My husband and I went to a very interesting talk given by Bas Bloem last night. It was titled ‘Cautious Hope and Optimism in The Age of a Parkinson’s Pandemic’. He was a very engaging speaker and we both enjoyed hearing what he had to say. At the beginning I liked when he said that he hated the name ‘patient’ for people he is working with or client, neither of them give a friendly open sort of vibe, but rather to me give the impression of a power difference. He spoke very much about people as individuals which I like. He also talked about how the wearing of white coats as doctors was something he did not like to do. He spoke about going from ‘God to Guide’ and from his presentation I can very much imagine that he would be a very approachable guide through the mire that is Parkinson’s.
His talk has been recorded, so I am looking forward to having access to it. I will admit I don’t think I retained all that much by this morning. That could be partly because I have very painful shooting pains down both my legs at the moment and can hardly walk. I have been assured that this is not a Parkinsonian effect but may be sciatica or a pinched nerve. Whatever it is, I hope there can be some solution found, as I can barely walk two steps right now. So, my pain issues very much dominate my mind at present and I think I could be forgiven for not having kept much detail from the talk, but reviewing the recorded session will be useful.
We had booked at the venue’s restaurant for dinner and as we were walking there we were discussing a snippet of the talk, where he talked about medications. One thing that struck us both is that he said that medications should not be taken with the meal, but rather at least an hour before. This apparently, is because taking them with food may mean that the medications are less effective. So, to give them the best shot at working they need to be on an empty stomach, one hour before eating. We were remarking that neither of us had ever heard someone advise not to take meds with food and how I needed to adjust my routine. Another person who had been at the talk turned round and said that she was also surprised and had never been told and would also have to adjust her routine!
Both my husband and I enjoyed the talk and as I sat there with him, I thought how fortunate I was to have such a wonderful husband who is open to learning more about this condition. He really is an amazing support and I am glad, not just for my sake, but also for his that he is gathering information that will help support him as much as me. We really are a team in this Parkies life, just like in every other part of our lives.
I’m looking forward to the recorded presentation so we can review the contents and not have to rely on my dodgy memory!
My journey with Parkinsons 