ammy Taylor was 29 years old and pregnant with her second child when the tremor started in her right arm. By the time she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease three years later, the whole right side of her body was affected. “I was scared. I was ignorant about what Parkinson’s was,” says Tammy. “The neurologist explained to me that Parkinson’s is a progressive disease and that it’s life-altering not life-threatening, but I still had a hard time with that.”

Over 100,000 Canadians have Parkinson’s disease which is the second most common brain disorder in Canada. There is no known cause or cure for Parkinson’s. Most people manage their symptoms through medication. It typically strikes after age 60 but there are people, like Tammy, who are diagnosed before age 40. Men and women with Young-Onset Parkinson’s face additional challenges in disclosing their diagnosis in new relationships, having and raising children, managing their symptoms in the workplace and adjusting to a changing sense of self. 


Living for the present
Tammy thought that hiding her symptoms from her family would make it easier on them, but that didn’t stop her kids from noticing that she doesn’t swing one arm when walking and stutters occasionally. Her daughter and son, now 11 and 12 years of age, are also aware that Parkinson’s can bring on depression. She says, “My kids know when I’m not having a good day but I still try to do as much as I can to keep things normal.”

Fatigue resulting from frequent sleep disruption, and a decline in fine motor skills made Tammy give up her job at the age of 34, and since then Tammy has redirected her energies into volunteering at her neighbourhood school. To combat fatigue, strengthen muscles and to help keep balance problems at bay, she takes hip hop and tap dance lessons.

Like Tammy, Doug Martens is parenting with Parkinson’s. With a younger son in his final year of high school and an older son now in the workforce, Doug, 57, who was diagnosed seven years ago, finds that having Parkinson’s means, “living more for the present than deferring things for the future because you don’t know what the future may hold.” By attending an exercise class once a week, vacationing often as a family, and adapting his home to accommodate disability, Doug strives to maintain an active lifestyle and create a home environment that works for the whole family. 

Socializing can be taxing since Doug experiences extreme fatigue and sleep interruption, so an evening out may have to be preceded by a nap. And, although remembering people’s names was never his strength it’s worse now. It isn’t exactly the kind of retirement Doug anticipated while working as a pharmacist but, if nothing else, he has learned that, “When you have a progressive neurological disease, your life is going to be filled with adapting to it.”