This is such an interesting thread, and it does reveal some of the complexities of why people make the decisions that they take. And how and why they are influenced in one direction or another.

I too would ascribe a lot of 'health' to the advice of Jinglebelle, the things she describes are our protection, mentally and emotionally, from dis-ease, and possibly in some cases physically too, many of us can override PD when we are absorbed in doing things we love.

On the other hand there is the very real issue posed by Muireann, that means that there is a small window for some us to regain a good measure of health, but to do that we may have to opt out of jobs, homes etc or hide how we have achieved it by not being able to appear to be well.

On meds or off the dilemmas are still there. If you attain an optimal wellness, using whatever means you have at your disposal, it does not means you do not have PD, just that you have worked very hard to achieve that wellness, and it comes at the price of other things, perhaps your job, or maybe the type of work you once did and were an expert in, or perhaps even you might need to leave a destructive relationship, that creates a situation where you are unable to make changes that will give you that wellness.

But to do any of those things they have to be possible for you.... Mostly the biggest barrier for ANYONE, not just those with PD, to making lifestyle changes for health reasons, is the economics. An example of this is the person who has a desk job, and a long term condition, he/she knows that the work they are doing brings a stasis to their life that is damaging and not heath giving. To pursue a life that is more healthy is also not an option, or not while in work, because to turn over the amount of work needed to support oneself is not possible.

In any country with health/disability provision, this is a dilemma, because going onto any form of disability means that you have to be more disabled, not less. And you still have the condition, and you are still less functional than you should be...... In those countries where there is no provision, either family becomes responsible for you, or you are wealthy enough to manage, or you are quite literally on the scrapheap....

I do not hear in this thread of people being 'cured'. It seems they are simply less un-well than they would have been. And it has been hard work doing it, and requires a dedication to 'self-ish' decision making as opposed to 'self-less'........ and I mean no opprobium at all in that statement.

How many people can actually do this, within their families, their social situations, their economic needs..... I suspect, very few.

But over and above this, making these changes will perhaps work only for some. How many people are there who have tried very hard for a long period of time to do without medication, or even actually without seeking medical help, saying I can deal with this, it's only a shake, or only a fall, or only me being stiff every day, I can manage that. But what about when one side of you makes you fall, is so painful that you cannot focus on the work you do, you cannot raise your arms above your head, or your neck and shoulders are so painful from rigidity and no painkillers even touch it, or you drop things constantly, or drag a leg so badly...... or as in one person I know of, your stoop becomes so pronounced that your upper body is almost parallel to the ground, and it has been a long time since you could see the sky...... PD is no picnic. And it is no pushover.

I met a very young onset person at WPC, who recounted how he had stayed of meds for several years, made that his choice, but said 'in the end you do go onto them, because otherwise you stop functioning in the real world'.

I can only applaud those who have been able to make the transition to not taking meds, and whose lives are better for it. Having looked at what I am like without them, and remembering what I was like prior to taking them, I know that without l-dopa I do not function in the real world. That is my criteria for taking it. And I suspect that many of us have tried doing without, because of side effects, or not feeling 'like myself'. I have seen unmedicated PD, it is not nice.

At the end of the day it is not just a choice that doctors impose on you. It is a personal decision. I would hope that no-one is encouraged to take the potent meds we have to live with when in the very early stages. And that they be encouraged to try anything that helps, and to find out everything they can about improving their self in their own way.... for absolutely as long as possible. And that everyone is told that the drugs are potent, have many side-effects, and are not just told, as I was that it is a wholly treatable disease....

I am sure about this though, one size does not fit all, and what works for one may not be helpful at all to another.... all our stories are useful in helping those new to the uncertainties of PD in making decisions that are right for them. There are millions of people with PD, many of them do not have a choice of even getting NEAR medication. They have no way of changing their lives.... that is the real dilemma