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To: Loretta CG for John 65/6 From: Will Kuipers Subj.: Physical Therapy exercises Hi Loretta, How sweet of you to inquire. I was like your husband probably. I did not see any useful use for unproductive motions, in spite of the urging by my wife and daughters. I thought some walking and doing the maintenance chores were all the activi= ty I would need. I did not realize how much time of the day was spent just sitting. Muscle= stiffness gets progressively worse, until there are some movements that y= ou cannot make. As they say: "Use it or lose it!!" These exercises are great and they have helped me loosen up again. They are done mostly sitting in a chair, except for a number of exercises= in which one stands behind the chair. The chair is then really a prop to help balance. All the muscles get a turn in a good program. You feel wonderful after seriously taking part in an hours worth of these exercises. Some people i= n the group are already at the stage where they can hardly move anything. They just stare at the therapist and probably in their mind think that th= ey are doing that themselves too. Others have trouble telling right from left. Nobody is being forced. Everybody can do whatever they think they can manage. I feel lucky I can still do most anything. My neurologist is amazed, when he checks me out that I have apparently still no, or very little, ratcheting effects when moving neck muscles and= elbows and he finds that I can walk almost normal. After having been on a= 3 month visit schedule, he moved me to a 6 month schedule. He says: "Whatev= er you are doing, keep on doing it. It seems to work!" I still drive a car and remember that in the first year after diagnosis I= had trouble looking back because of stiff neck muscles. Now, five years later I can almost turn my head as I used to when young. It hurts a bit now, but I can move it! = If you have access to a program like that, by all means try to get your husband to join. He'll be glad he did! Best wishes, Will Kuipers = Dallas, Texas 76-dx'91 <<wakuipers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Parkinsn's Archive Treasures Doctors, students, patients and caregivers find current Parkinson's information such as the Algorithm, Caregivers Handbook, and talks by respected Movement Disorder Specialists.
Mail converted by MHonArc
2.6.10