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Mentor #1
I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) June 2018. With the support of family members, this was a scary, but manageable diagnosis.
Prior to my diagnosis, I worked in Human Resources as the Director of Benefits, Compensation, and HRIS. I taught our employees about their health plans, ADA, HIPPA, COBRA, ACA, and many other acronyms. I retired 10 years ago.
My father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s. He was active his whole life but gave up following his diagnosis. I was not going to give up. I was not a consistently active person like my dad, so I knew I had to change my lifestyle if I was going to live with this disease. I researched and attended any PD class, meeting, and seminar I could find and found the Arizona PD community extremely strong and helpful.
I heard about Rock Steady Boxing and joined with my whole heart. I now coach part-time, which I love. I became a planning committee volunteer with the Parkinson’s Foundation Moving Day Walk. I attend speech therapy weekly to keep my voice strong and love being part of the Parkinson’s Peer Mentor AZ program.
I look forward to sharing my experiences and knowledge with those newly diagnosed with Parkinson’s.
Mentor #2
I was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in February 2014. I was having tremors in the right hand and left leg as well as balance issues. I had taken a fall on the golf course. My mother had PD and her father had PD. So, it was in no surprise at the age of 60 what my journey was going to be.
I was a retired Medical Technologist who always worked in a teaching hospital. I treasure my skills of time management, attention to detail, and flexibility to adjust and accept the changes in my life.
I have always dedicated some of my time to volunteer work such as feeding the homeless with my church or having a community senior to assist in the Duet program. I am thankful for having a good life with family and friends. I also enjoy giving back to others. I helped teach a course called “PD Self” for seven years. The course helped give people with Parkinson’s an in-depth understanding of the disease while also giving them tools to manage it with confidence. In becoming a mentor, I am choosing another path to give back and support individuals, like me, who are living with Parkinson’s.
I look forward to sharing my experiences and knowledge with those newly diagnosed, as well as those with established Parkinson’s.
Mentor #3
I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in May of 2017. Like many others, there were symptoms quite a few years before my diagnosis. Not knowing what to do, I sought out individuals who could help me as well as organizations that provided guidance and education in the specifics of living well with a diagnosis of Parkinson’s. I consider myself lucky to have learned of the vast resources available to the Parkinson’s community,
As a retired teacher, I appreciate the skills I sharpened like listening, adapting, and communicating (English and Spanish). The skills of empathy and patience were invaluable. I find that I need all these skills and more to navigate the everchanging landscape of my Parkinson’s. In my 8 years of living with Parkinson’s, I continually learn more and consider it a blessing to assist others in their journey. It is one way that I “pay it forward”.
I have a positive perspective of living with Parkinson’s. I know that life does go on with purpose and meaning. I believe we are all here to help each other and I invariably see my life through a lens of gratitude. For me, gratitude changes the world I see.
I am comfortable being a mentor for individuals with Parkinson’s, individuals who are newly diagnosed, individuals thinking of DBS, and individuals who are more comfortable with Spanish.
Mentor #4
My formal journey with Parkinson’s began with my diagnosis in November 2013. However, like many people, I had been on this road for four or five years before that. I was fortunate to have a neurologist who recognized the importance of regular exercise and staying socially connected. Exercise has always been a part of my lifestyle and it was a relatively easy transition to engage in the type of exercises that most benefit Parkinson’s patients. I am grateful for the knowledgeable physical therapists who got me off on the right foot after my diagnosis. It took a little longer for me to go to a support group, but that has turned out to be an essential part of my management program.
My Parkinson’s diagnosis eventually led me to retire from a wonderful, nearly 40-year career as a physician. Although I have learned more as a Parkinson’s patient than I knew as a physician, I am grateful for the listening skills and empathic approach I learned and developed during my practice years. I feel blessed beyond measure to have the opportunity to continue to use some of those skills in providing service to the Parkinson’s community.
Since my diagnosis, I’ve had the opportunity to assist several family members and close friends who have also been diagnosed with Parkinson’s. This has demonstrated that the need for such mentoring is acute, and the opportunity to help people with this transition is valuable.
I look forward to sharing my experiences and knowledge with those newly diagnosed, as well as those with established Parkinson’s.
Mentor #5
I was first diagnosed in September 2014. I did not believe it. I had no symptoms and there were no tests taken.
Still, I continued my job as a flight attendant for two more years. During that time, I noticed that my walking and balance were becoming more difficult to manage. I was also having difficulty with my hands to the degree that it was impacting my handwriting. My voice was also changing. It was then that I decided to go to the Mayo Clinic in June 2020. I was diagnosed with Length-dependent atonal sensory-motor peripheral neuropathy. Because of my many health changes, I decided to go to the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center/Barrow Neurological Institute. I was given a DAT scan on July 8, 2021. It was there that I received a diagnosis of Parkinson Syndrome.
That period of time was very traumatic for me. We had just come out of the COVID pandemic and my husband of 35 years divorced me. The challenges were compounded with a diagnosis of breast cancer and a new start on my own.
Fortunately, with support from my family and friends, I’ve learned to live a full life. My 40 years as a flight attendant and addressing various situations, has given me the skills to be an excellent mentor. Parkinson’s Disease can be scary, but with a good attitude, a great sense of humor and lots of prayers; I believe anything is possible.
I look forward to sharing my experiences and knowledge with those newly diagnosed, as well as those with established Parkinson’s.
Mentor #6
Disease in April of 2016. I began medication, but it wasn’t until I started the LSVT Big and Loud Program, with an amazing physical therapist that I realized there were things I could do to slow down and even reverse some of the symptoms of this disease.
