0:00

When the world has

0:00

gotcha down, and Alzheimer's

0:04

sucks, it's an equal opportunity

0:05

disease that chips away at

0:08

everything we hold dear. And to

0:08

date, there's no cure. So until

0:12

there is we continue to fight

0:12

with the most powerful tool in

0:15

our arsenal. Love. This is love

0:15

conquers all is a real and

0:21

really positive podcast that

0:21

takes a deep dive into

0:24

everything. Alzheimer's, The

0:24

Good, the Bad, and everything in

0:29

between. And now, here are your

0:29

hosts Susie singer, Carter, and

0:33

me, Don Priess Hello, I'm Susie Singer Carter.

0:40

And I'm Don Priess. And this is

0:43

Love Conquers Alz. Hello, Susan.

0:43

Hello, Donald. I've lost my

0:48

brain. It's gone. I think right

0:48

now. In fact, if we can get

0:52

through this episode without I'm

0:52

really exploding. I, I think

0:58

it's a win. Win to Yeah, we are.

0:58

We are we are. We're seeing the

1:04

light at the end of the tunnel

1:04

on our plot on our documentary,

1:07

No Country for Old people. We

1:07

are.

1:11

We've been working so hard,

1:11

which is why we haven't had you

1:15

know, our signature two

1:15

episodes, a month of love

1:18

conquers all, because we

1:18

literally couldn't, we can't. So

1:23

we have to really pare down over

1:23

the last couple months, and

1:27

probably the next few coming

1:27

months, you know, but But

1:31

nevertheless, we're still here.

1:31

And we're still so happy that

1:34

you've joined us and that you're

1:34

listening to us and that you,

1:38

you continue to support because

1:38

I think that you know, I'll be

1:41

it. There's a lot of podcasts to

1:41

listen to, and especially now

1:45

during you know, with care in

1:45

the caregiving arena, but I

1:49

think all of everybody's brings

1:49

something different. And I hope

1:52

that you know, we bring

1:52

something that's a little more,

1:56

you know, positive and a better

1:56

as aspect in a way to

2:03

distinguish signify distinct

2:06

destigmatize, let's try that

2:06

again.

2:08

Thank you. awaited sting. Our

2:08

first

2:13

fix air first explosion, yeah,

2:13

boom, there.

2:17

This is what happens on no

2:17

sleep. So yeah. And then we just

2:21

we really want to be able to do

2:21

that not just for Alzheimer's,

2:24

but for, you know, all diseases

2:24

that we as caregivers have to

2:29

deal with. Because at the end of

2:29

the day, we are we're doing the

2:33

same thing. It doesn't matter

2:33

whether it's Alzheimer's,

2:36

whether it's it's, you know,

2:36

M.S. Or ALS or, or Parkinson's,

2:41

like our guests today, right,

2:41

done. Absolutely. Yeah. And it

2:45

is because there are

2:45

similarities. I think no matter

2:47

what the disease is, and

2:47

sometimes it's a physical

2:51

sometimes it's a mental

2:51

sometimes it's combination there

2:53

of there's going to be

2:53

consistencies that we as

2:56

caregivers all need to share

2:56

with each other. And that's why

3:00

we're here. And you know, but

3:00

just just to you know, anything

3:05

new going on in life I know

3:05

there's been some exciting

3:08

things with your daughter's

3:08

recently that you've

3:12

you've experienced because they

3:12

but we just saw them perform

3:17

recently both of them in

3:17

different venues. It was

3:19

amazing. Oh, they're following in my

3:20

footsteps. There's That's so

3:23

wrong. But my my younger

3:23

daughter performed with with

3:29

with her group and did a tribute

3:29

to a song that I recorded with

3:35

Chuck Lorre, the Chuck Lorre of,

3:35

of of, you know sitcom fame, who

3:41

was producing me as, as a

3:41

teenager in a group called two

3:46

chicks. And, and my daughter was

3:46

very much a you know, it's very

3:51

retro now it's it was an 80s

3:51

video song called

3:57

Bad Dreams in Hollywood. And

3:57

they did a tribute to it. It was

4:00

phenomenal. I felt so old.

4:05

But it was yeah, it was really

4:05

fun. It was fun to hear them and

4:09

they were just like everybody

4:09

coming up oh my god that we saw

4:12

the video were like love edits,

4:12

like sick roll, and he just feel

4:16

you feel like you know, very,

4:16

very honored. It was very

4:19

honored and yeah, that's it. My

4:19

daughter and my other daughter

4:22

just did a an incredible chorale

4:22

for Christmas, a Christmas

4:28

concert here in Los Angeles,

4:28

which was phenomenal. She's got

4:32

a voice like an angel, like my

4:32

mom's and I'm just very proud I

4:37

cried like my like my mom used

4:37

to always say, Mom, why are you

4:40

crying now? I know I cry. So

4:40

anyway, but let's let's

4:44

introduce our guests today. I think we can do that. Today.

4:46

Our guest is Dr. George Ackerman

4:50

and he dedicates himself to law,

4:50

policing and education. But on

4:54

the first day of the year 2020

4:54

Dr. Ackerman faced the loss of

4:57

his beloved mother, Sharon

4:57

Rifaximin. Due to the relentless

5:01

progression of Parkinson's

5:01

disease, in honor of his

5:04

mother's memory and to

5:04

contribute meaningfully to the

5:07

Parkinson's awareness movement

5:07

together for Sharon was

5:10

conceived. It's a heartfelt

5:10

initiative founded not only to

5:13

preserve the cherished memory of

5:13

his mother, but also to shine a

5:17

light and further to the message

5:17

on Parkinson's awareness. And

5:20

the ongoing hope for a cure

5:20

together for sharon.com now

5:25

extends its reach across the

5:25

nation becoming a beacon of

5:28

awareness for Parkinson's

5:28

disease. And he is here today to

5:31

bring that message to us. So

5:31

let's welcome Dr. George

5:35

Ackerman. Hello, George. I thank both of you and all your

5:37

viewers for your time, and the

5:41

dogs and their party I show. Actually,

5:47

if you go to that website

5:47

together for sharon.com and

5:49

scroll down, you'll see our

5:49

little yellow. Bella the love we

5:54

call the love doodle, but it's a

5:54

little mascot. It's perfect.

5:59

Oh my gosh, what kind of dog? Is

5:59

she?

6:01

The golden doodle? Oh my oh my god. Just the best. Oh my

6:03

god, I love Yep. You can't have

6:09

better listen, it's so great to

6:09

have you here. We finally did

6:12

it, George. And, you know, like

6:12

I was saying in the intro about

6:17

caregivers in it. And I thought,

6:17

you know, because you think why?

6:20

Our show is love conquers all is

6:20

but I don't think that matters.

