You know what's terrifying? Realizing that Parkinson's isn't just about you. It's about the people you trust to keep you moving, keep you thinking, keep you living. And here's the problem. No one tells you how to build a team. Some doctors don't just, some doctors don't get it, right? And some therapists aren't trained for it. And if you don't take control, you end up with the wrong people giving you the wrong advice. And that's why today we're going to talk about how to build the right healthcare team, because trust me, this can make or break your Parkinson's journey. And stay till the end because I almost skipped a specialist that turned out to be an absolute game changer. And I'll tell you who it was and why I regret waiting. Hey everyone, welcome back to Living With Parkinson's, the good, the bad, and the reality. My name is Bryce. And today we're going to talk about something that will shape every single part of your Parkinson's journey, your healthcare team. Now I want to take a quick second, just say hello to all my returning, I call you like DLT nation, like doing life today. People that are doing life today that, that want to learn more, grow more, and want to live. So if you're a new subscriber, welcome to the DLT nation. Welcome to doing life today. And if you're just stopping in, you know what? Check it out. See what's see what it's like. And why don't you join us? Because it takes, it takes a village, man. It takes a lot of people and we're all on the same, uh, trajectory. We're all on the same, not trajectory, but excuse me. We're all on the same journey. And you know what? This is a community that, that we're just building. I literally, and I'll just tell you really, really quick. Um, I, I had this YouTube channel a while ago, did some motivational stuff, you know, kind of things like that, but I didn't, I wasn't sharing my Parkinson's journey and over Christmas, this, this is past Christmas fears are a few months back. Um, it just, you know, I thought, you know, I just got to start opening up. I got to start sharing. I got to, I got to do what I, you know, I got to share. I just want to help people. I want to, I want to, I want to, I want to create a movement. I want to create a movement of people that are pissed off at Parkinson's and, and aren't going to take it. That's people with Parkinson's loved ones, caregivers, and whatever, however, I don't care. Anybody who hates this thing. Um, I want to, I want to just make, help us all feel better, including myself. So literally just started kind of just sharing, um, a month or so ago. And man, so thank you. Like we've just, it's just exploded. I think we've had like a thousand new subscribers here with the last little bit. So thank you for that. I really appreciate your, your trust in me. I really appreciate you checking this out. And I'm glad, I'm hoping that I'm adding value to your life and giving you maybe some tips and tricks of some things that I've learned along the way. Um, I've been diagnosed with Parkinson's over 15 years. So, um, you know, not that I know everything, but, uh, uh, you know, I've learned a few things. So, uh, but this, what we're talking today, Parkinson's like this healthcare, this team is so utterly important. And, uh, and I just can't wait to get into it. So let's just do that right now. So Parkinson's isn't just a movement disorder. You know that, right? It affects how you move, how you think, how you speak, even how you feel. And that's why you need a team. It's just not one doctor, but a group of professionals who work together to help you function your best. But there's one thing that you need to remember, and I want you to remember this. You're the leader of this team. You're the quarterback. The experts are there to guide you, but at the end of the day, you make the decisions. So you cannot just throw it out there and let everybody else take care of you. You gotta be the, you gotta be the driving force. So today I want to kind of break it down. I want to break down the core specialists who should be on your team, you know, and when and what they actually do. And then maybe, I don't know how to find the right ones, but remember to stay tuned to the end because there was this one specialist and I'm telling you, I'll tell you about it. It's a crazy story, but I almost skipped it. I almost didn't go. I didn't want to go. And I'm so glad I did. I, man, I would just absolutely, I regret that it took so long to do it. And it's so important to you. And I hope that you'll stay with me to the end because it's, it's really, really, really, to me, it's been a game changer for me. All right. So let's talk about the core Parkinson's healthcare team. Okay. So we'll start with the must haves, the professionals, you know, who should, who, who, who, who absolutely should be a part of your team. So the very first specialist there is your neurologist, right? Or your movement disorder specialist, right? Think of them as your head coach. This is your main doctor, your neurologist, or even better, a movement disorder specialist should be someone who understands Parkinson's inside and out. Now there's, there's, there's