About the blog
“You are so inspiring.”
It was Hannah’s last day. She was one of the researchers working on the medical study I’m participating in. We had developed some sort of a friendship over the past year.
I had jokingly asked her if she’d miss me. She replied in the affirmative and added that I’ve been “inspiring”.
Who? Me?
Inspiring is an adjective I reserve for people cool enough to go by one name like Obama and Oprah. Not mere mortals like me.
I asked her for examples. She brought up my positivity and sense of humour.
Those are good-to-have traits but I didn’t see why they’d make me inspiring.
But I think I understand now.
In the face of great adversity, not whining is already a win, not being bitter and resentful is a win. The fact that I made it through the last few years with my positivity and sense of humour intact, is, well, a miracle.
I have never intended to keep my condition a secret, but there was never a good time to tell you — whoever you are reading this.
And I think you should know. Because being human means we get sick and we get old and then we get sicker and die. That process is sped up in my case, but I hope not for nothing. I hope we both learn something because of this.
I hope I inspire you. So I have started blogging about what I’m going through.
In case you missed the writing on the wall — I have Parkinson’s Disease.
—
My name is Elrica. I am 35 years old and I have Parkinson’s Disease. This is part of a larger collection of writing that records my experience living with the neurological condition.
