Personal Narrative: Working With Parkinson's Disease

I worked for seven years after being diagnosed with young onset Parkinson' s disease.Two things did me in and made it necessary for me to leave the world of work. First. although it may be mercifully a slo•..v progression. the fact remains that Parkinson's disease does progress.Second. I worked at a vel"'; sedentary job: t processed health insurance claims.Sitting in front of a computer aU day is the wot•st thing in the world for someone whose mobility is compromised. And the people in charge expected me to sit aU day.I had to keep track of how many claims ! processed each day:and managers created work standards to indicate how many daims should be processed daily. twas expected to meet those standards.

!wm share with you now from
WORKING WITH PARKINSON’S DISEASE

I no longer do. I received mail this week from the Social Security administration. It was a Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Notice of Award.

If ever there was an award I would like to be able to turn down, it is this one. I fall under the Disability category for I am 43 and have Parkinson’s disease. I was diagnosed at the age of 35 and can certainly testify to the fact that the medicine loses its effectiveness over time.

Motor fluctuations make it impossible for me to hold down a job. So I will tell you how it was near the end of my most recent employment. First, here is a little information about Parkinson’s disease or PD. It is a movement disorder characterized by the degeneration of brain cells that produce dopamine, a chemical that controls the body’s motor function. When 80% of dopamine cells have died symptoms of tremor, rigidity, and slow movement occur.

At the present time there is no known cause or cure for this condition. There are drugs that are effective up-to-a-point to treat the symptoms. Surgical procedures and research into new types of therapies offer hope for the