I love this song, and the whole of his last album, which I consider to be his best. The accompanying video to the song is also very moving.

I thought he had a parkinson like condition rather than pd itself. Perhaps someone else knows more. I know he had autonomic neuropathy, but thought there was something more specific that that.

The last recording of a much-loved Parkie. Hurt:

http://youtu.be/SmVAWKfJ4Go[/QUOTE]

[/QUOTE]

Cash announced he was suffering from Parkinson’s in the year 1997. A few years later (sound familiar?) the diagnosis was changed to Shy-Drager Syndrome, which is a type of Parkinson’s.

And then a few more years, and they changed the verdict to diabetic neuropathy, and they said he died of complications from diabetes. His wife the caregiver died a few months before he did, and so everybody says he died of a broken heart.

I claim him for us. To me, he is a fellow Parkie. Who died of a broken heart.

Bob Dawson,
Thank you. Your videos have been just great. I have enjoyed your music u-tube links very much. Thank you for your wonderful fighting spirit. It has been noticed and greatly appreciated by me. My dad is suffering with Parkinson's with dementia or shy-dragers. The doctors are not sure which one. I myself have some Parkinson's symptoms but not enough of them to be diagnosed with Parkinson's. I have given blood for research and for them to determine a genetic link with my dad's illness. He has dizziness and I have a passing out problem. We both have the REM sleep behavior disorder. I am the only other one in the family with neurological symptoms. If I may ask you, I would like to know if my dad is in pain. He says no when the doctor asks him but complains to me and my mom about backache and headache. I told him he needs to tell the doctor this and he says he forgot that he did have pain but said no because he did not have it when the doc asked. I worry about him suffering. Thank you kindly. You have been helpful to me.
Brain patch

When I was diagnosed with Parkinson's, just about everyone told me (1) You die with it but you don't die from it; and, (2) it is not painful.

Neither was true. Parkinson's can kill you as dead as a doorknob, and the pain, when "Off" and having full-body tremors and spasms - well, i would describe it as "torture".

But it is a strange kind of pain; hard to describe; it is not like being stabbed with a knife; it can incapacitate me completely for hours, but it is also strangely survivable. It's like "Here we go again into the pain; I wonder if I should put on the Rolling Stones." It can be frightening too.

And it can be emotionally hard too. Depression and despair. Thus the added value of song and beauty and most anything you can attach your brain to until the pain decides to give you a break.

But don't worry too much about the pain. Parkinson's people can take a hell of a lot of pain. It's more important for your Dad to keep his spirits up and live as lovingly as possible under the circumstances, and he certainly is lucky to have someone like you caring about him.

The scene with the doctor - where your father says it doesn't hurt because at that moment it does not - that happens to me almost every time I see the doctor - I forget to ask what I wanted to ask; I tell him I am doing okay and in fact I am not; I make a list to read to him now; but I can still be taken by surprise by a question that I want to brush aside rather than have people, even the doctor, staring at my private pain. I'm doing real good, Doc. But as I get worse it becomes a lot more obvious when I am in pain.
But again, lots of people live with more pain than Parkies do. It's more the despair that we have to get rid of.

We all live long enough; it really is the quality of life that matters, to not stop marvelling at the beauty of the universe, and the general craziness of everything.
And everything is funny, some of the time. It's a disease that teaches a lot. Not what we would have chosen; but it changes the world you live in and you see great and horrible things, the best and the worst.
It's a strange adventure.

...but it appears to have been me. !?

Well, you may remember from our last episode that the ancient canine was passing and melodrama was rife. At any moment the Great Rabbit of Eternity would appear and my old friend the Huntress would be off in pursuit.

Silly child! The gods don't work that way. Or, at least, the rum-besotted ones that I encounter do not.

She did not die. Instead, she lay in a paralytic coma for three days doing the best "Dying Dog" scene of all time. Then she rallied and indicated with a shrill, one-syllable bark that she had returned and where was that "boy" anyway?

She has gotten stronger with each day. But there is one problem. She is pretty much paralyzed in her hind legs. So, now my dillema is not how does a PWP dig a grave. It is how do you shoot an old dog lying in the middle of your living room and disrupting every scrap of routine that has held your marriage together? And how do you keep some very obvious comparisons being made between oneself and said dog?

Oy!

Bob - I addressed this specifically because something temporarily barred me from posting. Also, I tried to reply to a PM from you to no avail. And I just spent 45 minutes getting a typo triple letter-free post here, and it floated off into cyberspace. GRRR! (Actually the word I used was a bit stronger than "GRRR!) I'm using my iPad - anyone else have iPad problems?

So here goes post #3 and we will test the hypothesis that "third time is charm"
(I just want to post; the heck with charm!)

As most NeuroTalk threads go, we began with "Song of the Week." Then we went from dying dogs to dying and pain with PD, then moved to tumeric .

So back to the song topic: there's a craze occurring of a song (and I hesitate to call it a dance) , called "The Harlem Shake." If you haven't seen it, I would like to take a vacation where you have been!

It's been around for 30+ years! But most of today's Harlem Shakes can be a mite suggestive or risqué . So I am cleaning it up to show you the therapeutic effect of doing or dancing to the music of "Harlem Shake" (Dr. John Grohol - analyze this!)

If you want an honest opinion, ask a kid - the younger, the more honest. Check out this viral YouTube video (over 8 million hits). You will see demonstrations and learn the history of this craze.

Music/dance can be great therapy. If you have balance problems, sit down and shake/dance. Why do I like it? It looks like me at my height of dyskinesia! LOL
Peg

Oh yeah - about to forget the video!
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NeGe7lV...ure=g-logo-xit

Watch it all, please! If we in this forum ever get the chance to get together, we will all do the Harlem Shake! ( everyone fully clothed, too!)

Where is that sense of humor that used to be here? We have gotten way too serious.
Peg.

Bob I meant to tell you that I loved Grandpa Elliott's rendition of "Stand By Me."
Have you seen the movie by the same name? It's an amazing story about life as seen through the eyes of 4 young boys. I could watch it a thousand times!

Like, totally, Dudette!

just another day with Parkinson's

http://youtu.be/4az1NewEr-w