A couple of years ago I became friends with a girl, introduced through mutual friends, we soon became best of friends, she had moved to Salmon Arm to help take care of her grandmother. Meeting her grandmother was the first experience I had with Parkinson's. Over the last couple of years on my occasional visits while my friend is doing her duties with her grandmother, I have witnessed a slow but gradual change in the woman that had once been a hand in raising my good friend. Slowly I watched as my friend, struggled more and more with what she had to do for her elder, as she would become more involved with the daily activities that we take for granted. No longer could this woman wash herself, get in and out of bed on her own, get on and off the toilet, cook for herself, along the way I would watch as she would slowly digress to the point of sitting in her chair staring out the window, her speech now barely audible. At times my good friend would find it hard to continue to do what she is doing, her small frame barely able to hold her grandmother up as she moves her to her wheel chair. She would give up much of her social life, missing out on activities to be home, "just in case grandpa called and needed something for grandma".  I won't lie the thought of quitting had come to her mind from time to time, but the thought of someone else taking care of the woman that once took care of her was harder to handle. 
 Months after meeting this friend I found myself taking part in the "Parkinson's Superwalk" at Mcguire Lake Park. Together with dozens more people dressed in the years event t-shirt we walked, not only to raise awareness, but many had raised funds for the Parkinson's society. Many from the Sicamous Eagles were present helping seniors from the surrounding seniors homes, as they would push their wheel chairs around the small lake. There was informational pamphlets made widely available to anyone that wanted to learn more about the disease, or the society itself and it's mission. Refreshments were made available as participants stood around afterwards to mingle and converse, many of the conversations on how Parkinson's had touched their lives. 
 With the Parkinson's Superwalk coming up I wanted to make sure my article didn't just let people know about the event but hopefully let people know about this disease that is slowly taking the body from this spirited woman, and is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder, with only Alzheimer's left ahead of it. So I called up the British Columbia Parkinson's Society to get some more information on just what it is.
 Parkinson's was made a recognized medical condition after a British Doctor, Dr. James Parkinson, published his findings in his essay "An Essay on Shaking Palsy" in 1817, "Shaking Palsy" being what it was referred to up to this time. Since this time doctors and scientists have studied this condition, answering many of the questions left to those that deal with the subject on a daily basis. 
 So what have the doctors figured out? "Parkinson's is a progressive neurological disorder resulting in the loss of dopamine in a part of the brain known as the substantia nigra" according to the society website. To make this a little easier to understand I looked elsewhere and this is what I came up with, basically long after Dr. Parkinson wrote the essay that brought Parkinson's disease to life researchers found that Dopamine, a naturally produced chemical in your brain that transmits brain signals, in patients was low, causing the nerve cells in this area of the brain to degenerate. Think of a car battery, as the acids get low, so does the cranking power of that battery,  your stereo slowly drags as there isn't enough power to run it, your lights begin to fade from bright to dim, and eventually, nothing. 
 Even with all the breakthroughs in the medical profession there is no known way to reverse this,  leaving doctors with few options. Medications can be administered which will slow the degeneration relieving some of the desperation that it leaves. This is why it is important for the society to raise funds, to keep scientists researching and looking for a way to both cure and reverse this disorder.  

 This years Superwalk will take place once again at the McGuire Lake Park on Saturday September 17th with registration at 9:30 AM and the walk starting at 10:00 AM, to take part visit  www.parkinsonsuperwalk.ca and sign up,  or you can pledge me here