What a glorious week we've had, Autumn leaves, but mild and sunny. Clocks back this weekend though, so darker nights ahead and no doubt the odd rain shower on the way. I took this picture in the park this afternoon, while Buddy was of rolling in something revolting.

It might be the right time to remind everyone that despite the contradictory information from our newly rotated government and the power companies, remember to check on, and keep handy, torches, batteries, candles and thermos flasks in case of blackouts. The power companies are talking rotas for power outages, with notice beforehand, so the flask will be handy. Remember that gas central heating won't work without electricity (I know you know that, but it has to be said)

I got my winter fuel payment notice today, so all who qualify should have it soon.

I'm sure Sylvia will remind you, our December Lunch club will also be our Christmas Lunch, and will need booking, so if you want to attend, get your name and deposit in soon.

  
Every Thursday at Abington Park Rooms, Park Avenue North (& corner of Ashburnham Rd), Northampton NN3 2HT.
1st Thursday of the month is a one-hour session, every other Thursday it's a two-hour session with coffee and biscuits (and sometimes cake!)
Any questions you can call Angela 07954 099 537 Fit&Fab is online every Tuesday at 10am. For a small fee, join in for exercise from home. Email Angela on [email protected] or call 07954099537 for more details

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This is a personal account of one journey amongst many, from the diagnosis of Parkinson's through to acceptance of the condition as a part of life. Almost acceptance anyway. August 09, 2017 was not a remarkable day for the vast majority of the population. The Sun played hide and seek with the clouds, the pigeons were making birds singing badly noises - and it rained. Just as my wife Sandy and I headed for the cinema on an anniversary outing. The car park was of course full and when I did find a space it was too small. I parked in it anyway and carefully extracted myself from my own car. Sandy watched me walk towards her and said, “Will you stop shuffling your feet? I’ve told you before, it makes you look old.” And so it begins.

Despite this somewhat harsh assessment of my style of perambulation, I enjoyed the film and the calorie laden lunch that went before it. I was thus somewhat surprised to find I’d lost a few pounds on the day.

A couple of weeks later, I was a stone lighter and feeling really rough, like I’d caught a bad case of the flu that just would not let go. Grumbling all the way, I shuffled off to the health centre. Due to the outrageous circumstance of my usual doctor being away on holiday, I got to see Dr Locum instead. He was a nice enough chap I suppose, if a little vacant for a highly trained GP.

He examined me, told me I probably had the flu (!) and recommended we keep an eye on it, see where it goes. Why was my shuffling getting worse? I was getting older, apparently, and I’d get tired easily. Rapid weight loss? Probably due to the flu. Rest when I could. Go back and see him again in a week or so if there was no improvement.

There was no improvement. I felt worse than ever in fact, so back I went. I was relieved to find Dr Locum was no longer with us and Dr Usual was back in residence. After a few minutes chit-chat we got into it with a go at the finger/thumb tapping game (never have figured that one out) followed up by some loaded questions concerning various bodily functions that I wasn’t keen to discuss. He paused and leaned back in his chair in that annoying way doctors do when there’s bad news coming, and delivered the damming verdict: “Sorry to have to tell you this, but I’m pretty sure you have Idiopathic Parkinson's. I’ll need to refer you to the consultant, who will want to do some clinical tests to confirm the diagnosis, and then we can start getting you medicated properly. How much do you know about Parkinson's?”

He then went into a long explanation of what the illness can/will do to its victims, but after I heard “incurable” and the list of brain functions that were scheduled for demolition, I confess I was no longer listening to a word he was saying. Ron had left the building and was flying in formation with the fairies over Battersea Power Station. I could hear Dr Usual droning on in the background, but he couldn’t possibly be talking to me because I didn’t get incurable neurological diseases. Besides, it would have been rude to interrupt.

Over the next few weeks, whilst I was perfecting the art of sticking my fingers in my ears, Parkies was having a grand time of it - which meant I wasn’t . One bit of doctor speak I should have listened to was the one that said they wouldn’t give me any specific medication to fight the symptoms I was suffering until they had proven it was Parkinson's Disease. There are apparently other similar conditions which require different chemicals.

As far as the consultant was concerned, this involved a strange ritualistic procedure called a DAT scan. Here you are injected with radioactive material and then sent away for several hours, presumably to meditate on the inevitability of your fate. Short term this is to be strapped to a trolley and pushed into the machine and then ordered to stay absolutely still for a good half hour while some very large white boxes circle your head very slowly and very very closely. Unnerving.

It was the beginning of November by now and in the absence of any communication from the Keepers of the Machine, Sandy took it upon herself to get me in as soon as possible. My wife is excellent at this stuff, miles better than me, so I was only too willing to stand aside and watch. After several epic encounters with the battle hardened appointments' secretary, Sandy was given a cancellation for the first week of December. (The appointment we had initially was for March, so this was a Big Win.)

The actual day of the scan was something of an anti-climax. I was suitably contaminated with the radioactive whatever-it- was early morning and, having stoically endured the entire “Glow in the Dark” joke book throughout the day, was ready to be fed to the DAT scanner at the appointed hour. Sometime later, the machine regurgitated my still shaking body. It was done now and results would follow.

