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A Socialite with Parkinson's

The term "socialite" was my mother's, who was elated when I was named one of our city's debutantes years ago. At the time, I was following a dream to become a self-sustaining writer. By grace and sweat and persistence, over a 40-year career, my dream has come true.

Parkinson's and a loss of energy

Working as a journalist and book author, I had a lot of energy until my diagnosis of Parkinson's eighteen years ago. In the Parkinson's community, I have found the various symptoms often hard to deal with. The physical discomfort parallels my long mourning over abilities I am losing, or are gone. Three years ago, I had surgery for a head wound sustained in several falls on concrete.

Accepting help

A year ago, unable to care for myself, I was invited to move in with my family and am now learning to accept help. Now that I am a student again, I see that there are gifts to be found in each day. My focus on success as an author and teacher has given way to a focus on doing my daily routine of bathing, dressing, ordering basic items when someone is making a grocery run.

One final note: solitude for me has not been a prison sentence but perhaps a time to muse, read, harvest the gold from my long life and especially to thank my stars for the harmony with family.

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This article represents the opinions, thoughts, and experiences of the author; none of this content has been paid for by any advertiser. The ParkinsonsDisease.net team does not recommend or endorse any products or treatments discussed herein. Learn more about how we maintain editorial integrity here.

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