6:23

Because when I when I learned

6:23

your story, and and, you know

6:27

the story of of Your beloved

6:27

Mother, Sharon, and I feel I

6:31

felt such a Kismet to you

6:31

because I felt like I've gone

6:35

through such a similar journey,

6:35

although the details might be

6:39

different. But the emotional

6:39

journey is the same. And my mom

6:44

was my favorite person in the

6:44

whole world, too. And so I

6:47

totally understand. I understand

6:47

that loss, and, and the

6:54

frustration of not being able to

6:54

fix the problem. And so how to

7:00

lean into it, which is what you

7:00

did, and and the end and to

7:04

continue to honor your mother is

7:04

just a beautiful thing. Right.

7:08

And I love that. And that's what

7:08

I hope that I'm doing with this

7:12

show. And with all of the

7:12

projects that I've done, you

7:16

know, to to, to make sense of

7:16

what they've gone through. And

7:22

so can you tell us for the eyes

7:22

about a little bit about how

7:29

this all started for you, I

7:29

believe it was a long journey

7:32

like mine. Sorry to hear about your loss to

7:33

like I said, I My dream is to

7:36

have a cure someday for all

7:36

these diseases. I found myself

7:41

really a sense of being alone

7:41

when it happened. You don't

7:44

train or plan for being a

7:44

caretaker, especially when your

7:47

mother or any loved ones your

7:47

best friend, I mean, I spoke to

7:50

her about 10 to 10 times a day.

7:50

And I might be six, two and 200

7:56

pounds law enforcement. But I

7:56

become a softy when I'm with my

8:00

mother are talking about her.

8:00

But it started about 15 years

8:04

before to 2020 she had

8:04

Parkinson's but she was a type

8:09

of independent woman who didn't

8:09

want to tell anyone else about

8:12

her issues, which is kind of

8:12

sad, because I wish she did and

8:16

not that we could have done

8:16

anything different that maybe we

8:19

could have treated her a little

8:19

better. But she I found out. So

8:23

for many years, like several,

8:23

she lived a normal independent

8:27

life she lived on her own, she

8:27

drove she shot. But she had a

8:31

little loss of her ability to

8:31

use her left arm like a

8:34

stiffness. And so we were able

8:34

to still all kind of live

8:37

without any huge life

8:37

challenges. And her struggles

8:41

are continued. And she kind of

8:41

hit them, which was another

8:44

issue for another podcast that I

8:44

wish we would talk about, about

8:48

how people might not want to

8:48

share you know their diagnosis

8:51

with individuals or maybe don't

8:51

want to talk about it because in

8:55

a sad way, they're ashamed. But

8:55

they have to realize that they

8:57

have love and support, and that

8:57

we're all here together to help

9:01

fight any of the diseases. So to

9:01

fast forward a little to

9:06

2021 120 20 She passed. But the

9:06

last two, three years were very

9:12

tough. The last seven days or

9:12

something I can never even

9:15

describe to you. She didn't

9:15

really live she just had a

9:18

heartbeat. Florida where I'm

9:18

located doesn't have the Death

9:22

with Dignity Act. So basically

9:22

the last three years it was just

9:25

like, as a human being or a

9:25

loved one. I felt there was just

9:30

one thing after another to every

9:30

time I thought of an idea that

9:34

maybe it could help it just got

9:34

crushed and destroyed and then

9:38

it was just felt like building

9:38

blocks like you're walking up

9:40

the steps and you keep going

9:40

backwards. That's kind of what

9:44

happened her health

9:44

deteriorated. They say there's

9:48

five stages of Parkinson's the

9:48

fifth was really the worst. But

9:52

again, people are rare thing

9:52

with Parkinson's is everybody's

9:56

so different. So what happened

9:56

to our journey doesn't mean

9:59

long. will happen to someone

9:59

else's. Michael J. Fox has the

10:03

external tremors but my mother

10:03

didn't. She had more internal

10:07

than the dementia,

10:07

hallucinations and the delusions

10:11

all set in. And that was

10:11

something out of like a horror

10:14

movie. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. And

10:16

I know what that the creeping up

10:21

of that disease could feel like

10:21

because my mom also had

10:26

Alzheimer's and was for 16 years

10:26

and was diagnosed with mild,

10:31

mild cognitive impairment. And

10:31

of course, you know, I stepped

10:34

in like the superhero and said,

10:34

We're gonna fix this, we're

10:37

gonna get this mom, other

10:37

people's have haven't, but we

10:40

are we're gonna get this, you

10:40

know, and then you start

10:42

realizing it's bigger than you.

10:42

And you don't know a thing about

10:45

it. Because why would why would

10:45

we write? Why would you know

10:48

anything about Parkinson's? I

10:48

mean, unless you're thrown into

10:51

it, it's not something that

10:51

you're going to spend time in

10:54

your life on. And I like what

10:54

you just said about, you know,

10:59

the fact that that your mom

10:59

tried to to underplay what was

11:05

going on, and not speak about

11:05

it. Because, as did my mom, and

11:10

as do a lot of people with with,

11:10

you know, progressive diseases

11:16

that it feels to me, and I'd

11:16

love to hear your perspective on

11:21

it, it feels to me that my mom

11:21

needed to do that, you know, and

11:25

it was survival for her because

11:25

while she was still fairly

11:32

cognizant, and copious medicine,

11:32

really, you know, functioning in

11:35

the world to admit to that would

11:35

be, would diminish the life that

11:41

she was having at that time. And

11:41

it would put a lot of stress on

11:46

her in terms of the dignity like

11:46

you just said, right. And, and,

11:51

and I also, and I'm gonna let

11:51

you take the floor, but I just

11:55

setting this up for us. I also

11:55

felt like I needed to protect

11:58

her dignity, which now in

11:58

retrospect, I realized that was

12:03

me protecting me. I was excited to join you today.

12:07

Because one thing you mentioned

12:11

is, unless you have Parkinson's,

12:11

or some of these illnesses, that

12:14

people in a way, sadly, don't

12:14

care, but I dream to and goal is

12:19

to reach people, not just in the

12:19

Parkinson's community, and

12:22

people not just diagnosed and

12:22

caretakers, not just helping or

12:27

aiding individuals with

12:27

Parkinson's, because the only

12:30

way I feel will have a cure one

12:30

day is if we can get everybody

12:33

in throughout the world to join

12:33

in and understand. As far as her

12:38

my mother was kind of, she was

12:38

always finding, even doing this

12:41

today. She would say, George,

12:41

don't do it. Stay with your

12:44

family configuration. So she

12:44

always she's very selfless and

12:48

caring, loving. But I think part

12:48

of her didn't want to burden us.

12:52

I mean, I was working in law

12:52

enforcement, I was an attorney.

12:55

And I have a PhD. So I was you

12:55

know, teaching around the

12:58

country doing my thing. My prior

12:58

lifetime. As I say it was I

13:02

fought for victims rights, an

13:02

advocate for victims rights.