Results that the medically trained ones would believe and act upon – assuming that they showed I actually had the accursed condition. It could just prove that I didn’t. It wasn’t me after all. Massive “I told you so” on the way. But here’s the thing; if your eyes are closed and your fingers are in your ears, you ain’t gonna know what hit you until it’s too late. Part of me still clung to the idea that there was nothing wrong, I didn’t get incurable neurological diseases, remember. I have better things to do than slowly lose the ability to do any of them. Maybe it’s best if I don’t see the results…..?

They arrived in the post. They confirmed Parkinson's. Medication was duly rained down upon me. My symptoms improved, and the Sun shone a little bit brighter. Not a lot, just a little. Do I accept that I have Parkinson's? Yes. And I’m very grateful for the support that I receive. Do I expect it will go away any time soon? No. I’ve seen it for myself in the eyes of those who are close to me. They know this train only runs one way, but I feel I owe it to them to do the best I can to slow this thing down – as long as that doesn’t involve me going to exercise classes. I can’t be doing with exercise classes.

rh26/10/2022

 

Autumns first fire



I seem to recall writing about holidays in a previous Newsletter. That was before we tried to remember it's now God Save the KING, while at the same time trying to remember which Prime Minister was currently in residence!
So, briefly, to determine my favourite holiday I tipped out all the old passports thinking they would assist making a final choice. Well, maybe, but where did all the hair go?  See what I mean!!

(no comments necessary)

In the end it turned out to be no help in any decision-making (for the holiday, not hair loss!), for now I’ll say the Philippines, then again it could be New Zealand. But I’ll probably change my mind.
Enough of that, after all the holiday season is over unless of course you’re now planning a skiing trip to San Moritz! Now we need surely need a new project to keep our minds and bodies active. Fit and Fab will cover the latter, so how about hobbies for the mind?
If all goes according to plan, starting soon will be Hobbies Corner (or titled something like that), more details on this to follows in the newsletter.
For those of you enjoy whiling away a few hours in the evenings assembling things, I’ve just completed building this little project from a kit, titled Marble Explorer by ROKR. Kept me quiet for hours.

  

 

Get Arty, or get Crafty soon

We are in discussion about starting a regular art/crafts/hobbies group - perhaps once per month. We are looking at booking a local 'hub' where we can come together to share talents and interests - hopefully with cake and beverages. We haven't quite got details organised yet but keep an eye on upcoming newsletters. 

 

If you have any particular ideas about activities which would appeal to you, please let us know.... we want to support everyone affected by Parkinson's. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Time to pot up your Amaryllis bulbs, folks! If you have stored bulbs from last year, just check that they have kept well and not rotted. Select a pot which is only slightly wider than the bulb and half fill with compost. Place the bulb on top, gently spreading the roots (the top half of the bulb should be above the rim of the pot). Carefully fill in the sides, pushing the compost down with your fingers. Water well to settle the compost and continue with a weekly watering containing tomato feed. Keep in a warm place, and it should flower in around 8 weeks’ time.

If you have grown a chilli plant in a pot, it is now time to harvest the chillies and preserve them by either drying or freezing. I like to wash and dry them thoroughly and then spread onto a small tray and freeze them. When frozen, just tip into a plastic container. This way I can just take out an individual chilli and pop it into whatever I am cooking. You can also, if you wish, try keeping the plant. Lightly trim any straggly or dead bits off the plant and place in a heated greenhouse or inside the house. Water sparingly over winter. I am going to try keeping mine in a cold greenhouse.

Now is the time to sow next year’s sweet peas. Soak the pea seeds overnight to soften them slightly. This helps the germination process. Sweet peas like to throw down deep roots, so use pots rather than seed trays. Fill the pots to within an inch of the top with peat free compost, gently patting the surface down. Place two or three seeds in each pot and cover with about 2cms compost and then carefully firm down the surface. Water well and place in a cold greenhouse or frame I don’t have heating in my greenhouse, but what I do around this time every year is to insulate with bubble wrap. I never, ever throw bubble wrap away when I get some in a parcel, even if it is not in big sheets. It is so easy to tape pieces together. Once done, the sheets can be rolled up in spring time and stored and then brought out at this time of year. I only insulate the sides of my greenhouse, leaving the roof to catch as much light as possible.

Nice at this time of year to plant a pot with Autumn/Winter flowering plants. I always do three. Two at the front of my house which I can see from my front window and one at the back which I can see from the conservatory. It is a joy on a cold, damp winter day to look out and see some colour. This year I have planted dwarf tulips right at the bottom of the pot covered with a layer of compost then put dwarf daffodils on top and more compost At the top of the pot I have planted in the centre a Cineraria ‘Silver Dust’ and closely around it three hardy cyclamens of varying colours. Then a circle of winter flowering pansies. It is a nice splash of colour and then next spring the bulbs will push through and add to the display.

  

 

Now I just hope they buy me another present at Christmas

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