The Journey Ends...and Begins

Good morning! I'm back home! We got back in around 4:30 yesterday afternoon. My Dad is such a trooper--he's already headed out on the five hour trip to HIS home this morning! (Of course, if I'd been away from MY sweetie for two weeks straight, I'd be in a hurry to get home, too!)

The work has already begun on managing my symptoms. Believe it or not, I'm taking (drumroll, please)...Benadryl! It's what they call an "anticholinergic". I'm still working on understanding what that means!

Anyway, if the day comes when I feel I need more help than I can get from Benadryl, the Dr. has already told me what he has next on the list of med options. That's one of the "good news/bad news" things about PD (Parkinson's Disease). Bad news: there's no cure, only treatment of symptoms. Good news: since we're treating symptoms, I'M the one who gets to decide when to do things like change meds. (It's nice to feel like I still have SOME control of what's happening!)

One interesting thing now that I know what's going on (to me anyway) is when I look at a list of PD symptoms, I see little ones that I began experiencing years ago, but that by themselves were so small I forgot about them! For me, that just confirms the doctors' diagnosis.

Anyway, that's what's up today! Next week I begin the process transferring my care to a Movement Disorder Neurologist closer to home--as opposed to 8-10 hours away. Please pray for that process, as we find the doctor who God has planned for me. Pray for all of us, too, as we attempt to adjust our image of the future to this new scenario.

Thanks for your continuing prayers!

Answers

Well, it looks like we have an answer. The Movement Disorder Neurolgist says that he's convinced it's early-onset Parkinson's Disease. (And I've seen his diplomas - he should know!) It won't change me, just the "tent" I live in. And it won't change how long I live in the "tent", just HOW I live.

Parkinson's is a condition where my brain doesn't produce enough of the chemical needed to communicate well with my muscles. Hence, the shaking, fatigue, and unsteadiness. There is treatment, but no cure. It DOES NOT effect life span!!! There is a wide range of medicines I can take to control symptoms. There are also significant advances being made in research for a cure. The doctor said he wouldn't be at all surprised to see a cure in the next 5-10 years!

In the meantime, feel free to ASK ME QUESTIONS!!!! Feel free to let your kids ask me questions! I love to share information and it won't bother me to have you ask! IT WILL HELP ME!!! (It will also give me an excuse to go on the internet, if you ask me something I don't know!)

If you want to do some research of your own, a couple good places to start are:

www.parkinson.org
www.wemove.org

Thank you for your prayers...keep it up! They ARE making a difference! I'll be posting more, and I'll see many of you soon!

"I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken."
Psalm 16:8

Love y'all....

Marcia

A Piece of the Puzzle

Safely arrived back in Rochester, MN this afternoon.

I feel as if God has given me a major puzzle piece to report to the doctors tomorrow! I was taking Benadryl and Aleve today, for other reasons. While they were in my system, pretty much all my symptoms were gone!

I don't know WHAT that means, but a symptom-free day is HUGE! I will DEFINITELY be telling the doctor that news tomorrow morning!

Heading Out....

Well, I'm just a couple hours from heading out for the return trip to Mayo. The road trip may be the hardest part--very tiring. We'll go as far as my sister's in Wisconsin tonight and on in the morning. I may or may not be online again before Thursday. Expect me when you see me.

Prayer Requests:

Wisdom for the doctors who will diagnose and treat me.
Peace and comfort for my family, who try to carry on without me at home.

Praise:

I got to be here for my 10yo's Science Fair!

Takin' a Break

I'm home for a couple days, then I head back. I have two appointments at Mayo on Thursday. The first is with a movement disorder neurologist and then a follow-up with my coordinating internist who, I assume, will discuss all the findings with me. Until then, I went to church yesterday (for the groundbreaking on the new building) and I'm enjoying time with my family. When I know more, you'll know more.