general, excuse me, a general neurologist is fine, but an MDS has extra training specifically in disorders. And if you can see one, do it. Or a neurologist who specializes in Parkinson's or anything like that. I mean, again, neurology, if you know my story, you can look, go back over the episodes. I talk about this a lot, but there's an, and I, you know what, this is, I'm not alone in this. Many, many people have gone through the same journey as I have, but it took me two and then two years or so to be diagnosed. And I went through two or three, I say two or three because I completely have tried to erase it from my mind. Neurologists who, you know, you know, bless them, they were, they were doing their best, I guess. But they literally told me that at 40 years old, I was too young to have Parkinson's and that my grandmother had just passed away with Parkinson's and that I'd seen Michael J. Fox on TV or, and I knew him, I didn't know him, but I knew of him. And so therefore it was all in my head that they said, Michael J. Fox is a nominally, and you know, it's just in your head. Um, and you know, uh, it'll go away once, you know, you start kind of rethinking and I'm going, wow, that's incredible. I, so not only is my, my pinky shaking, actually my whole hand shaking by the second neurologist appointment, my, my hand was my right arm, my right hand was shaking, uh, twitching and my right foot, my toes would, were almost curled right up. And I'm thinking to myself, oh, great. So now not only am I shaking on one side of my body, not only my toes curled up, not only am I feeling tired and kind of weird, but now I'm crazy on top of that. So, um, that's why I suggest and, and, and it's a, most people do, if you can find and get into a movement disorder specialist or a neurologist that specializes in Parkinson's, uh, first, uh, you'll save yourself a lot of time. Trust me, you absolutely will. Um, and, and here's the thing, here's what I call this, like, you know, I said, you're the quarterback of the team. Um, you know, quarterback of this whole team, like here's a quarterback move, right? When you are calling or when you're getting referred to, I don't know how it works in your country or where you are, but for us here in Canada, we have to be referred to a neurologist. So I had to, by the third time around, my doctor pretty well did it on himself, but asking how many Parkinson's patients they see, right? That's a, that's a quarterback move right there. Uh, and that goes down the list. As we get into all the specialists, when you're talking to them, it should almost be, you know how, like when you go to a first time, go to the doctor, it's like they're interviewing you to see how much, um, how much work you're going to be before they receive you before they'll say, okay, you're going to be my patient. You need to do the same thing. You need to interview them. And I mean that you really do. And one of the big questions of what I was surprised at this, one of the big questions is ask them how many Parkinson's patients they see on a regular basis. Um, and we'll, we'll touch back on that as we get into the more professionals and more of the specialists as we go through this. And maybe you'll kind of understand what I'm saying. So anyway, that's your quarterback, right? So you're the quarterback story. That was your, what did I say? Your coach? I think that was your coach. All right. Number two, a physiotherapist, your mobility coach. Parkinson's makes movement harder. You know that a physiotherapist though, can help you keep your, keep your mobile and prevent falls and slow progression, right? If they know about, and maybe you don't know about this, but write this down. If you don't know, if they know about LSVT big or power, which is P W R explanation point, P W R explanation point moves, power moves even better because those are Parkinson's specific exercise programs. And when I say that, I'm not saying that, you know, going on YouTube or going somewhere and watching a video of an exercise program or modifying a program you're doing now, I'm not saying that's bad. I mean, do it. Any type of movement is really good, but those two programs in specific, or in particular, I should say are Parkinson's specific. So LSVT big and power PRWR explanation point moves, power moves. And the reason I say that is this, is that there's tailored movements and tailored exercises that are proven to a, help you, help you with balance, help you with different things that Parkinson's actually, you know, that you're going to suffer from. And again, it's not just about exercise. It's not just about, you know, being out there and doing something, but these are actually specific movements, specific exercises for, for specifically Parkinson's. So that's a big one. So make sure if you're looking for a physiotherapist to ask them if they have those, those programs, and if they don't, I'm not saying it's a deal breaker, but maybe they have their own program. Maybe they have a Parkinson's specific program, but that's something to ask them when you go to, you know, you're checking out a physiotherapist, don't just go, you know, for the