13:06

Again, not to get too far. But

13:06

I've always saw the criminal

13:10

justice system where the family

13:10

members of victims are

13:13

forgotten. So in a way, I kind

13:13

of calculate and look at the

13:18

victims of parkinson patients,

13:18

sometimes they're victims of the

13:22

health care system. Because

13:22

right now in the United States,

13:24

we have no laws really helping

13:24

fund or aid really research and

13:28

right now through Congress. So

13:28

the first time in history in the

13:32

US, there is a bill through the

13:32

mark, Michael J. Fox Foundation

13:36

is helping called end Parkinson

13:36

disease now, so I was really

13:40

lucky enough to speak to my

13:40

local representative, and you

13:42

too, can and all of your

13:42

listeners, and you can speak to

13:46

your local representatives and

13:46

try to help support the bill.

13:49

And it's bipartisan, which is

13:49

shocking, you know, anyone would

13:52

go against, it's all for

13:52

parking, the debit helped with

13:55

research. And we were spending

13:55

about $12,000 a month just to

14:00

have somebody watch over my

14:00

mother, and they weren't really

14:03

medically prepared. And that's

14:03

another interesting story we can

14:07

talk about for caregiving. But

14:07

just because you're the

14:10

caregiver doesn't mean you don't

14:10

need also some hands on help,

14:13

because I also had to work and

14:13

have my family. But I couldn't

14:16

even leave her with these people

14:16

because they weren't trained.

14:19

Some didn't speak English some

14:19

more in qualified but it was so

14:22

expensive that the normal person

14:22

or family just can't afford

14:26

them. That's not counting, you

14:26

know, entertainment, food and

14:29

living. So it's just another

14:29

conversation that has to be

14:33

listened to. Well, it's absolutely I mean,

14:34

that's why we're doing No

14:36

Country for Old people the

14:36

documentary because our system

14:40

is you know, wrought with with

14:40

ageism and ableism. And so, you

14:44

know, the desert are forgotten

14:44

the population unfortunately and

14:49

and easily dismissed because

14:49

it's not it's it's pervasive

14:53

everywhere, you know, in

14:53

society. It's unless you're

14:57

touched by it, then then, you

14:57

know, it's very it easy to fall

15:00

into that that perspective of

15:00

ageism, ableism. And that, you

15:05

know, they're old, and they've

15:05

had their life and that's it,

15:09

you know, and, and it's okay.

15:09

It's, it's very dismissive. And,

15:13

and, and it's come at what

15:13

didn't used to be like that. It

15:19

didn't, you know, and it's all

15:19

been evolving with capitalism

15:22

and, and, you know, it's

15:22

permeated everywhere, not just

15:28

our country, but everywhere in

15:28

countries that, that have really

15:31

maintained their, their

15:31

community based kind of society,

15:37

it's changing, it's changing

15:37

everywhere because of money. And

15:41

so, you know, you're, you're

15:41

definitely, you know, absolutely

15:45

on point on that, and it's

15:45

something that is bigger than

15:49

that everything it's really

15:49

needs to change. I mean, it has

15:52

to change, it has to be a shift

15:52

in the way we all think, because

15:56

whether you get Parkinson's or

15:56

Alzheimer's, or, you know, heart

15:59

disease, whatever, whatever it

15:59

takes you down, which we will

16:02

all be taken down at some point,

16:02

we're still victims of the

16:06

system, which is, which is

16:06

highly, you know, it's

16:10

dysfunctional, at best. Well,

16:13

it's also set as my mother past

16:13

age 69. So I've always dreamt in

16:17

my imagination and my mind that

16:17

we all get a chance, you know,

16:22

from 60 or 65, to like, maybe 85

16:22

to relax and she loves sitting

16:27

on Sundays with her grandkids

16:27

and, you know, blowing bubbles

16:30

in the backyard. And every time

16:30

I walked by the backyard now, I

16:34

did saddens me because I think

16:34

about how she was really robbed

16:38

at that time, she knew she had a

16:38

little money saved, and it was

16:42

wiped out because of caring for

16:42

Parkinson's disease. And, you

16:46

know, she, we bought her a

16:46

little beautiful home community

16:49

away in South Florida. And we're

16:49

just I pictured her sitting for

16:53

10 years, and just relaxing and

16:53

looking back and being happy.

16:57

And she only was at the house

16:57

for one year. So we never even

17:00

got that one year was a

17:00

nightmare. I never got that.

17:05

I'm so sorry. Again, I mean, do

17:05

you think that I mean, when you

17:08

say 69? To me, that just seems

17:08

like tragic and so sad. But but

17:13

But you think about, you know,

17:13

when you when the when

17:17

statistics come out about, you

17:17

know, the elder community, it

17:21

begins at 65. Right? And you

17:21

know, it, we just can't, to me,

17:28

we have to re we have to re re

17:28

reframe how we look at aging,

17:34

because 65, it's just, you know,

17:34

just because I'm getting closer

17:39

to it doesn't mean that you

17:39

can't get that it doesn't mean

17:43

I'm being sour grapes, but it

17:43

means that I you know, I have no

17:47

intention of slowing down until

17:47

I have to, right, it's a

17:51

different world down, it's a

17:51

different way that we take care

17:53

of ourselves, we've extended our

17:53

lives. So 69 is like the prime

17:57

of your life. Really, you know,

17:57

and and so, but it's still

18:02

looked at as, as, you know, the

18:02

as aged and it's, it's treated

18:08

that way. I mean, you only have

18:08

to look at COVID, during during

18:12

the height of it when they were

18:12

taking away, you know, deciding

18:15

who was going to be vented and

18:15

who wasn't. And there's laws to

18:18

protect our diverse population.

18:18

There's laws to protect our, our

18:24

disobey our disabled population,

18:24

but there was no laws to protect

18:28

our elders. So they were the

18:28

ones that suffered. What do you

18:34

think about that? I mean, how

18:34

does that come into your

18:38

conversation when you think

18:38

about it? Because your mom was?

18:42

I mean, she was taken out of

18:42

this world too soon.

18:46

Yeah, as an attorney also, I

18:46

mean, I always think about how

18:50

laws were not properly fit in

18:50

many different ways. Even down

18:54

to the topic of medical

18:54

marijuana. We have, we had

18:57

gotten a license from my mother,

18:57

because I thought if she's in

19:00

horrible pain, at least that

19:00

would help but the distilleries

19:03

don't speak to the patient or

19:03

the doctor, and it was a

19:06

disaster. So I felt like we

19:06

mentioned earlier, every little

19:09

step or hope that I had just

19:09

didn't work out. And actually

19:13

the reason I had to take over my

19:13

mother's life and one of the

19:16

hardest things I've ever done in

19:16

my life was a few but one was

19:20

taking away her car keys,

19:20

because I couldn't allow her to

19:22

drive because it's just a danger

19:22

to herself and others. But she

19:26

went for a special study because

19:26

we were out of ideas. Three

19:29

years before she passed, and

19:29

they think she might have they

19:32

might have changed her

19:32

medication too drastically. When

19:35

she came home that night. She

19:35

was kind of I was called to rush

19:39

over to her house at 4am. And I

19:39

found her erratically and moving

19:45

her furniture out of her home

19:45

because she thought someone was

19:48

inside I was going to harm her.

