By WOJCIECH WASILEWSKI
Expensive Reader, in the event you’re in search of one thing mushy and straightforward, please purchase a unique ebook. This one isn’t right here to consolation you — it’s right here to shake your lazy world, to shock you, to tug you out of the identical lethargy I used to be trapped in for years after being recognized. For those who really feel anger, revolt, or perhaps a surge of motivation whereas studying, then it was value writing this ebook, every hour. Parkinson’s isn’t well mannered — and I gained’t be both. That is my battle manifesto towards Parkinson’s.
All through this ebook, I take advantage of the phrase “Parkinson” as shorthand for Parkinson’s illness, not as a reference to James Parkinson, the physician who first described it. If that appears like an oversimplification — I apologize. However belief me, it’s the least vital factor right here.
Folks at present are looking for actual tales — not textbook definitions, sterile medical jargon, or sugar-coated tales of struggling. You gained’t discover any of that right here. What you’ll discover as an alternative is one thing much more precious: the reality. Uncooked, unfiltered, typically brutal, typically even vulgar. Why? As a result of that’s what this illness actually is. That’s the type of relentless battle you’ll want in the event you don’t need Parkinson’s to steal your life, piece by piece. I’m not afraid of that battle — and that is precisely what this ebook is about. I would like you to cease being afraid and to consider you will get into this battle too.
This isn’t a scientific ebook. I’m not a physician. I don’t have a PhD. I’m not an “professional” who seems on morning TV. I’m only a affected person — such as you. Somebody who heard the analysis and, as an alternative of quietly accepting it and ready for the top, selected to battle again. And an important half? After years of battle, I’m dwelling proof that it may be completed. This isn’t principle — it’s my sweat, my ache, my setbacks, and my comebacks. If you wish to learn the story of somebody who curses Parkinson’s out loud day by day and refuses to let it win — you’re in the correct place.
If you wish to hear the voice of somebody who checks each attainable methodology to claw again yet one more day of regular life from this illness, somebody who isn’t afraid to talk the reality and take dangers — this ebook is for you. That is my declaration of battle on Parkinson’s. And in the event you’re prepared to hitch me on this battle — come on board. As a result of to dwell effectively with Parkinson’s, it’s important to fully change your way of life. That’s precisely what this ebook is about.
PARKINSON’S AFFECTS THE YOUNG
I’m speaking to you — the one that typed into Google: “Parkinson’s and bodily exercise,” “weight loss program and Parkinson’s,” “the way to cease Parkinson’s,” “are you able to recuperate from Parkinson’s,” or “can younger folks get Parkinson’s.” For those who’ve landed right here, you’re looking for solutions. I’m no miracle employee. I don’t have magic drugs or secret formulation. I do have one thing higher although — actual methods that work for me. Not only for me.
This isn’t an instructional thesis. This can be a battle information. A survival handbook. It’s about resisting this illness, outsmarting it, slowing it down, exhausting it. It’s about clawing again yet one more day of regular life — and doing it another time tomorrow.
You realize what annoys me probably the most? That almost all of individuals nonetheless suppose Parkinson’s is a illness of outdated males sitting on benches exterior their condo buildings. That’s simply not true. Increasingly more younger folks — individuals who ought to have their complete lives forward of them — are being recognized. After which what? Worry. Panic. The crushing feeling that all the things is over. Medical doctors not often have time to clarify what’s actually happening. And the web? It hits you with nightmare eventualities — movies of individuals shaking so violently they will’t even elevate a spoon. Nonetheless, that’s not the total fact about Parkinson’s.
For youthful folks, Parkinson’s is a very totally different battle — a unique tempo, a unique stress, a unique type of battle. They’re those who this ebook is for. For folks of their 30s, 40s, and 50s, with households, careers, desires, and plans — all of which Parkinson’s is making an attempt to tear away. We don’t need to let it occur. We will battle again.
WORDS OF CRITICISM FOR THE CRITICS
I can already hear the noise — the mocking, the scoffing, the eye-rolling. Critics saying there’s no scientific proof, that perhaps one thing did work for me however gained’t work for anybody else, that it’s all clichés and empty phrases. Perhaps my Parkinson’s is ‘faulty,’ they’ll say. Or perhaps I don’t even have it. Or I simply obtained fortunate and ended up with the mushy model — , Parkinson’s Lite.
