Taking stock

In the long term we are all dead. Another safe prediction is that tomorrow is very likely to be much the same as today, so in the short term we seem to be OK – it’s the medium term we need to watch out for. As progressive neurological diseases go, PD is less nasty than some: not fatal of itself, but not a recipe for a bright future either.

A gloomy start, perhaps, since in fact I’m feeling slightly upbeat today. The new pill regime is taking effect at last. I am almost 100% weaned from the Sifrol (dopamine agonist) and onto Sinemet (levodopa). My tremor has improved, I’m sleeping almost normally, I walk significantly better, my muscles are a lot less stiff, my posture is much improved, and as a surprising last effect my appetite is back to normal proportions. There’s still 10 kg to go before my weight is back to where it should be, but I am already down one trouser size.

I’ve even done some driving. I keep it slow and steady, but that’s really just paranoia. My reaction times seem normal (I’ve been using the pencil grasp test), and the only lingering issue is that I find the level of concentration needed for driving rather stressful so am best on short journeys. Which is enough to set me free to go, if not where-ever I wish, then many places I wish. And it sets Marie free to not go where-ever I wish which clearly makes her daily schedule rather easier.

(Speaking of Marie, I am happy to report that we are doing a lot better than we were a week ago when she posted her somewhat pained text. I don’t know what did it, but after an immense amount of talking – mostly on her part – we finally seemed to hear each other, and have been getting on very much better since.)

Am I back now to where I was before my diagnosis? I think not. For instance, I have a scientific paper to review, and I’m finding it hard work (even though it’s based on work I did a few years back, which is flattering).

So the big inquisitive elephant in the corner is asking: is it time to start thinking about a return to work?? My feeling is that full time would be overly ambitious. My concentration flags after a while, and I still feel I need a nap most afternoons. My short term memory is also a problem. Stuff I did 2-3 years ago is crystal clear, but I can read the same recent article over and over again without the information sticking. Will I ever learn new stuff, or am I doomed to repeating the same Sisyfean learning task over and over again?

In the medium term the only direction is down, so do I go back to work part-time for a bit before throwing in the towel, or do I (and my employer) accept the inevitable and give up now? If the latter, I should try to find some less demanding, less academic work to do. Software writing (99% repeated from prior work and 1% demandingly original)? Freelance journal editor (stay up-to-date with science without actually having to do any myself)? Write the great Anglo-Dutch novel? Blog obsessively?