Friday, March 21, 2008

The reasons why I started my blog?

The reason I started my blog because I wanted to tell the world how I fight my Parkinson’s disease and hopefully send a message to the readers that there are people suffering from Parkinson disease (“PD”) who need public awareness of the existence of PD and the effects physically, emotionally and mentally. With this blog, I hope to help PD patients to understand the disease and let them know that they are not alone.PD sufferers have movement disorders which could be misdiagnosed or misunderstood as effects of ageing. This misdiagnosis or misunderstanding can be unfortunate for PD patients as PD is a progressive disease whereby early treatment would slowdown the progression of the disease.There are also patients who are reluctant to accept they have PD when they are diagnosed by doctors as they consider themselves suffering from the effect of ageing As far as I am aware, 2% of the world’s population above the age of 60 years are PD sufferers . There are also a small percentage of younger persons who also develop the disease.There are 3 out of 1000 people age 50 and above suffering from this disorder. This number is likely to increase as the population ages.Besides, PD does not have any social, ethnic, economic or geographic boundaries either.I hope that my blog would share my experience on how I cope with PD and to counter /slowdown the degenerative effects of the disease.There are effective medication for the symptoms and patients who seek earlier treatment can continue to lead independent and fruitful lives.Exercise is also essential to the PD sufferer because of the need to maintain good muscle tone, strength and posture. Exercise has important benefits for everyone regardless of age or physical condition. When your condition threatens to immobilize you, exercise keeps you moving to retain your mobility & function, use it or lose itEating a well-balanced nutritious diet can help prevent weight and muscles loss, minimize practical difficulties associated with eating or swallowing, reduce the risks of hospital admission due to falls and reduce drug-related side effects as dehydration and constipation.At the same time I want to express my gratitude and appreciation to Dr. NK Chew my Neurologist for encouraging me to start the blog and the National Parkinson Foundation (NPF) in USA for answering my questions and helping me whenever I do not understand the disease. Also, I want to thank my wife and family for their kind support and understanding.I feel proud that I am able to serve the community with this blog.My message is to help PD patients to be aware of the disease and to encourage the setting-up of support groups to educate PD patients and their immediate families.,the cause of the disease, signs and symptoms , aid to caregivers, and a well balance nutriti0nal diet to achieve the best quality of life.


In conclusion I wish to take this apportunity to thank the management of PatientsLikeMe website to help me to learn every medication, supplements or device to treat the disease. Knowing what treatment work for me but also having the ability to easily connect with other patients to share the treatments and the outcomes not just to help themselves , but to help others. Become part of making a difference for everyone with Parkinson’s today.TEOKIMHOO


TEOKIMHOE

His blog (http://www.heroteo.ikonxept.com/) describes how he overcomes his illness with optimism and confidence. Despite not having any medical qualification, he discusses many medical issues which are considered to be difficult for the general public.

Dr. NK Chew

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