To all of the critics who will declare that nothing on this ebook works, I’ve just one factor to say: Carry on clucking.
Once I first determined to battle Parkinson’s, my situation was declining quick. I had muscle rigidity. I may barely stroll. My left arm didn’t swing. I felt that heavy-leg fatigue, and my tremors have been intense. I handed out twice — each occasions collapsing within the rest room. Then I underwent the FUS process, and it considerably decreased the tremor in my left hand. That was the second I noticed I needed to change my life. And so started a sluggish however highly effective transformation.
I HAVEN’T WON THE WAR
Let’s be clear, pricey Reader: I haven’t gained the battle towards Parkinson’s — not even shut. Penning this ebook, after working full-time as an analyst for eight hours a day, takes a toll on me. Sitting on the laptop for hours briefly worsens my signs. Simply this morning, I awoke in ache — arms, legs, again, all the things.
And what did I do? First I went for a light-weight three-kilometer run. Subsequent I took a freezing chilly bathe. Then I had a wholesome breakfast. These easy steps and identical to that — my physique got here again to life.
Now let me ask you, pricey Critics: what would you could have completed in the event you had woken up feeling the best way I did this morning? Would you could have popped one other painkiller? Slapped on a ache patch? Perhaps relied on a pump delivering dopamine straight into your intestines?
Inform me — which one in all you can provide me a straight reply about what my life will seem like in 5, ten, or twenty years? None of you possibly can as a result of trendy medication doesn’t suppose long-term. It treats signs — not causes — and it offers with them solely now, not tomorrow. So how lengthy will I final on this ‘dopamine from the pump’? I’ve been dwelling with Parkinson’s for nearly a decade. How shortly does my physique develop tolerance to every new dose? What are the long-term unwanted effects?
Will I find yourself like my buddy with superior Parkinson’s — so overmedicated he sees animals on his mattress and suffers from terrifying hallucinations? What occurs to me in twenty years if I observe your playbook of escalating doses and stronger meds that deal with nothing however masks all the things?
A few of you would possibly say, ‘What about DBS?’ Nicely, right here’s the reality: Deep Mind Stimulation helps some signs, nevertheless it worsens others. Speech? Reminiscence? They usually worsen. DBS is outdated, invasive, and — at the least in Poland — poorly maintained. So no, it’s not the silver bullet both.
MY BODY AS THE PROOF
My physique is the perfect proof I’ve — nonetheless unscientific — that way of life change could be a highly effective software on this battle. The distinction between how I used to really feel and the way I really feel now could be cause sufficient to share my story.
Earlier than anybody thinks about stem cell remedy or gene enhancing — therapies that may assist however may simply as simply hurt — why not strive one thing out there to everybody? Bodily exercise. A life-style overhaul. As a result of this illness hates motion. It thrives on stillness, dependency, and inactivity.
Sure, somebody would possibly quote a research claiming bodily exercise doesn’t all the time ship. Perhaps that’s true in some instances. Even so in animal fashions, it helps. What about research on people? Let’s be actual — they’re restricted and never totally dependable. Why? As a result of you possibly can’t power somebody who’s severely sick to observe a strict, demanding train routine. However I did. And it modified all the things.
THE HONEYMOON PERIOD IS OVER
Now let me say one thing that may shock a number of and piss off the remainder: although my so-called ‘honeymoon interval’ — that golden section when meds work like magic — ended very long time in the past, I’m nonetheless doing effectively. In truth, I’m in higher form than many newly recognized sufferers.
How is that attainable?
As a result of as an alternative of crying over the misplaced ‘honey,’ I started working. I ended chasing miracles and realized the one miracle I can depend on is the one I create myself. No capsule will ever substitute a liter of sweat spilled in coaching, a deep breath of fresh air, or a plate of actual meals.
The honeymoon is over — however I’m not. So long as I can transfer my arms, my legs, and what’s left of my dopamine system, Parkinson’s won’t win. So in the event you suppose that after these early ‘golden years,’ it’s all downhill — you’re lifeless flawed. That is when the true battle begins. It’s as much as us whether or not we crash or climb.
