Dear Dr. Rodgers:
First I want to thank you for sending your book, Road to Recovery from Parkinsons Disease, by mail. My husband really enjoys reading it.
Then my husband wants to ask you the following question:
I have been having parkinsons for more than five years. My main symptoms are tremor, slowness and difficulty of per forming certain tasks involving the upper body. I have difficult time putting on a shirt, fastening a seat belt ect. My legs are fine.
I walk for 3-5 miles every day and do weights 3-5 times a week. Surprisingly – when I was in Cyprus the last month my tremor was twice as less. Is it sun or staying away from technological gadgets?
Right now I am not taking any medication for pd. I go to Hyppocrates center once a year. I see chiropractor once a month, acupuncturist every other week and take the following supplements:
vit e , coq10 1200, alpha lipoic acid, magnesium, selenium, holy basil, plus by mannatech. frozen algae and omegas 3-6-9 veg based. I eat mostly vegeterian drink weat grass juice and green drinks.
1. What you can add or change in my protocol?
2. Can you help to find a good physical therapist in Lower or Mid Westchester NY
3. What are the therapies I can benefit more?
Sincerely,
Alex and Yelena
Response:
At the outset, let me be clear that while I am a Dr. – I am not a medical doctor. I am a researcher. The ideas I suggest below are based strictly on the research I have done. Anything I suggest should be bounced off of your doctor.
First, you have a rather interesting experiment to report. When in Cyprus your symptoms were greatly reduced. You ask the question why? It may be the reduced stress. When stressed, the symptoms will flare. Or, it may be exposure to sun. People who experience the symptoms of Parkinsons have a serious deficiency of Vitamin D3. I note that you did not include Vitamin D3 in your list of supplements. Why not add it and see what happens? Exposure to sunshine gives your body Vitamin D3.
Second, you list CoQ10 as a supplement – but do not say where you obtain it. Naturopath doctor Laurie Mischley says that there are only two reliable sources of CoQ10. Be sure to listen to my two radio show interviews with her which aired in June: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/parkinsons-recovery. She explains that most of the CoQ10
that people take does little good because it does not cross the blood brain barrier. She also recommends two reliable sources of CoQ10.
Third, I am wondering if you are getting enough fat in your diet. You might want to hear the radio show I aired with Naturopath Doctor John Briggs in may/June of 2009. Dr. Briggs points out that the myelin sheath which covers the neurons are composed of fatty tissues.
You couldn’t get better help than by going to the Hypocrites Center. I hesitate to even mention this as something to research. Perhaps you could explore this with them. They are the experts on healthy nutrition.
Fourth, are you drinking enough water? Is your body sufficiently hydrated? Are you drinking pure water?
Fifth, you do not mention any body therapies you are using to release trauma. Since your symptoms are manifested in the upper part of your body – I am guessing trauma is probably trapped in the tissues of your trunk, arms and face. The fascia and tissues get entangled and interrupt the natural flow of neural communications.
Consider getting help from a therapy that will help you release the trauma that is trapped at the cellular level. When the tissues get crunched, the neural pathways are obstructed. Cranial sacral therapy is especially useful in this regard as is myofascial release and Bowen therapy.
As for a good physical therapist, Kevin Lockette suggests that you find a physical therapist who is specially trained to treat people with neurological symptoms. You can find a full listing by visiting:
http://www.apta.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_PT
For a specialty – be sure to choose ” neurologic” from the drop down menu. If you need more help in this regard, I would suggest you call Kevin. He is an incredible resource. Click here for his website.
Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Parkinsons Recovery
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