cheapest one out there, you know, ask those questions. How many people with Parkinson's back to my question, I was talking about earlier is ask them how many people with Parkinson's they see on a monthly basis. And if it's one or two and then, or, you know, depending if they've been in business a long time, but if it's one or two, maybe go check out another one and see, get somebody who's used to it, who knows what to expect because people, and you know, there's people don't know a lot about Parkinson's. They think they do, but what most people know is that a guy named Michael J. Fox has it. Maybe Muhammad Ali has it. And, you know, I think maybe I had an aunt or an uncle or a grandmother or a grandfather that had it, but I'm not sure, but I just know that their hand twitch sometimes, um, that's the, to the extent. And so you really want to have somebody that's working with people with Parkinson's already has a Parkinson's program already. And then, then also knows that this disease is progressive and they will tailor and mod the program for you. So my advice is this, you go into the physiotherapy, whatever it is. And I think what I did when I started and I've done it a few times, cause I repeat a cycle, I cycle my, my, my therapies, if that makes sense. So the first time I went in, I think I went in for, I think it was like four weeks. Like I went once a week for four weeks. Um, and then they gave me some things to do at home and which I, which I did. And then I just continued to do those things now. And I did that for maybe about a year or two. Um, you know, I was perfect. I never missed a day. Yeah. Right. But, uh, but I did it, you know, as best as I could. And then, um, around about two year, two or three, I went back and I went back in and I, for a follow-up and we kind of checked, she checked, you know, my balance and where I was at and all this kind of thing. And then when she, you know, kind of prescribed, if that's the right way to say it, another kind of stretching exercise type of program, which again, I did for a few years and then, you know, I went back. So it's reciprocal. And so just because you've done, and if you've been on this journey for a while now, again, 15 years now, almost 15 years to September. Um, and if you've been on this journey for quite a while, um, and you're saying, oh, I already did physio. Well, okay. Well, when did you do it? Because listen, you need to keep it up. It helps your balance. It'll help you stretch. It'll help you keep you limber. Um, and, and there's so many benefits to it. So how about a quarterback move on this one, uh, is find someone with experience in neural, neurological, I can not just a general physiotherapist. And if you can't find one in your area, um, what's really cool. Now we have this thing, it's called the internet. I'm just kidding. I'm absolutely kidding. But there is a lot of, uh, of, of people in places and, or, um, um, physiotherapists, uh, that offer it online because you can definitely do it online. As a matter of fact, um, coming through COVID, um, I, I, I did mine online. I did like my follow-up online and I went through it. So you can definitely do it online. So don't not do not make that an excuse. All right. So, um, and then I'm going to tell you when you should bring these in, when you should bring these, these specialists in, in, in a bit. So just hold on. And I'll tell you when, when I did, I'll tell you when I, when I knew it was time that I had to start bringing these specialists and making them part of my healthcare team. Right. So again, uh, remember something, something just popped there and it scared the heck out of me. I don't know if you saw my face. I was like, ah, shake something like boom. I don't know what happened, but anyway, you, uh, that's beauty of being live to tape. Um, you, you, you are the quarterback of your team. So really when you get diagnosed, I mean, how many people do you have on your team so far? You probably have your, your GP who maybe referred you to the neurologist or the movement disorder specialist, and now they just diagnosed you. So now I guess they're part of your team. You're wondering, but you've only had maybe one appointment with them and they diagnosed you and you're, you're going back to your GP who probably doesn't know a lot about Parkinson's. So now you're kind of going like, this is not a good start to my team because here it's just me now, me and maybe hopefully a caregiver or someone that loves me. And now it's just us. And we're, and we're going to quarterback this team where we know nothing about it. Well, uh, good for you. That's why you're watching videos like this so you can get on it. But, um, who would ever thought I wouldn't have ever thought, you know, if I went back 16 years ago and 17 years ago when I was, you know, doing my thing, I never thought I'd need a healthcare team. I mean, come on, that's ridiculous, but you do, you do. And it's really important. Okay. Here's your third, here's another member of your team is the occupational therapist, right? That would be like your daily life experts that, and that's besides me that no kidding. Um, I hope you like, I