Happy New Year Bah Humbug!

Living with Parkinson's Carers, friends and family
1

Morning,
Warning - I’m in Eeyore mode so read no further if you’re looking for something cheery.

I’m just wondering how people are coping with all the good wishes for the New Year that wing their way towards you today. I’ve got several texts, WhatsApps, often accompanied by funny, sparkly, bouncy Gifs from family, friends, neighbours wishing me health and happiness in 2023.

Now, I know, I KNOW that people mean well and that I am fortunate to be surrounded by a caring community of folk but from the slough of despond that I’m sinking into, my perspective of a New Year means new symptoms, bringing new limitations on life and new medications with new side effects. And this will go on New Year after New Year.

I hope to hear from some of you who empathise but also, and perhaps more importantly, those of you who I know from reading other posts, are stronger, more positive and more inspiring than myself. (and asap, before I send an Eeeyore, or worse, response to my well-wishers.
Anna 2

2

Hia Anna2 I appreciate there are many feeling the same way for different reasons and if I understand correctly like you I am too very fortunate to have the support around me. I’m not one for new year resolutions or have a bucket list. I have since finding this forum and since my diagnosis viewed a lot of things differently, my perspective has changed, and is still to be honest, your perspective of the new year brings x,y,z and for me a,b,c we all have different coping strategies,and whislt new year pings on my phone were similar, I feel it is just another date on the calendar isn’t it? I have learned along this rollercoaster of a ride that with the ups and the downs, I now relate to as phases, that is how I see them and they do pass. There is no down without an up, as we navigate what is thrown into the mix on a not so good day then so be it, I can’t change it. I try to remain a glass half full kind of person and yes some days it is hard but it’s not every day and this is what I focus on. If you feeling Eeyore as he said…
“The nicest thing about the rain is that it always stops. Eventually.” Eeyore I would say
“The nicest thing about the rain is the sun can come out and a rainbow appears :rainbow:

I’m sending you a verse that my daughter sent me a few years ago and have posted this previously on the creative corner, I hope this helps
My daughter sent me this, wonderful analogy: it made me smile :blush:

You are holding a cup of coffee when someone comes along and bumps into you or shakes your arm, (or your arm shakes!) making you spill your coffee everywhere.

Why did you spill the coffee?

“Because you bumped into me!”

Wrong answer

You spilled the coffee because there was coffee in the cup, had there of been tea in the cup you would have spilled tea

“Whatever is inside the cup is what will spill out”

Therefore, when life comes along and shakes you (which WILL happen), whatever is inside you will come out

“So, we have to ask ourselves…. What’s in my cup?”

When life gets tough what spills over?

Joy, gratefulness, peace and humility?

Anger, bitterness, harsh words and reactions?

Life provides the cup, YOU choose how to fill it

Today let’ work towards filling our cups with gratitude, forgiveness, joy, words of affirmation and kindness, gentleness and love for others

Shared from a friend whose cup is full of inspiration :blush:
Sending you health and happiness and hope

3

Thanks, AnaElsa, for your considered and positive response. I couldn’t agree with you more about phases and I think it takes a bit of time living with this disease to appreciate the phases. To stand back from them in a way and watch as they come and go, know that they will come and go. I often find myself quite surprised, maybe feeling ok p.m. when I felt really down a.m.

I loved your daughter’s analogy and will try to have good stuff in my cup, but I can’t pretend it will be easy.
Thanks again,
Anna2

4

What a great response from AnaElsa I have only been diagnosed a few months and when they told me I had PD yes it was a shock and looked like I had had it for years but now I know things have changed I have been so much on a roller coaster up, down, angry, sad, and waiting to level out, everything that happens aches, pains, forgetting things, dreams, I could go on I have put down to getting old, I wish I had never gone to the doctors as I only went with a bent finger and my hand was shaking, I do wonder now every day since reading that little analog what will come out of my cup when it spills over , take care