Finally, the cool weather has arrived! And the first Wednesday of the month is just a few weeks away.
Our November Meeting Information:
Date: Wednesday November 6
Time: 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Topic: Living With Parkinson’s–What is Your Experience?
Parkinson’s disease, as we’ve been told by our doctors, read in numerous publications and websites, and experienced for ourselves, is a symptomatically capricious disorder with an unpredictable nature and a wide array of symptoms. Some of us have been living with Parkinson’s for many years; others of us are more recently diagnosed. Although our experiences may differ, our reactions and responses may differ, our ways of coping may differ, we are all on this bumpy road together.
Our November meeting will be an open discussion, a casual “just us gals” kind of meeting. What are your fears? What are your hopes? What have you come to terms with? What do you still struggle over? What frustrates, angers, or annoys you? These are just a few questions to get you thinking. Feel free to share whatever is on the front burner of your experience.
And because November is the traditional time of year to give thanks, what are you grateful for?
November is also that time of year to eat! Feel free to bring snacks to share with the group. Not a requirement; just a treat. Speaking of treat, leftover trick-or-treat candy is also welcome.
Please plan to join us (treat or no treat), but please wear a name tag, available at the desk by the meeting room door. We’ve welcomed a few new members, but guest speakers haven’t allowed time for us to get to know each other. So seek out an unfamiliar face or someone you haven’t talked to before to greet upon arrival.
RESOURCES: I will add an update when time allows, but wanted to quickly mention a few things.
If you are not receiving Sonia Gow’s Parkinson Social Network Newsletter in your email, I highly recommend you do. It is much more than a schedule of events for the Parkinson Cafes and Side-by-Side Support Group. The 10.21.19 newsletter, accessible through the link above, contained a summary from the APDA Virginia Education Day, new resources for the newly diagnosed, information for Fairfax County services, an article on hospitals, an update on local music therapy events, and much more! It is an amazing resource. You can find out more at https://parkinsonsocialnetwork.org or contact sonia@parkinsonsocialnetwork.org
Lastly, the previous post summarized Dr. Wutzke’s visit at our October meeting and included contact information to participate in his department’s exercise study at GMU. Having participated before and as a currently enrolled volunteer, I highly encourage it. Where else can you get free one-on-one training and contribute to research at the same time? Contact is Andrew Pechstein at apechste@masonlive.gmu.edu — or call the lab at 703-993-5041.