On the finish of this ebook, I’ve included a fast and sensible information the way to handle a few of Parkinson’s signs at house — easy instruments, habits, and actions that may make an actual distinction.
MY STORY THE WASTED EARLY PHASE
I used to weigh 130 kilograms. I lived on junk meals and spent most of my time mendacity on the sofa, glued to the TV. Then Parkinson’s got here alongside — and flipped my world the other way up.
I used to be recognized with Parkinson’s illness on the age of 36 or 37 (I’m 45 now). At first, I didn’t consider it. I assumed the medical doctors had made a mistake. I stored hoping it was one thing else — the rest. However the analysis was confirmed by a DaTSCAN. There was little doubt.
Considered one of Poland’s main neurologists, Professor Andrzej Friedman — for my part, an impressive professional on Parkinson’s — confirmed it: I had young-onset Parkinson’s illness (YOPD), affecting the left facet of my physique.
So what did I do with that info? Nothing. For the primary 4 years, I wasted time. I sat on the sofa, I cried, I did nothing however watch TV. I let my dosage of levodopa–carbidopa improve whereas my well being slowly declined. I used to be caught — bodily, mentally, and emotionally.
SEARCHING FOR INSPIRATION
Then got here a second of reflection. I had two selections — surrender or battle. I selected to battle. Wanting on the instance of Michael J. Fox and others dwelling with Parkinson’s, I noticed one thing vital: the street to success is lengthy, winding, and stuffed with obstacles. You’ll be able to have all the cash on the earth, entry to the perfect medical doctors — and nonetheless lose to this illness.
In my opinion, the one possible way ahead is to fully overhaul the dangerous, self-destructive habits which might be breaking down your physique. That’s what I got down to do. I started looking for information, for inspiration — for one thing to carry onto.
One of many first issues I got here to grasp was that weight problems and Parkinson’s illness are a horrible mixture. I used to be merely consuming my unhappiness, consuming my melancholy. I didn’t have the information or the time — or perhaps simply the energy — to observe a correct weight loss program. There was all the time that magical phrase: ‘I’ll begin tomorrow.’
THE TURNING POINT
In the future, I noticed I couldn’t hold suspending the onerous choice to vary my way of life. So I began — with weight reduction. As a result of truthfully, it felt like the best place to start with. I stored it easy. I decreased the calorie content material of my meals and launched one thing referred to as a ’feeding window’. One primary rule: eat lower than 2,000 energy a day, solely between 8 a.m. and three p.m. That was it. I didn’t minimize out any meals teams. I didn’t surrender sweets — I simply ate them moderately. On high of that, I began strolling and doing yoga. The outcomes have been staggering: inside a 12 months and a half, I went from 130 kg to 80 kg.
THANKS TO PARKINSON’S, I HAVE NO OTHER DISEASES
Unusual as it might sound — I’m grateful to Parkinson’s for this transformation. It might have saved me from diabetes, coronary heart illness, and all the opposite well being issues associated to extreme weight problems. After that breakthrough, I stored going. I stored experimenting with my very own physique, step by step introducing increasingly more adjustments. I modified all the things — my weight loss program, my bodily exercise, my sleep, even my psychological lifestyle. Was it simple? No. It was brutally onerous.
But at present, after eight years of dwelling with Parkinson’s, I’m in higher form than many individuals who have been recognized extra just lately. In truth, I’m in higher form than I used to be years in the past.
My situation hasn’t progressed. I haven’t elevated my medicine dosage in years. I presently take three tablets of Nakom 250 mg through the day and two tablets of Madopar HBS 100 +25 mg at evening. Perhaps I’ll even be capable to scale back that comparatively excessive day by day dose and nonetheless really feel good.
Each day, I make the identical selection: it’s me — not Parkinson’s — who runs my life. And if I can do it — so are you able to. Everybody has their very own model of ’Parkinson’s.’ It’s not nearly sickness. Everybody has one thing that holds them down — some concern, some burden, some invisible weight. For those who can overcome Parkinson’s, you possibly can overcome something.
WHAT IS PARKINSON’S DISEASE?