19:48

And I think it just really

19:51

caused her more that's when the

19:51

whole star you know, the

19:54

downfall began and they said she

19:54

we saved her life that night,

19:58

but kind selflessly feel that

19:58

that was where it got, you know,

20:02

maybe it wasn't a good idea what

20:02

we did. But obviously you can't

20:07

look back on the past, you have

20:07

to look to the future with that

20:10

another that same night I had

20:10

brought her to the hospital,

20:13

went home, I hate telling the

20:13

story, but went to get some of

20:17

her clothing. And I've never

20:17

seen anything like it, it was

20:19

almost like in one of the scary

20:19

movies, but throughout her room,

20:23

she had posted notes, like we

20:23

used to write notes. And she

20:26

wrote on the names, some of the

20:26

dogs and family that she had to

20:30

see if they were really there

20:30

and who wasn't there. So she had

20:34

lost a lot of the reality

20:34

because of the dementia setting.

20:38

And that was like one of the

20:38

moments that just broke my heart

20:41

forever. Even today, it's hard

20:41

to talk about it. But I'm

20:45

actually writing a book now, or

20:45

I'm not supposed to tell anyone,

20:48

but I can't stop every time. And

20:48

it's kind of gonna be about our

20:52

journey through mine as a

20:52

caretaker and my mother's

20:55

throughout her whole life,

20:55

because I wouldn't be who I am

20:57

today, if it wasn't for my

20:57

mother and her sacrifices. So

21:01

I'll be grateful forever. And as

21:01

we move forward together, when

21:05

we talk together for sharon.com,

21:05

it's really just designed to,

21:10

because when I was going through

21:10

this, I was lost. So I thought

21:12

we could put all the resources I

21:12

found in one place, maybe would

21:15

help one or two people. But I

21:15

realized there's a million

21:19

people in the US with

21:19

Parkinson's. But I discovered

21:22

three months ago, four months,

21:22

throughout the world is 10

21:25

million people. So I decided

21:25

this is not just about me and my

21:28

mother anymore. It's about

21:28

everybody. So I've actually been

21:32

had a great opportunity. In the

21:32

last three months of kind of

21:35

cutting back and stuffing now

21:35

that I've interviewed 400 people

21:38

around the world from advocates

21:38

to those diagnosed caretakers,

21:43

you can all find it on together,

21:43

for sure. And I do everything

21:45

free. I do not allow people to

21:45

donate money to us. We don't

21:48

accept money. I just saw that. Yeah, amazing.

21:49

We actually I've been lucky

21:54

because it wasn't easy at first

21:54

because I who am I I'm just some

21:56

guy. They think, you know,

21:56

people sadly and 2023 think you

22:00

have to have something behind,

22:00

you know, you have to have

22:03

something you want are you

22:03

selling but I want people to

22:06

know, in your audience that

22:06

there are people who love and

22:09

send out support no matter what.

22:09

And we don't want anything in

22:12

return except the cure, that I

22:12

was able to have interviews in

22:15

Africa, Asia, France, Italy,

22:15

Spain, Australia. I mean, it's

22:21

just amazing to be able to share

22:21

because in Africa, it's called

22:25

Parkinson's, Africa. People

22:25

think that they it's witchcraft

22:28

to have Parkinson, and it's very

22:28

sad, because they don't get the

22:32

right treatment because of that,

22:32

and funding. But again, these

22:35

are all so much to talk about

22:35

the just have to eliminate it

22:38

obviously for time, but again, I

22:38

just dedicated the rest of my

22:42

life and to helping others. But

22:42

I mean, I could still get

22:46

Parkington they're not sure if

22:46

genetic or not. I think

22:49

honestly, it might have been

22:49

something chemically, because my

22:52

mother lived in a home which was

22:52

nice, but for 20 years and they

22:56

had the termites the head, you

22:56

know, back then test spray was

23:00

nothing no one ever share with a

23:00

spread. It's really frightening.

23:04

And you chose to because you

23:04

some people chose choose when

23:08

they go through an ordeal like

23:08

this to just say that's it. I'm

23:10

done. I'm moving on with my

23:10

life. Was there was there ever a

23:13

moment you said I, I need to

23:13

separate that from myself

23:17

separate from this order it was

23:17

it always like, No, I know what

23:20

I need to do. I think that's an incredible

23:21

question. So I want to thank you

23:24

for that. It's funny, one of the

23:24

nurses during the tough times

23:27

for my mother we had we actually

23:27

had long term which was a year

23:30

hospice because Parkinson's is

23:30

not considered an end of life

23:33

disease. And my mother had no

23:33

other medical issue. That was

23:36

very frustrating. But one of the

23:36

nurses one night late, and I

23:39

said they're amazing me because

23:39

most families sadly just send

23:43

their loved one to a home. And

23:43

they actually live in different

23:46

states and then ever seen again.

23:46

And I saw while my mother was

23:50

able to understand and not

23:50

understand that we would never

23:52

do that we'd always keep her in

23:52

her own home. Even that guy very

23:56

difficult, though, because if again, there's so many obstacles, whether it was

23:57

stomach issues, whether it was

24:02

you know, the medicines or the

24:02

caretaker that even put video

24:06

cameras in our home because she

24:06

felt the caretakers were harming

24:09

her. Luckily, they weren't. But

24:09

there was one we found was

24:12

neglecting her because she

24:12

didn't sleep very well. She was

24:15

screaming, it's like haunting.

24:15

But I have a video, her yelling

24:18

for help. And nobody came. And

24:18

that was why I swore because

24:22

when you send your loved one to

24:22

the home, you don't really know

24:24

what's happening there. And

24:24

obviously, everyone's in a

24:27

different position. So I can't

24:27

ever judge anyone. I respect

24:30

everyone and every family for

24:30

what they have to go through.

24:33

But I swore no matter what the

24:33

we would at least be able to be

24:37

with her until the end. And we

24:37

were able to do that. Even

24:42

though it's heartbreaking. Right? But I think yeah, I think

24:44

like like you just said we all

24:48

choose different ways to to deal

24:48

with our own journey and our

24:55

grief. You know, and I for me, I

24:55

do. I'm doing the same thing.