hope I'll put you here with a sense of humor because I'm really a very humble person. I just, I like to make jokes. So occupational therapists, they can help you adapt to everyday life. Um, they can help you with you getting dressed, cooking or staying independent for as long as possible. They also help with assisted living, assisted devices, like things like that can make your daily life easier. Like utensils or special utensils for eating with Parkinson's and stuff. Um, like utensils for tremors or speech to text apps, things like that. They are the ones that you want to kind of go to and say, you know, um, you know, what, what's out there for me? What's out there for me? Because be like, I've been telling you last episode, the episode before I've told you over and over again, you gotta, you gotta go for stuff. You gotta be your advocate. You got to just say, I want this. I saw this. I want this. I want to try it. I saw this. I want to try that. I saw that. I want to try it. Like do like never stop. Like always want it right. Because we just want the best. I want to live the best life. I want to do life every day. And, and you know what, if I need special, a special fork or spoon to eat with, if I need a text, a speech to text app, then, then who cares? I mean, get it, try it. And then maybe some work and maybe some don't, but it doesn't work. It doesn't hurt to try. Right. Does that make sense? And hopefully that makes sense. And if it did, you know what, if that made sense, give me a big like just hit that like button. It'll help push this video out. We can reach more people that need to hear this video. So there are need to see this video here at whatever it might be, or this podcast. Okay. Here's a quarterback move. This is for your occupational therapist. This is my quarterback move that you're going to do is write this down. Ask them what small changes can I make today that will keep me independent longer? I know it sounds like a simple question, but it's really not because they're really, when you go there the first time and when you get in there, they're like thinking that, okay, this is an immediate thing that I need that I'm here. I need, they need to help me with right now. So they're looking at you now and it's good. I want you to look at you now, but when you're at these appointments, I want you to look at you now. And I want you to look at yourself a year down the road and two years down the road and three years down the road. Right. And there are a million little changes and things we can do now that'll help us in your two, three, four, and five. So always ask that. Is there something I can do now that's going to help me down the road and keep me independent longer? Okay. That was a quarterback move. Um, and I don't mean to make this a, you know, like, I guess women play football too, right? I guess everybody plays football, but I was saying, I don't want to make this like a male thing. So, but it doesn't matter. It's just, I hope you understand. It's just a analogy. I guess is that the right way to say it? Okay. Fourth person that you're going to need and on your healthcare team should be part of your team. If it's not, it should be. Um, and if, uh, and if you're just getting started on this journey, write it down again, I'll tell you when I brought them in, in my journey to start using them and use them. But the next person you need on your team is a speech language. Uh, they call me either a speech language pathologist, right. Or a speech therapist. Okay. You know what I call them? They call it again. It's either called a speech language pathologist, which is the SLP or right. Or a speech therapist. And Bryce's acronym for them, Bryce's word for them, Bryce's title is the voice and swallowing coach. Hmm. The voice and swallowing coach. So even if your voice is fine, now Parkinson's makes it softer over time. Believe it or not, it does a speech therapist helps keep it strong. Okay. And they're also so good at it. They're also so good at addressing, um, swallowing problems, which can also can be a very serious problem later on. Right. So, you know, many people, uh, that's, you know, many people, um, you know, pass away from, um, choking, right. Or, and so it's a big problem and this is what you can use them for. Okay. Uh, here's a quarterback move with them. If you're noticing a voice, just sorry, if you're noticing voice changes now, all right. Um, or any voice changes whatsoever, look for someone trained and here's what you want to look for. It's an LSBT loud. Okay. LS LS VT loud. Um, and I'll put some links in the description below. I'll put some of the, um, uh, the names that I'm calling out and I'll, I'll put some links to the, to the website. So maybe you can find one in your area. I'm telling you it's a game changer. Okay. And I'll, I'll leave that for there. And we'll, we'll dig more into that a little bit later, uh, in some more broadcasts coming down. As a matter of fact, I am in my, I've had the fortune, the good fortune, um, to with Parkinson Canada, Michael J Fox foundation is I host what's called a PDI Q and U, uh, and their day, their whole day event, um, made