Most individuals suppose Parkinson’s is straightforward: lack of dopamine — give dopamine — downside solved. Nonsense. That’s like taking a look at a burning home and saying, ‘Simply pour water on it, and all the things shall be positive.’ Nonetheless, what you don’t see is that the fuel exploded within the basement, the wiring is fried, and the inspiration is collapsing. Parkinson’s is not only about dopamine. It’s a full-body power disaster that impacts each cell — not simply the mind. Each cell in your physique — out of your mind to your muscle tissues to your coronary heart — depends on one factor to operate: mitochondria. These tiny energy vegetation create the power (ATP) that fuels each motion, thought, and heartbeat. The extra wholesome mitochondria you could have, the extra power (ATP) your physique can produce. And the extra ATP you could have, the extra energy, focus, and vitality you’re feeling.
PARKINSON’S DAMAGES MITOCHONDRIA
However then Parkinson’s creeps in like a thief and begins sabotaging these energy vegetation. Within the our bodies of individuals with Parkinson’s, mitochondria are broken and weakened. They produce much less power and age sooner. Meaning your cells are working on empty. Much less power means much less motion, much less readability, much less life. You are feeling it as continual fatigue, that lead-like heaviness, mind fog, the lack to get off the sofa. It’s not laziness — it’s mitochondrial failure. And it will get worse. Broken mitochondria additionally produce poisonous waste: free radicals. These unstable molecules assault wholesome cells like smoke flooding from a damaged engine. Your physique will get poisoned from inside. This units off a vicious cycle: free radicals destroy extra mitochondria, which then produce much more poisonous waste, accelerating cell dying — particularly within the mind. Parkinson’s doesn’t start in your palms or toes. It begins deep inside your cells, the place your mitochondria — the engines of life — begin breaking down. That’s why dopamine medicine alone isn’t sufficient. You’ll be able to flood your system with dopamine, but when your cells don’t have the ability to make use of it, it gained’t take you far. It’s like pouring premium gasoline right into a automobile with a cracked engine block. The pistons would possibly transfer a bit, however you’re not going wherever.
Scientific analysis backs this up. A Danish-German workforce discovered that harm to mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) performs a key position within the growth of Parkinson’s illness. They found deletions within the mtDNA of sufferers, particularly in mind areas answerable for cognition. In lab experiments on mice, they confirmed that mitochondrial harm results in the identical pathological adjustments seen in Parkinson’s. This might result in new diagnostic instruments, biomarkers, and finally higher therapies. Briefly, mtDNA is the genetic blueprint of your mitochondria. When it will get broken, all the things begins to interrupt down — and Parkinson’s is only one attainable final result. These disruptions hit nerve cells the toughest, as a result of they want large quantities of power to outlive. When that power vanishes, the cells start to die. That’s when neurodegenerative illnesses like Parkinson’s begin to take maintain.
These issues are particularly damaging to nerve cells, which want large quantities of power to operate. When that power provide breaks down, neurons start to degenerate — and that’s what results in neurodegenerative illnesses like Parkinson’s.
LIFESTYLE CHANGES CAN REPAIR MITOCHONDRIA
Weight-reduction plan, motion, sleep, toxin elimination — all of those have a direct impression on power manufacturing on the mobile stage. Your mitochondria aren’t static. They’ll regenerate, multiply, and develop into stronger — however provided that you give them a cause to. That cause is bodily effort, deep respiratory, clear diet, and intermittent fasting, which prompts a strong mobile course of referred to as autophagy (we’ll come again to that later within the ebook).
Parkinson’s isn’t only a mind illness — it’s a complete battle, fought in each single cell of your physique. Each step you’re taking, each aware breath, each drop of sweat sends a sign to your system: “We’re nonetheless within the battle. We’d like power. Begin rebuilding.”
What in the event you sit nonetheless and complain? Your mitochondria get a really totally different message: ‘We’re completed right here. No want to provide something. Shut all of it down.’
And if there’s one factor mitochondria actually hate — it’s sugar. Sugar clogs them, weakens them, and slowly destroys their capability to operate. It’s the last word enemy of your mobile engines.
This ebook is just not about hope — it’s about motion. For those who’re uninterested in ready for miracles, begin making your individual.
To Beat Parkinson’s, You Should Stand on Your Head is on the market now.
Wojciech Wasilewski is a Polish writer and fairness analyst dwelling with Parkinson’s illness — and preventing it with radical way of life change.