I am a National Board-Certified Teacher in Career and Technology Education, and I was an Adobe Education Leader for 20 years. I taught multimedia, video production, computer science and was also the yearbook adviser and the video news show producer.
I was familiar with the importance of exercise because I taught physical education and coached volleyball, basketball, and softball. After teaching and coaching for 45 years, I retired in 2022 and immediately began studying everything I could find about exercise, nutrition, and mental health as it related to Parkinson’s Disease. Within a year of retirement, I studied and became certified as a NASM CPT, PPR Certified Pickleball Coach, and PWR! Certified Instructor.
I use my experiences and skills as a teacher and coach to volunteer and become involved in a variety of programs involving people living with Parkinson’s. I say get out, get moving, help others and stay positive. As my original physical therapist told me on the first day, “You are going to live a long, fulfilling life with this disease.” She didn’t say, “you can”; she said, “you are.” Believe!
I look forward to sharing my experiences and knowledge with those newly diagnosed, as well as those with established Parkinson’s.
Mentor #7
I was diagnosed with Young Onset Parkinson’s Disease (YOPD) in February 2021. The diagnosis left me with far more questions than answers. Along the way, in my search to understand more about my PD, I found that other people were searching too. I know that, together, we can help each other through the twisting roads on this journey of life with Parkinson’s. So, I became an advocate and started speaking about my life with PD through social media.
I have found great purpose in Parkinson’s Awareness, advocacy, and public speaking. I serve as a volunteer for the Parkinson’s Foundation in several capacities. I have also been fortunate enough to be the guest on several podcasts related to Parkinson’s.
My experience goes beyond my own personal battle against the disease. I was also a caregiver for my grandmother when I was younger and my grandfather had Parkinson’s Disease. When you sum up my journey, you could say that I know what it is like to fight this disease from different perspectives.
I look forward to sharing my experiences and knowledge with those newly diagnosed.
Mentor #8
I was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease on April 27, 2023, at the age of 48. The day I was diagnosed is a day I will remember for the rest of my life.
It was some time after the diagnosis that I finally started to work through the reality of having Parkinson's. Some of my thoughts focused on how this diagnosis would impact my ability to work, how it would affect my friends and family, and how I would deal with the changes that would be happening.
After a period of mourning for what I had planned for my future, I vowed that I would move forward by getting involved in volunteering and joining activities that would slow down the progression of Parkinson's. In other words, I wanted to take control of my life. To do this, I had to educate myself, so I began looking for resources. What I quickly realized was that there were many resources available and on multiple platforms. My challenge was to determine which resources were reliable. As much as possible, I wanted to be educated on Young Onset Parkinson’s. With so much out there, it can be overwhelming and misleading.
I am currently working full-time in Human Resources (HR) in the role of Sr. HRIS Administrator. I have worked in HR for over 25 years and during that time have gained many skills in working with people. Overall, I would say that communication is the key in all my interactions.
In charting a course forward, I want to help recently diagnosed Young Onset individuals acquire the tools necessary so they can also move forward in a positive direction.
Mentor #9
It was September 2022, when I received the lovely diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease at the ripe old age of 72. Like everyone else, I had been experiencing strange symptoms that made no sense to me for at least three years. I was almost 3 full years into retirement and told myself that this is certainly not the way I wanted to spend my retirement years.
As strange as it sounds, while I was certainly not happy about my diagnosis, in some ways it was a relief. I could finally put a name to all the symptoms that I had been experiencing. Now I knew what I would be fighting against. It gave me a cause which motivated me to learn as much as I could about my new disease, as well as connecting with a community where I felt I could be a contributor to the betterment of its members. My previous experience of 41 years in the dental profession was helpful in finding my way into this new area of interest.
My biggest complaint up to this point was that my Parkinson’s was interfering with the dexterity of my left hand and arm when I sat down at the piano keyboard. Classical piano had been a hobby of mine since I was a boy, and I was very accomplished at this point in my life. The Parkinson’s effect on my left hand and arm suddenly presented a new obstacle to my piano performance in amateur competitions both here in the US and possibly abroad. Much to my surprise and delight, I found practicing the piano helped immensely to diminish my symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Currently, I’m playing as well as I ever have!
I learned a lot throughout my career and in my early retirement years about sharing my talents with others to help improve their lives as well as my life. Parkinson’s is a progressive disease, but there are ways to slow the progression down and keep living an independent and fulfilling life.
Honestly, Parkinson’s is not the worst thing that’s ever happened to me. Sharing this with my family, and particularly with my son, has been the worst part of Parkinson’s disease. I feel like I can deal with whatever Parkinson’s has to give me but seeing the effect it has on my family is by far the worst part.
So, being a Parkinson Peer mentor goes beyond advising just the newly diagnosed about their disease. Just as important is to assist others with Parkinson’s find the support their loved ones will need to cope with the new “member” of their family.
I will be happy to assist you all in this journey through the world of Parkinson’s disease!
Mentor #10
Since my diagnosis in 2019, and as I navigate my new normal, I have found talking to others with Parkinson’s to be both educational and reassuring. Along the way, I have discovered that everyone has different, yet in some ways similar, experiences with PD. We can all learn something beneficial from each other.
I am a problem-solver by nature and my work in Human Resources has allowed me to connect with people, learn different ways to attack challenges, and enjoy helping others. Work-life balance is important to me, and I like to discuss the ways I have found to prioritize everything that is important to me: family and friends, my health, and getting the most out of life.
Learning more as we compare our Parkinson’s experiences is something I’m really looking forward to during the mentor process. We can all find ways to make life better for ourselves and others on this journey!
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