WINNIPEG – Being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease is scary and overwhelming.
It’s an experience some 6,000 Manitobans have been through.
But two Winnipeg men are working to offer new hope for people trying to cope with the disease.
“I don’t want our young onset group to just to be about poor me, negativity and stuff,” said Blair Sigurdson, who himself has Parkinson’s. “I want to learn how to live well with the disease.”
Sigurdson realized the impact exercise has on reducing the severity of symptoms and with the help of Tim Hauge Sr, who also has Parkinson’s, they approached the Reh-Fit Centre to develop a new specialized program for people with Early Onset.
“There are nurses here, physiotherapists and kinesiologist,” said Hauge. “They’ve got that medical base that we need to take this forward.”
Researchers have been looking at the effects of exercise on Parkinson’s for years.
“Exercise may enable people to slow down the progression of the disease and that is what is really exciting,” said Dr. Doug Hobson, a neurologist at the Movement Disorders Clinic.
The Reh-Fit program is in the final planning stages with the first class expected to start in mid October.
“What we are looking at is providing cardiovascular training, especially high intensity with little rest period in between as well as movement exercises,” said Sue Boreskie, the CEO of the Reh-Fit Centre. “People with Parkinson’s suffer rigidity and they lose the range of motion and they get some freezing which movement helps with.”
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