but dropped the jar and voila! shards everywhere. Picked them up, some of them anyway and will do the rest when I go back down there and bring up one or other of the heaters that were cluttering the place up.

There was a third incident but I have forgotten what it was, and that like clumsiness is another symptom of Parkinson's.  

Oh yes it was my nice blue iPhone which now has an annoying chip one corner.

Then  DH fell in the night, tripping on the bedside mat or over his shoes which were near the bed.  Have decided we should both get into the habit of turning on a bedside light when we get up in the night. In this case there were thankfully no broken bones but bad bruising and copious bleeding from two wounds on one arm. He of course does not have Parkinson's but worries about me and the progression of it in me.  

I read recently in the Neurological Foundation's Report to members 2015 about some research being undertaken by Dr Rebekah Blakemore of the University of Otago, Christchurch who is investigating  the role of acute emotional stress in the impairment of motor behaviour in people with Parkinson's and the effect of effective state on precision-grip force control. "Understanding the impact of stress on motor behaviour may inform development of emotion-movement interventions to improve motor function in PD". 

Let's hope so because dropping things, tripping, being clumsy and holding things up in queues for  buses or supermarket shopping are other  stressors PWP can do without.









Tuesday, May 05, 2015

Book Launch

I don't often go out at night but I did last night and got the bus along to the Women's Book Shop on Ponsonby Rd .  It was the  launch of Ann Andrews's second book, Grandma's brain, with delightful illustrations by Sally Hollis-McLeod of Ann, her grandsons and even her husband, George, in the guise of neurologist.  

It is a picture book for young and old.  It arose out of questions her young grandsons had  about Ann's symptoms of Parkinson's and her clear and reassuring explanations for young and old.