‘It won’t win’ - Pam Irvine, Living with Parkinson’s
The first thing that Pam said is that Oliver is her hero. She is talking about Professor Oliver Bandmann, one of Sheffield’s leading Parkinson’s researchers, and also the primary consultant for her treatment. She can’t thank him enough for the way he gave her back control over the disease.
Pam has been living with Parkinson’s for 12 years, and had seen a dramatic decline in what she could do. On a practical level she had had to give up driving which drastically limited her independence, and on her worst days she could barely hold a pen. But it also affected the quality of her life - she had been a prodigious knitter and line dancer, and Parkinson’s took that away from her.
Until she met and started getting treatment from Oliver and his team.
I saw Oliver on a Thursday, then on Friday took my first pill. On Monday, I was able to dance in a way that I hadn’t danced in years.”
Pam Irvine
Parkinson's patient
Through the assessment and treatment plan she was given Pam has regained a lot of what she had lost. After physiotherapy, Pam has been driving again for two years, regaining her independence and confidence. And she is knitting once more - so skilfully in fact that she astonished Oliver and left him speechless due to the intricacy of what she had made.
However her treatment is not a magical cure. There is no cure for Parkinson’s. Current Parkinson’s treatments can only mask and take away the symptoms, but eventually they will return and she will lose these abilities again. This is why here at Sheffield we are working so hard to better understand Parkinson’s disease and develop more powerful treatments.
Pam isn’t taking her new lease of life for granted.
I’ve got it but it won’t win. I stand by the attitude that I won’t be beaten, I can’t afford to sit around feeling sorry for myself. I’ve got to get up and get on with it. Whenever people ask about Parkinson’s, I’m very upfront and tell them what’s wrong.”
Pam Irvine
Parkinson's patient
That positive and pragmatic attitude is now also helping others.
Recently, a Parkinson’s nurse told Pam that they were looking for people to talk to newly diagnosed Parkinson’s patients and that there was no person better suited than Pam herself. So that is what she is doing - talking to newly diagnosed Parkinson’s patients and helping them understand what this new diagnosis means for them, but also what is still possible for them, and the importance of a positive attitude and active life.
And her line dancing? Well she is back in formation, and the group Pam belongs to have started fundraising for SITraN where Oliver works and she is treated.