24:58

I'm taking what I've learned and

24:58

paying it forward. Because I

25:02

also, you know, I think like you

25:02

because the journey was so long,

25:06

and they can be very long

25:06

diseases that, you know, we

25:11

learned a lot. And we also need

25:11

to, to, you know, really, really

25:20

sort of get it out be have a

25:20

cathartic sort of, you know,

25:24

reckoning with all this all this

25:24

journey because it is so I, I

25:29

you talk about it like walking

25:29

up stairs and then falling back

25:31

down, I call it Whack a Mole

25:31

because I couldn't keep up. You

25:35

know, it just when I thought I

25:35

conquered something, then

25:37

another thing came up. And I had

25:37

to conquer that and I couldn't

25:39

keep up. At the end, you know,

25:39

the last five, last six months

25:43

of my mom's life was hell, and I

25:43

couldn't keep up. And so, you

25:48

know, on I had, you know,

25:48

there's really no one to talk

25:52

to. Because, you know, it's very

25:52

difficult because you're trying

25:55

to keep your loved one safe. And

25:55

also stay healthy yourself. It's

26:02

really hard. So I understand

26:02

what you went through. Is there

26:06

what what can you What would you

26:06

like to talk about that you

26:10

because you've done so many

26:10

interviews? What what is

26:12

something that you don't often

26:12

get a chance to talk about that

26:15

you feel that would be really,

26:15

you know, helpful for others and

26:20

yourself? What what would that

26:20

be great,

26:23

and I love your show is because

26:23

it also talks a lot about

26:26

caregiving. I'm in a world now.

26:26

And I think about sitting here

26:30

even while we talk, I don't have

26:30

Parkinson's. And my mother is no

26:35

longer with us. So I'm kind of

26:35

stuck in the amount of caretaker

26:38

now. And I'm not diagnosed,

26:38

sometimes I actually still feel

26:42

alone. But when I get to

26:42

interview or speak to

26:45

individuals that have been

26:45

diagnosed and work with

26:47

foundations, like the Parkinson

26:47

Foundation, the American

26:51

Parkinson Disease Association,

26:51

and we do walks, it makes me

26:54

feel a little hope and a little

26:54

better. We do walks for

26:58

Parkinson's. And we have a table

26:58

where you just hang out like

27:01

bands for free about awareness

27:01

that sometimes we're in the

27:04

middle of all the pharmaceutical

27:04

company. So people walked by,

27:07

and they're like, scared to come

27:07

to us, again, they think we're

27:10

selling, but then when they see

27:10

that together for sharing, and

27:13

they come up to us, they cry,

27:13

and they thank us. And that's

27:17

what really keeps me going. But

27:17

I still, you know, again, learn

27:21

a lot. I read a lot on this

27:21

topics, writing my book. And our

27:24

story is tough too. Because,

27:24

like you mentioned, it brings me

27:27

back to those months and years

27:27

that were very tough, I felt

27:31

alone, but I just want everyone

27:31

to know, they're never alone,

27:34

they just have to know, you

27:34

know, were there people like all

27:37

three of us out there that

27:37

support them. And that's why we

27:41

do what we do. I still wish to

27:41

it's more for individuals like

27:45

myself, who lost a loved one to

27:45

Parkinson's, but isn't really

27:50

grieving, or is still grieving

27:50

because I've been to a few

27:54

support groups, but again, it's

27:54

for people going through it now.

27:57

Or people who are diagnosed, so

27:57

I still feel some days in my own

28:02

kind of space, like forgotten.

28:02

So I think that's one area that

28:06

might need to be improved. But

28:06

uh, the only thing I look for,

28:09

again, because it's too late for

28:09

our family, I don't want any

28:12

other family to ever have to go

28:12

through what my mother and I

28:15

have. It's interesting, my my mother

28:18

who's 89 should actually be 90

28:21

In two months but she was

28:21

diagnosed with Park low level

28:25

Parkinson's about maybe three

28:25

years ago. And they said, Well,

28:30

it probably won't progress but

28:30

they they don't know how they

28:33

know this, but they said it

28:33

probably will not progress a

28:36

lot. It'll probably stay kind of

28:36

where it is. The thing is, as

28:40

you said, Every one is

28:40

different. Every every one is

28:43

different. We never know with

28:43

what she's going through whether

28:47

that is that the Parkinson's is

28:47

that old age is that you know

28:51

what is it and it's so hard to

28:51

address. And you know what, you

28:55

know, doctor know if that is

28:55

that they could say well that

28:58

could be it's so hard to to

28:58

grasp it especially at that

29:02

level. And because there's

29:02

there's so little that's

29:07

consistent with each case, it's

29:07

very difficult to navigate.

29:12

And even with medications on

29:12

another path and then I had

29:15

three garbage bags big hefty

29:15

black one full of medicines and

29:19

I'm like well now here we go

29:19

back two more questions. You

29:22

know, she had you know,

29:22

diagnosed fine, but which

29:26

disease is it for the dementia?

29:26

Is it for the Parkinson's? Or

29:30

the caretakers I'm leaving to

29:30

watch over giving them at the

29:33

right time they kept journal but

29:33

the people I don't have enough

29:36

they again understood bargains

29:36

and then is she getting too much

29:40

of the medicine she take it the

29:40

right there was just like you I

29:43

think the example you use with

29:43

the pawn hitting the little you

29:46

know thing on the head. I mean,

29:46

that sounds exactly what I felt

29:51

like and even now talking about

29:51

I feel like that again because

29:55

you know, it's just you don't

29:55

have answers. You want them you

29:57

reach out and you just feel

29:57

helpless. Sitting alone as a

30:00

caretaker, I was lucky to have a

30:00

supportive wife, but the rest of

30:04

my family, you know, they

30:04

weren't able to help as much. So

30:07

I was really with my mother, you

30:07

know, most of the time. And I

30:11

just sitting there, and she

30:11

would ask me is this, you know,

30:13

am I going to be able to see

30:13

her, her granddaughter, Brooke,

30:16

you know, be at her wedding. And

30:16

it broke my heart, because I

30:19

couldn't, I wouldn't have a lot

30:19

of my mother. That's another

30:22

thing. She never, you know, get

30:22

falsities or you know, you want

30:25

to care for them and kind of

30:25

help them along, but I never

30:28

lied to my mother, but not

30:28

having the answer was even worse

30:31

than, you know, kind of telling

30:31

a fib or, you know, a lie.

30:36

Yeah. Do you ever have PTSD

30:36

after basically B? And if so,

30:41

how do you deal with it, you

30:41

know, this is for others who may

30:44

be experiencing kind of the same

30:44

thing. There's probably moments

30:48

where you feel like you're

30:48

almost back it because because

30:51

it's still part of your life,

30:51

it's such a huge part of your

30:54

life. I think we all have that I don't

30:54

need, I don't think I need to

30:57

take a medication thing. But I

30:57

think what helped my medication

31:01

is together to sharon.com.

31:01

Because, like I said, my mission

31:05

is that we have more awareness

31:05

speaking to amazing people like

31:08

both of you. But this is even

31:08

helping me cope. It's like my

31:12

therapy session as we talk. And

31:12

you've all brought out some

31:15

incredible thing that I didn't

31:15

think of, that's why I love

31:17

doing this. We could talk for 20

31:17

hours, you won't want me back.