up of panels and I host the events in Canada. Um, and I moderate them and my first panel, it's all about building this healthcare team. And on the panel I have my, you know, I have the, the, the, the movement disorder specialist, I have a physiotherapist, I have a speech therapist, um, normally from the area that we're in. And those are the types of questions I ask. So I'm very well versed in this, but what's been great about it is in every city that we've done them in, I've been able to meet a different movement disorder specialist, a different physiotherapist, a different speech therapist. They're all wonderful people that I've been able to meet. Um, what's really cool about it is they're from all different areas of the country, uh, all over the areas of the world. Um, they're all different, but they all say the same things and they, they reiterate the same things that I'm reiterating to you today. Um, and stay tuned because what I'm probably I'm doing and maybe, maybe do me a favor in the comments. This is, this has really helped me out is they, you know, they've offered to come on and, and, and do a podcast. So, you know, I was thinking of maybe either doing a panel where I'd bring on the speech therapist and the, uh, and the, um, uh, physiotherapist occupational therapist and have a round table and I can ask them questions and maybe we can do a live Q and a, if that's something that's interesting, or I can just, you know, record it as a podcast. So if that's something that you think that you'd get value from doing in the comments, just say, cool, great. We'd love that or whatever. We'd love to see a or a podcast or a live, uh, of that. I'd really appreciate that. Um, again, I'm not here just to blow hot air and talk about what I want to talk about. I literally want whatever I can do. That's my kind of my mission in life, whatever I can do to help you, uh, in this journey. I will. So if you think you'd benefit from that, let me know. Um, and if there's any other topics that you'd like me to touch on or talk about, please in the comments, just let me know what they are. And I, I'll take it to heart. I really will. As a matter of fact, I changed this topic today. Uh, if you watched the last, uh, the last podcast, I said, you know, next week we talk about something, something, something, and we're not. And that's the thing, because I'm not about, I'm not here to, to get likes and I'm not here to get comments and I'm not here to get subscribers, right? I'm here actually to help. I'm here to help, help and to, to form a community and we'll grow this community. Trust me, we'll grow this community and we'll, we'll do other things other than this YouTube and we'll reach out and we'll support each other because we need that. We need that. And it's good worldwide. We have people, you know, that are joining from Malaysia and we just thought, you know, Malaysia all across the United States, all across Canada, Ireland, Ireland, Ireland, just amazing. Um, so wherever you are in the world, please join us. I mean, it's going to be, it's, it's, I don't want to say it's great. It's exciting. I mean, we have this ridiculous disease, but, but we're going to live the best life we can with it. Okay. And you're going to live the best life you can with it. So join us. It'd be amazing. So, okay. So we've talked about that with physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists. Now, what else do we need? Who do we need to add to this, to this team of ours that again, you're the quarterback, you and, or your loved one or your caregiver, but, but you really have to do this. Um, I would add this in and this is, this is optional. This is, this is depending on your feeling, but I just think it's good to have somebody in the, in your, in, in your, your, your team because it's easier to have them there when you need them, then go looking for them when you need them, if that makes sense. So that's a mental health support, right? That's a mental health support, a psychologist, depending, or social worker or a counselor or a coach, depending on what level you think you need. Um, and then did he say coach? Yeah. Coaching. Why not? Um, I believe in that. I believe in someone being accountable to somebody. I believe that, that you should be, you know, work with people and, and, and help people. So anyway, uh, psychologist, social worker, counselor, or coach. Um, and this isn't talked about enough really. Parkinson's can bring depression, can bring anxiety, can bring apathy and just the sheer weight of, of dealing with this chronic illness that has no cure. Huh? It's heavy. It's heavy, right? You know, that it's really heavy. Well, a mental health professional can help you process that and it can help your family too. It can help your loved ones and help your caregiver. And even if you're a caregiver, you're struggling, um, trust me. Don't if you have to, you want to, you can do it. I really do. And that's why I said, it's easier to have one to no one or have one in your, in your, your, your team than to go looking for one when you need it. Cause when you need it, you're, you're, you're that that's maybe when you're