Winston Churchill said: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the Courage to Continue that counts,” and like many of his quotes, it makes a lot of sense.
Living with Parkinson’s, fighting Parkinson’s, requires courage. It requires constant attention, focus, resilience, and dealing with incredible unpredictability. It involves getting up from many downs. It attacks from many directions, aiming at all parts of the body, often without notice. It is not for the faint-hearted. It is tough. A marathon, not a sprint.
That is why the people with Parkinson’s I have been interacting with lately are all to my eyes remarkably resilient, brave, and, dare I say it, courageous. It is the Courage to Continue.
Too often, people with Parkinson’s are dismissed as people with disabilities, with pity, sadness, and sympathy. I, too, was embarrassed to be faced with the physical side effects and symptoms. I now realize how wrong I was.
Behind the multi-layered mask are usually people who should be treated as role models. They get up from blows and continue to fight, and let’s face it, they (yes – we) have a lot to deal with. However, too often, they get on with it with grace and minimal fuss.
This is not exclusive to people with Parkinson’s – you see it across society, but there is something in the resolute nature and sometimes the humor of people soldiering on that inspires me now. I am seeing beyond the shaking, the freezing, the mask, the sudden movements, and seeing very special people.
People with Parkinson’s – myself included – don’t feel like this all the time. We have apathy, depression, downs, pain, and heartache. There are days when, as Churchill said, there is failure, but it is not fatal – we adjust and recalibrate.
Society, and sometimes the professionals who work in the space, has for too long seen people with Parkinson’s as figures of shame to some extent – they are far more than that. As Parkinson’s grows and hits ever younger people, this will become more and more evident. Society, however, has to embrace this, providing the right care for people with Parkinson’s through initiatives such as the Parky Charter in the UK.
None of the above is especially evident in me – it is a lot in the people I see. We have families, interests, passions, and many other reasons for living, and despite this crippling illness, we continue to do so – that is courage, even if it doesn’t feel like it.
I respect my fellow Parkies so much, and the longer I have it, the more I do.
Please share if you can and thanks for taking the time to read – it means a lot
