I'm a therapist.
And I was taking notes after a session
I would start writing and I
couldn't quite finish the
sentence. When I went to the
doctor she had me write a
sentence or two and walk up and
down the hall and I came back in
the room and she said, "You have
Parkinson's disease."
Eight years ago I had been
diagnosed with Parkinson.
My first reaction was, "Let me
think about this."
I was hoping that the doctor is wrong.
They had been wrong so many times.
But, this was not one of them.
So we have to live with this. So what?
Life goes on.
Parkinson's Disease is a progressive
neurological disorder.
Resting tremor,
slowness of movement, stiffness,
and difficulties with balance.
But we also know that it has a
lot of what we call non-motor
features. These can be anxiety,
depression, sleep disorders,
pain,
autonomic nervous system
disorders. Unfortunately, some
people can also have cognitive
problems that lead to dementia.
So, it is a motor and non-motor
disease, that affects really the
whole brain. There's a lot of
research, in both animals and in
human subjects with Parkinson's
disease that exercise is very
beneficial. It actually
promotes what we call
neuroplasticity, the brain
almost regenerates. Dance itself
also has quite a lot of research
as far as improving the mobility
and balance in Parkinson's
disease, and gait, quite
dramatically, people's ability
to walk.
Dance for Parkinson's disease is
a program that was developed at
the Mark Morris Dance Group. In
about 2001 Olie Westheimer, who
led the Brooklyn Parkinson's
Support Group, marched into the
Mark Morris studios and she said,
"I would like you to teach people
with Parkinson's disease how to dance."
And David Leventhal, who's now the
Program Director of Dance for PD,
began to teach dance to people
with Parkinson's disease.
They have now trained over 600 teachers, who
are now certified Dance for PD
instructors, in over 16
countries and 100 communities.
So, it is being practiced all
over the world.
Dr. Bronte-Stewart, who is a
dancer, had encountered Dance
for PD, and thought, "I want to
bring this program here, and
made great strides in achieving
this kind of radical thing where we have
a dance studio in a clinic.
I was a tap-dancer growing up,
and a friend told me that they
were going to start Parkinson's
dance at Stanford and I was, I
was ready.
I have known all my life that I am
no good at dancing.
Now at least I have a good excuse.
Some of these folks that come to
class would never have imagined
taking a dance class before
but for some reason, this spoke to
them at this time in their lives
and when they come they're
excited about this new adventure
that they're on.
What we've been told by people
who do Dance for PD, is that
suddenly they feel beautiful again
Their bodies feel like they can move
They have a sense of
themselves as they used to be,
and I think that is incredibly
powerful as far as
brain health.
I think it's a combination of
feeling the connection with my
body that is a positive
connection and that reminds me
of maybe my old self, and
feeling good about
moving.
The full impact of Dance for PD
is not just like an exercise
program, it is something that
engages cognition, and it
engages the cognitive domains
that are specifically affected
in Parkinson's disease.
Little by little I am expanding
my boundaries. I feel intuitively that
it's opening for me
memories, possibilities,
ways of being.
It gives me the sense that I can
handle what is ahead for me.
There's a joyfulness that I feel
from the class that carries through
and powerful kind of
feeling that I can do
something to make myself feel
good.