A note from my mom:

While Parkinson's has obviously had a tremendous effect on my dad's life, it has also impacted all of our lives individually and life as a family.  The things that most people would do without thinking twice -- walking around at the mall, dialing on a cell phone, flying a kite with a grandchild, taking an airplane trip -- are things that people with advanced Parkinson's either do with great difficulty or don't do at all.  

My mom has been the person there for my dad, making it possible for him to continue to do all of the many things he loves to do.  When I asked her to write a few paragraphs for this project, she got back to me a few days later and said that she was working on something with a positive spin.  I'm sure most people - Michael J. Fox excepted - would have a hard time putting a positive spin on Parkinson's Disease, but I admire my mom's spirit.  And, I agree with her that HAPS has been an incredible support network for my dad and for so many others struggling to stay physically active and independent.

Here are my mom's thoughts, in her words:

"The first clue I had that Aubrey had a problem, in 1982, was that he carried one arm rigidly at his side, instead of swinging it when he walked. “Don’t carry your arm like that, try to look normal,” I said.  When he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease later that year, at the age of 42, he was told he would probably be able to work only another five years, and live another ten.  Now, twenty-seven years, two brain surgeries, and several improvements of medication later, he has thankfully outlived that prediction.

I credit Aubrey’s doctors at Baylor College of Medicine and the VA in Houston, the Houston Area Parkinson’s Society, and Aubrey’s spirit of never wanting to give up for his success in holding back the effects of this debilitating  disease.  After several years of not being bothered much by his symptoms, Aubrey entered into the many programs HAPS offers free of charge around town.  He currently takes water therapy, land exercises, speech therapy, and Tai Chi.  The exercise not only keeps him moving, but the support of the instructors and other people in the classes has been extremely beneficial.  HAPS provides transportation to the classes for anyone who needs it."*

*One of the major issues that we have struggled with as a family is driving.  Many Parkinsonians are excellent drivers (my dad believes he is the best driver in the family, and he may be right), but we no longer feel it is safe for him to drive.  We worry that he will fall somewhere while he is alone, or be attacked by someone who perceives that he is an easy mark, or any number of other scenarios that are of concern.  He does not think that any of these are good enough reasons for him to quit driving, and we've had more than a few go-rounds with him over it.

Giving up driving has been very hard on my dad, as he rightly feels that he has lost much of his independence.  It has also been hard on my mother, who spends a large part of every day behind the wheel of her car - driving to her office, driving home to take my dad somewhere, driving back to the office, back to pick up my dad, back to the house, and so on, and so on.  Any of you familiar with Houston know that this is no easy task, as traffic conditions around Houston vary from terrible to absolutely make you want to tear your hair out.  Hopefully, one of these days we can convince my dad to avail himself of HAPS' wonderful transportation service, but until then, we are glad that it's there for those who do need it.