struggling and it's not going to be fun looking for one. So, um, what I did, I'll just tell you this, this tip off the bat, what I did is I went out and found somebody, uh, more of a coach, I guess a coach is what it would be that, um, you know, he, he had Park, he has Parkinson's, right? So it's kind of like an accountability person. And when I'm struggling, I can call him, do I have to pay for it? Sure. He's not my buddy. Um, but he's there to help me when I need it. But I haven't had to really tap it. I, there were some times years ago I did and it was great for the time, but he's on my team so that if I, something happens to me or some new thing comes upon me and I don't know what to do and I'm struggling and I'm down and I need some help, he's there. I can call him. Hey, can I, can I make an appointment with you? I need to come and see you. Uh, I need some help. So, um, if you're saying, Hey, that's down the road, I'll need, I'll need that later. Well, if you're feeling good now, go find one now, just kind of interview them, talk them over the phone, just say, I'm going to make you part of my team and you're there if I need you. Right. Uh, and that, that, that would be what I would say there. So, uh, here's a quarterback move. You're ready for this. If you're feeling overwhelmed, that's a sign you need support. It's not a sign of weakness, right? If you start feeling, if you're feeling overwhelmed, that's assigning support, not a sign of weakness. And that's so true. Now, how do we build this healthcare team? So we, I list them all out. Now, how are we going to do that? Okay. And when, how and when? Okay. So we know who's on the team. We got that down, right? You're good to go. So how are we going to find these people? So here's the way I found them and some other little side tips that I found along the way. First thing you need to do is ask your neurologist or your MDS, right? For referrals. And they always usually have a list of trusted specialists. They, they have the go-to people. They'll give you maybe a list of one or two or three, depending on where you are. And they'll hopefully even give you virtual online as well as in person. So that's your number one go-to. Your neurologist right off the bat is your number one go-to. Um, then you can check other Parkinson's organizations in your country, your city, your town, right? They often have directories of professionals that are trained in Parkinson's care. As a matter of fact, in Canada, we have something that called it. I'm very happy. I kind of helped develop it and it's still in development, but it's live and out there and it's called Carefinder. It's at parkinson.ca and look for carefinder at parkinson.ca. And you can literally put in your city or town, your postal code, if you live in Canada, and it will pop up all the programs that we have listed anyway, that are around you within like five kilometers or what is that? Five kilometers? What is that? That's three miles, 2.3 miles around you, uh, or a lot further away, but also has virtual options as well. So, uh, and maybe your country or your, uh, area has a similar directory. I don't know, but go check it out. Parkinson's UK, Parkinson's Foundation, Michael J. Fox. Um, and they usually have a list, right? Um, the other place that I found them and that I found them, that I found these specialists were in a support group, right? So other people with Parkinson's are the best resource for finding good doctors, therapists, and clinics, right? Other people are the best resources. So that's, I mean, I would rather someone, I would rather someone say to me, Oh my gosh, this person helped me beyond belief. I'll go to them, right? You've been there. You've done it. You've been in my shoes. I'm going that way. So ask around, ask around, right? If you're in Canada, if you want to ask me, ask me, I know some really, really good people from most provinces in the city or in the, in the, in the city, most provinces in the country. And the other thing you want to do is you want to be picky. Okay. So I've heard this so many times. Oh my, they don't really listen to me. I'm telling them that this is the problem, but they want to talk about this and they don't listen to me. Now there is oftentimes that they will know the right way to go. Obviously you need to listen, but you need to be picky. If a, if a provider doesn't listen to you or doesn't seem knowledgeable or doesn't have these answers or doesn't even have a referral to somebody else about Parkinson's, then you need to find someone who does. That's the bottom line. If they, if they don't know, or they're not knowledgeable, you need to find somebody who does. Do not settle. Another, how many times have I said, this is what you need to write down. This is the message today, but do not settle. Go for the best. You're the best. You deserve the best. You want the best. So there you go. Make sure you're picky. And I mean, I mean, I literally go in like I'm interviewing them for 60 minutes or dateline. I'm in there like, what about this? Have you done this? Have you, have you had somebody my age before? Have you, have you treated somebody that has had