31:23

There's so many areas, and, you

31:23

know, we just never have the

31:27

time, but even the short time

31:27

together, again, can change the

31:30

world, even if we had just one

31:30

person, I always had one voice,

31:34

one son and one individual that

31:34

together, voices to do so much

31:38

stronger. I love you know, people have a

31:40

misperception that, you know,

31:46

that it's always the females

31:46

that are caregivers, right. And

31:50

so, and, and I know that that is

31:50

not true. But you know, we don't

31:55

see as many men being out there

31:55

and vocal and really presenting

31:59

themselves. And I think it's

31:59

really wonderful that you're

32:02

doing that, because I think it

32:02

will pave the way for other, you

32:07

know, sons and husbands and

32:07

brothers and you know, just the

32:13

males to come out and really

32:13

embrace that, that role of being

32:16

a caregiver, and be able to, to

32:16

speak to that to other males.

32:22

Because, you know, it's

32:22

generally thought of as a as a

32:25

female sort of role. And so I'm

32:25

proud of you for that. I think

32:29

that's fantastic. You know, and

32:29

when, when you were talking

32:33

about grieving, I was thinking

32:33

about the same with with

32:36

Alzheimer's, because it's such a

32:36

long disease. And we don't, we

32:40

can't predict really when it's

32:40

going to end. And because it's

32:45

such a slow progression, right,

32:45

then you start getting used to

32:50

each stage. And so each stage,

32:50

like, I remember thinking, Well,

32:54

I'm so lucky, because I can go

32:54

and I can hold my mom's hand, I

32:57

can get in and cuddle with her

32:57

and still kiss her and love her

33:00

up. I'm lucky I don't have to

33:00

visit her at the cemetery. And

33:03

even though so every loss that

33:03

she had, I kept telling myself,

33:06

you're so lucky, she's here. But

33:06

there's that that phrase, you

33:09

know, anticipatory grief that we

33:09

experience while they're alive.

33:15

And we keep and it's a stress,

33:15

it's a stress because you know,

33:18

it's going to happen at some

33:18

point. But for me, and I'm

33:22

assuming for you, it's it's that

33:22

feeling of like, this stage is

33:28

going to last forever, and until

33:28

it doesn't. And so you grieve

33:32

again, you grieve that loss, you

33:32

keep grieving losses until when

33:35

they finally leave the Earth.

33:35

It's it's a very for me, it was

33:40

a very confusing phenomenon.

33:40

Like I, I, I really thought I

33:46

was going to lose it before it

33:46

happened. And I was so much

33:49

stronger than I thought I was

33:49

going to be. And I know that I

33:53

haven't dealt with it. So yeah,

33:53

can you talk to that?

33:56

That's like an inner battle or

33:56

struggle with yourself. Because,

33:59

again, you're trying to find

33:59

different I didn't even know

34:02

what five stages of Parkinson's

34:02

was. But like you said, when we

34:05

were at number one, I was trying

34:05

to combat ever getting to number

34:09

two, that you can't do that. And

34:09

it was just like an every day

34:13

that was something else. Like I

34:13

finally had one relief Navy

34:17

because she was okay for the

34:17

minute but then something else

34:19

like we thought she had a stroke

34:19

one day because she lost the

34:21

ability to use part of her face

34:21

and it was not stroke. But it's

34:26

just like one thing after

34:26

another and writing the book

34:29

now. It's kind of making me

34:29

bring it back, which is not easy

34:32

actually. When I was going

34:32

through the last year, I didn't

34:35

dream it would be her final year

34:35

but I kept a little journal and

34:38

just a handwritten one I wrote

34:38

notes so that'll be incorporated

34:41

and I also videotaped and

34:41

photographed but I won't ever

34:44

share the video or the pictures

34:44

because I don't want her to be

34:47

remembered like that. But I am

34:47

going to share the journal and

34:50

it really is a raw footage

34:50

written of how I felt and how I

34:55

was kind of screaming for help

34:55

and nobody was responding and it

34:58

was you know, hopefully What I

34:58

want people to do, and I guess

35:01

the book will be in the future I

35:01

won't talk much about but I want

35:04

people to know, again, that

35:04

they're not alone. And that, you

35:08

know, maybe if they could learn

35:08

one thing through our, my

35:10

struggle, that it'll help them

35:10

and they really felt that there

35:14

was no one out there. Who could

35:14

have we went to like seven or

35:16

eight expert doctors. I had to

35:16

pull the last Doctor into an

35:21

office by ourselves, says my

35:21

mother gonna live as she I

35:25

couldn't answer her and he

35:25

didn't even know. So just a

35:28

horrible situation for a

35:28

caregiver and even more

35:32

obviously, for the individual

35:32

that diagnosed.

35:36

Yeah, I think, recommend not

35:36

have

35:38

Oh, go ahead says no, I was

35:38

gonna say that speaks to the

35:40

anticipatory grief that we

35:40

experienced. Because, you know,

35:44

no one can tell us anything, you

35:44

know, definite it that will give

35:49

us some sense of, of, you know,

35:49

direction and, and timeframe.

35:53

So, you know, I always dread the

35:53

dreaded calls, you know, that I

35:58

would get like a call and my

35:58

heart would beat and I'd go, I'd

36:01

let it go go to voicemail before

36:01

I pick it up, because I wanted

36:05

to, you know, take a breath

36:05

before because I was always

36:09

fearing the worst. And and

36:09

that's that's a that's a

36:13

horrible place to live. You

36:13

know, always fearing the worst.

36:19

Right? Did you? Yeah.

36:24

I mean, even we had made a

36:24

vacation with my family before

36:29

we knew who was getting so bad.

