Thank you for your patience and understanding about cancelling our September meeting. Our next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday October 2 at 1:00 PM via Zoom. Parkinson’s is what happens when we’re busy making other plans. How does this apply in your life? We are looking forward to hearing what everyone’s been up to these past few months […]
Support Group Meeting Update
It’s been a long, hot summer. Since our group does not meet in July and August, September usually heralds the start of our new year. We were scheduled to meet in-person on Wednesday, September 11. Our group facilitator and I realized several months ago that neither of us would be available to lead the group […]
Highlights of our May Meeting and Group Updates
At our May 1 meeting via Zoom, we welcomed Amelia Faraco-Hadlock, Deputy Legislative Director for Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton. Amelia has worked closely with Congresswoman Wexton on the bipartisan National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act to improve care and coverage for people with Parkinson’s disease. The Senate unanimously passed the Act on May 23. It will be sent to […]
May 1 Zoom Meeting Announcement
We are honored to welcome as our guest speaker this month Amelia Faraco-Hadlock, Deputy Legislative Director for Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton (representing Virginia’s 10th Congressional District). Amelia handles the Congresswoman’s Health portfolio and has been working very closely with Congresswoman Wexton on the bipartisan National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act. She is scheduled for the first 30 minutes of our meeting, […]
April 3 In-Person Meeting Announcement: Just-Us Share Time
Our next meeting on April 3 will be an in-person meeting in Reston and dedicated to Just-Us Share Time. Let’s talk about those self-conscious and embarrassing moments that come with Parkinson’s. We’ve all experienced them. How have you handled them? With humor? With resignation? With that fright, flight, freeze feeling of panic? With grace and dignity? Do you […]
Preventing and Minimizing Falls — March 6 Meeting Notes
We welcomed Physical Therapist Yuliya Jackson to our March 6 Zoom meeting to speak to us about preventing and minimizing falls. As a Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy and a Vestibular-Certified Specialist who is LSVT-BIG certified, she is well-versed on the topic. According to Yuliya, falls are a big problem! About 60% of people with Parkinson’s experience a […]
March 6 Zoom Meeting — Falls and Balance
Falls. Always on our minds. During our Just-Us Share Time meeting in September of 2022, when we talked about fears, all of us mentioned fear of falling as one of our biggest fears. Not so much the act of falling itself, but what could happen—and has happened to some of us—as a result of a fall. Some of […]
OT for PD–February Meeting Recap
We welcomed Occupational Therapist Donna Jackson to our February 7 in-person meeting in Reston. Donna has worked as an OT for over 25 years, both in outpatient clinics and as a visiting home health therapist. She currently divides her week between home visits (three-days-a-week) and a clinic setting (two-days-a-week). Home health occupational therapy is covered […]
February 7 In-Person Meeting Announcement
Many of us have worked with physical therapists to improve our strength, balance, coordination, and movements, as well as speech therapists to address soft voice, swallowing and communication issues. Some of us have also participated in the LSVT BIG and LSVT LOUD programs, developed specifically for Parkinson’s. What about Occupational Therapy, often referred to as OT. Where does […]
January 3 Zoom Meeting Announcement
We are all too familiar with the major motor symptoms of Parkinson’s, the ones that affect our physical movement and function: bradykinesia (slow movements), resting tremor, muscle rigidity, and posture and balance issues. These symptoms are what originally drove most of us to seek a diagnosis and ultimately, to learn how to live with and […]