A Letter to the Reader About Living With Parkinson’s
Dear Friend,
If you are reading this, Parkinson’s disease has touched your life in some way. Maybe you were recently diagnosed. Maybe you love someone who was. Maybe you have been living with it for years and are simply tired. However you arrived here, I am glad you did.
You are not alone, even if it feels that way right now. Nearly 1.2 million people in the United States and more than 10 million people worldwide are living with Parkinson’s. About 90,000 Americans will hear the words “you have Parkinson’s” this year. I was one of them.
When I first heard those words, I was devastated. My thoughts went straight to my family. How would I support them? What would happen to my independence? I imagined my life shrinking overnight. Fear has a way of doing that.
If you are feeling that same fear, please know that you are not weak for feeling it. I felt it too.
It has been almost twenty years since my diagnosis. Somewhere along the way, after I finally got my head out of my caboose, I realized I had a choice. I could let Parkinson’s run my life, or I could fight for the life I still had.
I chose to fight. Not with denial, and not with anger, but with determination.
I began learning how to adapt my routines and methods so I could keep doing the things that mattered. I focused on what I could control instead of everything I could not. Those small changes added up more than I expected.
Parkinson’s is degenerative. There is no cure yet. I will not sugarcoat that. But it does not get to decide the meaning or value of your life.
You and I cannot erase Parkinson’s. But we can refuse to let it define us.
There are medications that help manage symptoms. There are strategies that protect strength and independence. There are ways to prepare for what may come without living in dread of it. Some days are hard, no question. But there are also good days, meaningful days, even joyful ones. Life does not stop being life.
I wrote Punch Out Parkinson’s Disease: Do More Than Just Survive… Thrive because I wanted to share what nearly two decades of living with Parkinson’s has taught me. Not as a doctor or an expert, but as someone in the trenches. I wanted to offer practical ideas, honest expectations, and encouragement from someone who truly understands.
If you are newly diagnosed, take a breath. Your story is not over.
If you are a caregiver or family member, your quiet strength matters more than you may ever hear.
If you have been fighting this for years, I hope these pages feel like someone walking beside you, not talking at you.
And if you are facing any chronic illness and wondering whether life will ever feel steady again, I want you to know that it can. Different does not mean empty. Different does not mean hopeless.
Thank you for spending this time with me. I hope this book feels less like instructions and more like companionship from someone who has been there.
If you think it might help you or someone you love, you can learn more about the book or get a copy here:
Punch Out Parkinson’s Disease: Do More Than Just Survive… Thrive
You and I are still in this fight. And we are stronger than we think.
With warmth and determination,
Victor P. Becker