For two Greater Victoria residents, the journey with Parkinson’s started with a tremor.
The small, rhythmic shaking is a common early indicator of the degenerative neurological disorder.
For Lee Campbell, it was a pinky finger in 2018, and having watched her father’s journey, she knew what to expect. Instead of embarking on a plan immediately, she finished tutoring her grandson – a cancer survivor – through his schooling before seeking a diagnosis.
Steve Nichol had a bit of a shaky left hand, first noticed by his peers at the BC Aviation Museum, where he also served as president of the board. His diagnosis 18 months ago came as a surprise.
Both are avid proponents of the Parkinson Wellness Projects, but their journeys there were different, much like the path of anyone handling a Parkinson’s diagnosis. The Victoria non-profit offers physical, emotional and educational support through evidence-based programs and services.
“PWP is the most amazing organization I have ever encountered in my life,” Nichol said, who was directed there by his neurologist’s assistant.
The right medication got him on a path that, right now, you couldn’t tell he has Parkinson’s. The education, counselling, exercises, massage and more available through the Parkinson Wellness Project can help stave off progression.
They offer boxing and dancing for balance and cognition, fall-prevention programs, massage, singing, table tennis, and socialization, which is key to mental health.
“All these things about coordination, because it’s critical you remain active when you have Parkinson’s,” Nichol said.
“You will never recover from it, but you can live better.”
He’s at what they call stage one, and there are members at stage four, generally facing severe mobility and treatment challenges.
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“They have programs that address every single one of those issues in the most friendly, welcoming atmosphere you could ever imagine,” Nichol said. “That’s why I’m going to walk in the Victoria Mile and I donate to them, because they don’t get any funding. This is an amazing program. It’s the best one in Canada I’ve heard.”
Campbell is at stage three, using a wheelchair often, yet finding activity six days a week, primarily through the organization she was reticent to visit.
“You have to constantly exercise your body,” she said, noting that means everything from full body activity to speech and facial exercise. “It’s a pathway that you’re on that you have to recognize and do something about it. No two pathways are the same.”
When Campbell moved to Oak Bay, there was a condo next door where a couple from Prince Rupert came to stay a while. The woman had Parkinson’s and they repeatedly invited her to go to PWP.
“I had never been a group person. I’m pretty autonomous,” Campbell said. She didn’t want anyone to tell her “this is going to happen” because Campbell already knew every path is unique.
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But the couple pushed a little, both mentally and literally, putting her wheelchair in the car and driving her down there.
Now the people, both peers and the experts from counsellors to kinesiologists, mean the world to her.
“It’s meant an amazing sense of community,” she said. “Exercise is a must and you cannot do it alone, that’s my opinion. You need someone guiding you.”
Campbell is among those who plan to participate in the Victoria Mile, a Parkinson Wellness Project fundraiser that leads the Victoria Day Parade on May 18. Open to participants of all ages and abilities – including those on wheels – it’s about community, moving together and celebrating what can be accomplished as a team.
The Victoria Mile starts at 8:30 a.m. and follows a fresh route this year, beginning at the legislature and finishing at Government and Chatham streets. The Victoria Day parade is set to start at 9 a.m.
Register at parkinsonwellness.ca.
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