How a Bracelet Helps Parkinson's Disease Symptoms When Meds Don't

Diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease depends "upon the presence of one or more of the four most common motor symptoms of the disease."  These primary motor symptoms include a resting tremor, brandykinesia, rigidity, and postural instability.  Medications  to treat these symptoms involve a dopamine replacement therapy with levodopa/carbidopa.  In addition to all the medical treatments, even DBS (Deep Brain Stimulation), I recently was introduced to a unique and simple little "thing"... yes, it's a bracelet!

Although this bright paracord bracelet doesn't have the capabilities to generate dopamine, it does something equally as important:  It sparks a candle in your spirit that will light up the difficult days when Parkinson's Disease seems to get the best of you.  It let's me know that there is someone out there that keeps studying this crazy stinking illness.  The orange Survival Paracord Parkinson's Bracelet stands for this:

Hope.

Hope for people with Parkinson's.  Hope for organizations like the Michael J. Fox Foundation and the National Parkinson's Foundation that raise money for research; hope for the caring specialists, neurologists, and nurses that treat patients; hope for caregivers to better understand; and... finally, as I see it, hope to seek God's grace during the most difficult struggles as the symptoms progress.

For those days, and there may be many, when the meds just don't seem to do the trick, this little Parkinson's Bracelet symbolizes my prayer for God to wrap himself around this awful illness.  With the MJF Foundation's signature "orange" color, I found the white paracord represents all that ties us together in the Parkinson's (or any) community:  a God that offers us hope in the darkest days, woven around the orange.

Delighted to open my mail yesterday to see a package from Sandy at Jewels for Hope makes me realize just how much I have grown to love the cool "Parkie Pals" I have met by sharing stories with you here on "Excuse me, can I tell you something?"  From the artist Shasha in Wales, Fiona in Ireland, to dear Linda in Florida and writer, Daniel in Minnesota, living with Parkinson's Disease isn't so crazy when I can fire up the laptop and find someone who understands at my fingertips...

and wrapped around my skinny ole freckled wrist!

You know what?  I may never meet Michael J. Fox, Muhammad Ali, or Diane Rehm (I just LOVE her hair!), but this 48-year-old-grey-haired-PD bloggin'-hott-mama-of-four is grateful to all I've met and shared stories online.  Thank you all for inviting me on your computers for a short time to share my

hope.  "Where then is my hope?  Who can see any hope for me?"  Job 17:15

I now see hope on my wrist as I wear my  new bracelet!  Thank you Sandy!