Interview with Birgit

Here is my aforementioned interview, with Birgit. Apologies, to Birgit in particular, for my tardiness. Without further ado:

Me: Hello Birgit
Birgit: Hello Declan
Me: Can you describe the events that led you to here?
Birgit: Oh, at the moment? or the situation?
Me:..The situation
Birgit: I had a daughter in 2007, that's 11 years ago. She is the only child I have. Well, I started to get the symptoms of Parkinsons.
Me: oh.
Birgit: Yes, well, before, I had some symptoms but I never had any idea that I could have Parkinsons, because I'm too young.
Me: Can you describe the symptoms?
Birgit: Well, if I look back, 11 years. I couldn't sew or walk for a very long time; the muscles were tight. Also, I got grey hair. I didn't like the situation I was in, 11 years ago, before I was diagnosed. Then, in 2007 I was diagnosed with Parkinsons.
Me: How old were you, in 2007, when you were told?
Birgit: I was 33. It was the birthday of my sister so I know the date. And, my grandfather has Parkinsons so I knew what it was. Normally, it's a sickness for old people; they get tremors, typically, shaking from the hand. But I didn't have that. If I didn't take medication, I would sit on the bed, and you'd have to push me so that I could lie down; in this moment, I couldn't move anything, I couldn't move my muscles, I couldn't move my mind. If I had two things in my hand, my mobile and a glass of water; I can't put one down to use the other.
Me: Sorry, earlier you said your brain isn't working. You mean that it is working but it can't be used to control your body parts?
Birgit: Yes, that's it. At the beginning, I was just depressed. My mother has manic depression, so it's in my family. But, because of the Parkinsons, I struggle to take care of my little daughter, so it's up to my husband to do it. But when it would be required to make her some new clothes, I can't do it, it's too hard for my hands. So, 2007, my daughter is 3 months old and I'm taking the first medication. A doctor in UKE hospital, in Eppendorf (Hamburg), he is a really nice doctor, he has a daughter the same age as my daughter so we can talk about them so that I can feel that I'm not just a number, I'm a person. In 2011, I moved outside Hamburg, to Schleswig Holstein; it's better for me. Now we live in a small village, it's better for a small child. It has everything; A Kindergarten; Aldi; an Edeka (another supermarket chain, similar to LIDL or Aldi); Haspa...Sparkasse (bank), everything you need, and a doctor and a physical therapy centre, so we have everything we need. We found a house; and at the start, my daughter was so small and when I started taking the medication after some time, not taking any, my husband said "you are like the old you". This period of the illness, is known as the 'honeymoon', when the medication really helps. After some time, after a year, you have to change the medication. I was beginning to get more symptomatic; my posture was very tight my arms and legs were very difficult to control. It's not a sickness that you will die from, but it's a sickness that demands ever increasing dosage of medication, there is not enough dopamine for the nerves. What followed was a short chat about the different medication that she took. The first was aimed at helping the body generate its own dopamine. The second, with which I had had some experience in the Schoen Klink, acts to replace the patient's body's dopamine.
Me: Before 2007, I know you are a very creative person, but did you also partake in sports?
Birgit: My body is more trained now. I like to travel by bicycle; now, if I can't move, you give me a bicycle and I can move; not if I need to cross the street, that's too short and not worth the effort, but otherwise and on the home-trainer, that's no problem. A few years ago a girlfriend of mine was doing an Ironman; she has a carbon frame and I told her "I want to go with you on a bike ride", she said "you go before me" well I went in front and she had to work hard to keep up. For about 6K, after this time, my dopamine was so empty; she wanted to go jogging and a second time cycling. I had to go home and I was unable to have a shower, but I was still proud because I was able to push her for 6K.
Me: That's very impressive.
Birgit: So my body is more trained than ever before, but I have a problem with endurance, long distances. When we moved to the new house in 2011, my husband, and my father had to do a lot of work. But now, if something needs to be done, I am the one to do it. My muscles are strong (because of Parkinsons. She offers me her bicep, to feel, which I accept, and it's fairly impressive). I used to like climbing but I couldn't, well now I can, I do it at home.
Me: So, is this the L-Dopa? (the drug that I had some experience with)
Birgit: No, it's the contraction of the muscles, from the sickness. Sometimes I have so much energy, I can't lay down.
Me: During that period, when you can't work, how does it feel?
Birgit: I can't tell you. What followed was an attempted demonstration of what it feels like, but I can't really tell from the audio, what went on; except to say that I was satisfied with the explanation, and upon trying to do the simulation manoeuvres Birgit challenged me with, it was very hard. I like to draw and work with wood and I can't grip the paper when I'm trying to work with it. It keeps falling down. It's based on how much dopamine is in your body; if you have a bad mood, the muscles stop. If you must do something, the muscles stop. My daughter, she says that I am only pretending when I can't do something.
Me: Your grandad had Parkinsons. That suggests that it is hereditary.
Birgit: It skips a generation.
Me: Is that typical?
Birgit: My daughter has the same chance as you do of getting it. My grandfather on my mum's side had Parkinsons, and on my father's side, my uncle had it. So, we don't know where I got it from.
Me: What about your siblings? Any Parkinsons there?
Birgit: The son of my sister heard that he has some issue with his joints. He's 15 or 16 now. There is a sickness inside him, he will have to be careful. The wrists and elbows are affected, and I don't know what it means for my daughter. Since 2011 my parents came to live with me .There are 4 children in my parent's family, they all live in Hamburg, so they, my parents, moved from the south of Germany, near Frankfurt. They wanted to be near us and the grandkids, and to help me, so they moved near our home, in a small flat upstairs. I will never be alone which is good because I'll never know when I can't move. It's possible that I can do sports, and a few minutes later, I can't move anything.
Me: Do you find that now, you can manage that better.
Birgit: Yes, but you never know when it's going to impact you. The medicating has gotten easier.
Me: Do you have any plans to travel to any part of the world?
Birgit: There are a few, for example, Israel. But at the moment, I don't want to travel so much. I feel like I get more energy when I'm at home; as well as that, I can't travel alone. I also have a problem with my digestion. If I was away from home I might have problems taking my medication.
Me: What is happening there; Is it that you can't direct the movement with your brain, or is it that there is too much tension?
Birgit: Both, if my Dopamine is empty, I can't do it, it's physical. In the same way, it can also be mental, so I might try to reach for the medication, and nothing happens.
Me: We will have to stop the interview because I have to type this all up. Thank you very much Birgit.