A new Parkinson's disease support group is available in Bonnyville for those who need it.
The Parkinson Association of Alberta organized a voice and mobility clinic along with the support group to occur on the third Friday of every month at the Neighbourhood Inn. The clinic starts at 10 a.m., while the meeting begins at 11 a.m. The program is open to anyone interested.
"At the support group, we don't stand up and preach," explained Sherry Bower-Gagne clients service coordinator for the provincial association.
Parkinson's is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system.
"It's a slowly progressive and chronic progress. It mainly affects the part of the brain controlling how you move, and the cells in the brain that produce an important chemical called dopamine. When you want to move, the dopamine is involved in producing so the movements are smooth and coordinated," Bower-Gagne noted.
Exercise is important for people that are diagnosed with Parkinson's, which can help with the lack of dopamine as the brain releases it during physical activity.
Each meeting allows members to have discussions about anything they would like to, while creating support from others in the area.
"Basically, I'll come up with something that we can talk about, but it's the members who lead it. They create a great support for each other, and friendships. It's really amazing what comes out of it, because with Parkinson's disease there's a lot of isolation that comes with it. It's pretty complex," noted Bower-Gagne.
Group member Tina Wall has enjoyed attending the meetings, and has been doing her part getting the word out about it.
"I felt it was important to share what people are doing, and share their issues," she expressed.
When she was first diagnosed a few years ago, Wall looked up all of the information she could about Parkinson's to keep herself informed. The disease tends to affect people later on in life, which made Wall realize they might not be able to find the information she was able to.
"I know, for me, I'm younger. I Google everything to death. I know I easily can get a lot of information, but with this disease, it's normally older people and not a lot of them would be Googling... Maybe we can help to find more stuff to do, and more reminding them to do their exercise and do speech therapy," she said.
Bower-Gagne described the group as an important place for people to get the support they need.
"I think getting folks together, and giving them the tools to help them manage it... So people know it's here, and there's support. You don't have to live like that."
She added, "There's a lot of stuff to (Parkinson's disease), and that's the nice thing that if people are able to come to support groups, and those types of things, they find out 'you know what? There's other people that have this."
For more information on the Parkinson Association of Alberta, visit their website at parkinsonassociation.ca or on social media. Bower-Gagne can be reached by phone at 780-808-5006, or by email at sbower-gagne@parkinsonassociation.ca.