36:29

And the second I got on the

36:32

plane for the second I went

36:32

there. The second I got home

36:34

that she was calling 24/7. And I

36:34

answered No matter what, that it

36:39

was, like, you know, I couldn't

36:39

even have that one minute to

36:41

myself, I used to be into

36:41

personal training fitness. I

36:45

remember I played like

36:45

competitive basketball for also

36:47

for fun. In one Sunday morning,

36:47

I was all excited at 8am to go

36:52

play with my friends and had all

36:52

the gear on, which takes a long

36:55

time because I broken everybody

36:55

apart. But after I had had it

37:00

all ready to go, my mother

37:00

called and I dropped everything

37:03

for myself to go help her. Even

37:03

though I couldn't help her. I

37:07

just want her to know I was

37:07

physically there. But uh, you

37:10

know, and then there was a day,

37:10

I hate telling some of the

37:12

stories where I was just sitting

37:12

on the bed with my mother and my

37:15

daughter. At the time, she was

37:15

about six, my mother started

37:18

hugging her, like one of the

37:18

pillows, saying how much he

37:22

loved Brooke, but she didn't

37:22

realize that Brooke was next to

37:25

her. It wasn't the pillow. She

37:25

was hugging the pillow. And

37:28

those things are just kind of

37:28

heartbreaking. My daughter

37:30

looked at me and I didn't know

37:30

what to say. And that's another

37:33

book I'm planning is to write a

37:33

book about, you know, dealing

37:36

with the grandparents and kids,

37:36

when you because I couldn't

37:39

explain to my kids. There's a

37:39

lot of things again, I have

37:42

planned in retrospect, to for to help

37:44

others. Would you recommend not

37:50

taking the route of drop

37:50

everything, don't take care of

37:54

myself? Because it's not

37:54

healthy. And it's not good for

37:58

the person that you're

37:58

caregiving for. Also, if you're

38:01

unhealthy if you're you know,

38:01

it, it's you do have to, as the

38:06

you know, using the old adage,

38:06

put your oxygen mask on first,

38:09

sometimes in order that you're

38:09

healthy enough to take care of

38:12

them? Would you kind of have a

38:12

recommendation people that no,

38:16

do take time for yourself, do

38:16

keep yourself healthy, don't

38:20

start stop working out. Because

38:20

those are all making you less

38:24

healthy mentally and physically,

38:24

which is not a benefit to the

38:27

person you're caregiving for. I think you make an amazing

38:29

plan. Again, I think each

38:31

individual is different. So for

38:31

my case, I would I would

38:35

recommend people to definitely

38:35

take a little time, maybe an

38:38

hour a day and just don't bring

38:38

the phone. But the problem is,

38:42

like Suzy was mentioning, I

38:42

don't think I could do that.

38:45

Because if something in that

38:45

hour happened, I would never

38:47

want to look back and regret it.

38:47

That's my big thing is never

38:50

looked back and regret

38:50

something. We tried everything.

38:53

So I know that in my heart, if

38:53

we had to do it again, which I

38:56

would, there's nothing I could

38:56

have really changed because we

38:59

don't have a cure. But you know,

38:59

so me personally, it's a bad

39:03

advice. And I would just do the

39:03

same thing. But you do have to

39:07

try and make time to or you'll

39:07

lose your mind in a way. Because

39:10

there were days where I felt

39:10

like like the wily coyote in

39:14

the, you know, the Looney Tunes,

39:14

like were just hitting me and

39:18

I'm getting better, you know, I

39:18

would fight back and win in the

39:21

end. Because I feel like we did

39:21

win even though obviously, I

39:25

lost my mother. Her stories I

39:25

hope will live on not just from

39:28

my time, but I'm going to

39:28

hopefully my daughter will

39:30

continue this and you know, I

39:30

mean, I'm hoping we'll have a

39:33

cure before that. But if not, I

39:33

want this to go on until we do

39:38

that. I don't want anyone out

39:38

there to think they're alone.

39:40

And the fun. The nice thing is

39:40

when I do publish the interviews

39:44

like every day, there's a new

39:44

one done 365 There's many more

39:48

are working on. But one every

39:48

day anyone comes up with like a

39:51

new story to tell. And it just

39:51

makes my heart feel better

39:55

because knowing that, you know

39:55

one more person has a place now

39:58

to share their journey. That's

39:58

what again, keeps me motivated,

40:02

going. That's, that is a beautiful

40:04

thing that I feel the same way

40:07

with this show is that you know,

40:07

that we the more stories that we

40:10

share, you know, the that is

40:10

that is the penicillin for for

40:16

caregivers right now are other

40:16

people's stories because we, if

40:19

we can see ourselves in other

40:19

people's stories, then we don't

40:22

feel alone. Right, and so in it

40:22

does make you feel so supported

40:29

and validated for the choices

40:29

that you make. I mean, that's

40:32

why we did our movie, my mom and

40:32

the girl, you know, really

40:35

showing what is the day in the

40:35

life of you know, and so that,

40:40

and I think, for us, I know, for

40:40

us, you know, hearing people

40:44

come up to us and or getting

40:44

letters to this day, we did this

40:48

film six years ago, you know,

40:48

this film is my life, you said

40:53

you told my story, and it's not

40:53

their story, but it is. Because

40:58

it's, it's the emotion. And, and

40:58

it's and that's, that's all we

41:03

can do is to share our stories,

41:03

that's the most powerful thing

41:07

we have. And so what you're

41:07

doing is is, is for me, the

41:12

perfect thing you're doing is,

41:12

you know, what you're doing,

41:16

honoring your mom, and, and

41:16

paying it forward with

41:19

everything you've learned and

41:19

giving a safe space for people

41:22

to, to express their stories is

41:22

it's the highest thing you can

41:29

do as a caregiver. And so, you

41:29

know, I know that both Don and I

41:35

feel very, you know, excited for

41:35

you and happy for you that

41:39

you're doing this and happy for

41:39

other caregivers out there that

41:41

they have a place to go, you

41:41

know, and specifically for

41:46

Parkinson's, and you know, that

41:46

that's, that's a gift.

