When I started this blog, I was hoping it would provide Parkinson’s Disease (PD) newcomers with a sort of ‘real-world education’ about PD. As it turns out, it edjacate me, too. Y’see, when I started writing this morning, I intended to cover one particular symptom (as is the norm for Thymptom Thurthday). But I almost immediately discovered that what I was calling one symptom, is actually considered by the medical community to be at least three separate symptoms.

Y’see, I was going to talk about a few experiences I’ve had with rigidity/stiffness, and I wanted to see if there was a more ‘scientific’ name for it. A quick web search led me to realize that the incidents I was thinking of were actually representative of (1) rigidity/stiffness, (2) bradykinesia, and (3) fatigue. So, let’s discuss some of the joy I’ve had with each of these three symptoms.

Rigidity/Stiffness:

After this morning’s research, I realized I don’t actually have much experience with rigidity/stiffness in and/or of itself. But I do have this: I wanna say it was three or four years ago, I found myself having to really concentrate about how to roll over in bed. Getting in and out of bed was not a problem, but rolling over was an endeavor. I had to seriously think about which appendages to move in in what precise order. If I didn’t, I would end up stuck in mid-roll. Thankfully, I no longer have this problem. Why? I don’t know. I’m leaning towards giving credit to GoCovri (timed-release amantadine).

Bradykinesia:

What does The Brady Bunch have to do with Parkinson’s symptoms? That would be an excellent question if it weren’t such a foolish question. Everyone knows that bradykinesia was named for comedian Wayne Brady.

But seriously, you guys, bradykinesia is simply slowness of movement. And I’ve got plenty of that. No specific incident comes to mind. I just move like a three-toed sloth a lot of the time.

Fatigue:

I have complained about PD fatigue throughout the life of this blog, going back to my very first post. As I’ve said before, PD fatigue goes beyond just being tired, beyond even exhaustion. At times, it has been crippling. The absolute worst I’ve experienced was on the day I had planned to spend at a railroad museum in Michigan last year. After a nap in my rental car, I was so fatigued that I didn’t feel like I was even capable of opening the car door. I was also experiencing PD’s urinary urgency, but the fatigue was so severe that I was honestly afraid I might just sit there in the car and piss myself. Fortunately, I was eventually able to muster the strength to open the door, stand up, and walk to a nearby peebush (Artemisia urea).

OK, that’s enough o’ that. See ya next week!