Hi there. This is my first time writing on the forum but I look at it often and find it a great support and comfort.
I wanted to share my husband’s experience of the LSVT Big training that he completed a few months ago. Although he is still pretty active and still works parts time, we had all noticed that he was slow with most things he did. He had lost his arm swing when he was walking and was struggling to manage fiddly things like buttons.
We came across LSVT when searching for therapy options and found an OT in Warwick who was an LSVT clinician. It was intense- 1 hour a day, 4 days a week for 4 weeks, but he loved it! We could both see improvements after the first week and he said that he felt more confident and in control for the first time in ages. I’ve told him that he has his oomph back! When he walks he no longer looks like someone with parkinson’s. Buttons and fiddly things are still tricky but he is managing them better and not getting so flustered.
He has to continue doing his exercises - he was told to view them as medicine - if you don’t take it every day it doesn’t work! And I still have to nag him at times to 'think BIG", but overall he’s doing great. It has helped us both to understand his disease better. No one knows what the future holds but it has given us some hope that it won’t necessarily be all doom and gloom, and that there are things that you can do to stay in control to some degree.
I would recommend anyone with parkinsons, even if they are still active, to try a programme like LSVT (I have heard that PD Warrior is similar). I’ve read so much about how exercise helps with parkinsons and I can now say I’ve seen it first hand. He is now planning on joining a boxing group for people with PD and looking forward to fighting back at Parkinson’s!