41:51

The only thing that still breaks

41:51

my heart is the one journey that

41:54

I'm not aware of, because there

41:54

are people out there, and I just

41:58

might not know about them, I

41:58

always encourage people to reach

42:00

out anytime 24/7 And you know,

42:00

someone, even both of you I have

42:04

I continue the information

42:04

because I you both have amazing

42:07

stories to share. And I also

42:07

like keeping the memory of your

42:10

loved ones alive forever. But

42:10

you know, and then there's a,

42:14

luckily, out of maybe 500, or

42:14

402, or three just didn't want

42:18

to but those are the ones that

42:18

really kind of made me upset

42:22

too, because I just want them to

42:22

be remembered like that. And I

42:25

understand someone diagnosed

42:25

obviously, it's privacy, and I'm

42:29

for that, but that

42:29

organizations, there's one there

42:33

was out of the US that said

42:33

they're not into that I'm like,

42:37

the whole purpose of what you're

42:37

doing is what we're trying to do

42:40

is share you know and get help

42:40

them fundraising, I don't want

42:43

to but you'll always have you

42:43

know, one or two in every field

42:46

and things but again, the one

42:46

individual or organization that

42:51

kind of hurts is the one that

42:51

doesn't want the short term

42:55

story told, or the one that I

42:55

just am not aware of the other

42:58

day, quick stories, I'd actually

42:58

met someone who Instagram me and

43:03

I didn't even know because he

43:03

you know, you know, you have so

43:05

many I'm it's just me, like

43:05

there's not a foundation, it's

43:08

just one guy like me, who lost a

43:08

mother and loved one. So I was

43:13

able to reach out to them. And

43:13

in one day, I pushed their story

43:17

forward. He's a lawyer, he, you

43:17

know, he's fighting with the

43:21

same issues in the Parkinson's

43:21

field. And just I was really

43:25

fascinated, they started their

43:25

own little organization. And

43:29

it's just fascinating. And he's

43:29

very small. So by me putting up,

43:33

it's up right now, their story,

43:33

that, you know, maybe it'll help

43:37

them fundraise for Team Fox, or

43:37

Michael J. Fox Foundation. But

43:41

those are the little things that

43:41

again, just make me in the

43:44

world. To me, it's really

43:44

sharing other people's journey

43:47

and helping them to. Yeah, it's so important because,

43:51

you know, if if you say some

43:55

people, you know, it's it is a

43:55

private thing, and it definitely

43:57

is, but the more we, we just put

43:57

it out there, it removes the

44:03

stigma of it. And I think

44:03

because and then there the

44:06

therefore the fear, and

44:06

therefore, you know, it opens us

44:09

up to to, you know, when and

44:09

again, this comes back to

44:12

telling your stories, that

44:12

that's, you know, if we don't

44:16

keep it in the shadows, it's

44:16

never going to progress, you

44:18

know, where the so, you know,

44:18

for people to and therefore,

44:23

like Michael J Fox, there's

44:23

nobody who could put himself

44:26

more out there than him. This

44:26

is, you know, somebody who knew

44:29

the public knew before and now

44:29

and that's why it's so

44:32

important. So what you're doing

44:32

is, you know, just a huge, huge

44:37

kudos because, you know, you're

44:37

allowing, you're allowing that,

44:41

you know, a platform for these

44:41

people. So, bravo to you. Yeah,

44:45

I think telling our mistakes

44:45

that we've made as caregivers

44:48

can alleviate the any stress

44:48

that other caregivers are having

44:52

now like you and I are are not

44:52

currently caregivers and we

44:56

probably will be again at some

44:56

point. And, but right now we're

45:00

not so we can take that

45:00

information that we've learned,

45:03

like I always I'm very, very

45:03

transparent about the mistakes I

45:06

made in the beginning with my

45:06

mom and, and how, you know, I

45:12

learned and decided to embrace

45:12

her disease as best I could

45:17

because that was the right thing

45:17

to do. And but it took me a

45:20

while and you know, I put put it

45:20

in the documentary where, you

45:24

know, it makes me cringe

45:24

sometimes to think about the

45:27

mistakes I made, but that's

45:27

okay. Because that's how we

45:30

learn. And I can maybe, with

45:30

with by telling it, like you're

45:35

doing we can we can alleviate

45:35

any stress that someone may be

45:39

going through right now. Or, or,

45:39

you know, be able to to have

45:46

them skip that step, you know,

45:46

and not have to go through it

45:49

and be frustrated. So that's why

45:49

it's really valuable. Is there

45:55

anything else that you would

45:55

want to talk about? No,

45:58

I mean, I really, I really

45:58

appreciate the time. And I just

46:01

happened to have this up, I

46:01

don't think in theory, but

46:03

tomorrow, I have a story about

46:03

it's Linda and Keith Hall from

46:08

Parkinson's fitness. It's a fan

46:08

of husband and wife who started

46:12

doing a little bit of

46:12

organization for fitness for

46:16

individual Parkinson. One thing

46:16

I didn't really know and my

46:19

mother kinda was too late was

46:19

fitness is really important

46:22

because Parkinson's and

46:22

neurological disorder, and we

46:25

didn't get a lot of time to talk

46:25

about that. But if you can do

46:29

fitness, like this punching for

46:29

Parkinson's is walking for

46:32

Parkinson's, the dancing for

46:32

private been able to really

46:35

interview all these individuals

46:35

around the world, and is even

46:38

ping pong for parking. I never

46:38

knew how many things there were.

46:41

And so I tried to bring them all

46:41

on my page, just so you can see.

46:44

But if you go through all the

46:44

interviews, it's just

46:46

fascinating to see how

46:46

Parkinson's can affect the

46:49

family. But instead, like you

46:49

said, instead of just living

46:52

with it, and keeping down and

46:52

quiet, they're all trying to do

46:55

their best to fight back. So the

46:55

next book I'm planning after the

46:59

journey of my mother and my

46:59

myself as a caretaker, is going

47:03

to be publishing all the

47:03

interviews. So I've got approval

47:05

from everyone who I interviewed.

47:05

So there's a lot of amazing

47:09

things coming. And I just, you

47:09

know, stay tuned, really thank

47:12

you both for your time. And,

47:12

again, I feel like we've become

47:15

family and just the short time

47:15

and your your time in the world.

47:19

And I've had some great

47:19

opportunity, I was able to

47:21

interview Muhammad Ali's

47:21

daughter, I've spoken to some

47:25

really incredible famous

47:25

celebrities, which is great

47:28

because you want them involved

47:28

because they have more

47:31

awareness. Some of them they'll

47:31

respond, but that's because I'm

47:33

just me. Tired, I've even

47:33

written to, you know, again,

47:38

there's so much to talk about,

47:38

I've written to 15 politician

47:41

that didn't really get any

47:41

response, which is hard said,

47:44

because we need them involved

47:44

that fit into newspapers, who

47:48

will cover other things, but not

47:48

Parkinson's and didn't get any

47:51

responses. But I'm the type of

47:51

person that you come to know me

47:54

that won't give up. And there's

47:54

a good reason for it. It's just

47:58

I want more people, again, to be

47:58

aware, like we started and that

48:02

I feel, if we had individuals

48:02

more aware that we would already

48:06

have a cure. So again, you know,

48:06

everyone listening, thank you

48:09

for your time, there's people

48:09

like me out there who say I love

48:13

and support again, and I'm

48:13

grateful. Thank you.

48:16

Well, thank you, thank you for

48:16

doing what you're doing in such

48:20

a altruistic, open, you know,

48:20

very generous way. And I'm glad

48:25

that we finally got to do this

48:25

together for sharing is an

48:28

amazing resource. Please go and

48:28

check it out. You know, if you

48:32

if you haven't, please do,

48:32

please. And if you have a

48:35

wonderful story to tell, please,

48:35

you know, reach out to George

48:39

he's so he's so you know, a

48:39

meaningful and just, you know, a

48:44

human being a mensch, as they

48:44

say in French and so and I and I

48:49

promise yeah, I've gotten very

48:49

Jewish now that my mom's started

48:55

I like taking it on. Yeah, I've

48:55

embraced my my Jewishness so

49:00

anyway. And but I think that you

49:00

are you are definitely my mother

49:06

would say you're such a match

49:06

and your mom, you know, you're

49:09

doing well by your mother. I

49:09

know your mom's proud of you.

49:13

We're proud of you. And really

49:13

take advantage you guys of this

49:16

of this wonderful resource and

49:16

also an outlet and a platform to

49:21

tell your story about

49:21

Parkinson's and your your

49:24

journey with it. We really thank

49:24

you for coming on today. And,

49:30

you know, I'm wishing you the

49:30

best of luck and you'll come

49:32

back again. And when you get

49:32

your book done. Talk about your

49:35

book. Yeah, that'd be wonderful.

49:35

Yeah, good luck. Good luck,

49:39

George. Thank you so much. Thank you