this, this, and this, that has their toes curl in the morning, but you know, or it feels terrible in the morning. And like I go through everything I'm dealing with and I say, have you done it before? Right. Have you done it before? And they might, they may not have. And that doesn't mean it's not bad. It doesn't mean it's bad. You know, maybe that, but it, you need to interview and you have to feel comfortable. And part two to that is you also have to feel comfortable to be able to share things because you need to be very honest with them. If you're struggling, you're struggling period. Um, we're not gonna be heroes anymore. So you have to be able that you can say, I can tell this person what I'm going through and, and I feel that they're either going to have the answer or they're going to go look for the answer. Okay. So I said in the beginning of this video that I was going to tell you about the specialist that I almost skipped and, and, oh my gosh, I, I almost did. So, um, I'm going to tell you who it is right now. So the one that I, that the one specialist that I almost didn't see, okay, was the speech language pathologist, the speech therapist. At first I thought my voice is fine. Why would I need speech therapy? But here's the thing. By the time you notice your voice is getting weaker, it's already harder to fix. I wish I had started therapy earlier. It's, it's not just about the volume. Okay. It's not just about being loud or quiet. It's also about the consistency. It's about swallowing safety and keeping communication strong. If there's one takeaway from today that you don't, if there's one thing that you can take away, don't wait until you need help to build your team. You need to start now. You know, I'll be honest when, um, I, I talked to somebody, someone had mentioned, man, you should go to speech therapy. I'm like, why, why, what's wrong with my voice? What's happening here? And again, I, this is my wheelhouse. This is what I do for a living. I speak for a living in my, my work at Parkinson's Canada and my events. Um, you know, I speak at, I was speaking at a support group, you know, um, the other day and, and I'll throw this out there. If you're in a support group or you'd read something and you want me to join, ask me, I'll do it. I'll come virtually to your event or to your event or your, or your support group. And I'll talk, I'll answer questions as best I can. But, um, and so I was doing what someone reached out to me and it was actually on the East coast in Canada. It was in, uh, I think they were in PI, Nova Scotia, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. And I was in a support group there and, um, I do this all day long. So what I didn't realize, or sorry, when someone said you should go, I was kind of questioning, why should I go? Like they must, I must be really sinking down. And, and I mentioned in previous videos that my wife said, he kept saying to me that I was quiet talking quietly. Why are you talking so quietly? And I'm like, I didn't know I was, and she asked me to speak up. So I'm like, okay, I'm going to speak up. And I went louder. I went, I said, okay, I'm going to speak up now. And she's like, it's the same. And I'm like, what are you talking about? So I, in my head, I'm going like, I want to speak louder. And she was like, it's the same. I'm like, oh, wow, this is so bizarre. I actually thought I was speaking louder and I wasn't anyway. I signed up for speech therapy. And if you've taken this, you know, oh my gosh. Right. And if you haven't, this is, I'm going to prepare you. Cause I want you to understand something that, you know, the first round of speech therapy and I did it virtually is, you know, it was like, I had to pick 10 phrases that I would say every day, just 10 phrases. And I'm like, oh my God, what do I say every day? Oh, okay. I say, I love you. I say, good morning. Good night. What's the temperature outside. Right. And then, and then I'm like, what are we having for? No, no. My other one was, I don't know what I want for dinner. I seem to say that every day. I don't know. It doesn't matter. I don't know what I want for dinner. So I just come up with these 10 phrases, right? And so then every day I'd start the speech therapy with repeating. I love you. Hello. Goodbye. It was, it was hello. Goodbye. I love you. I don't know what we want for dinner. What's the temperature outside? What do you want to do today? It looks very pretty, very nice outside. I really hope it's not cold out. I hope it doesn't snow today. Um, and if you live in Canada, especially deep Canada, where I am, uh, that's one thing I hope it doesn't snow every day. So, uh, if you don't have to say that every day, then, uh, I'm jealous and envious of you. Um, but I'd say those every day. And then they'd make you do this thing where you have to like go, uh, for as long as you can, as loud as you can, uh, for as long as you can, as loud as you can. So I did that the first day and I did it for a grand total of 12. Like, no, it was eight seconds of, uh, then I ran out of breath. Okay. And what I didn't realize is that my doctor, my specialist therapist had timed me and also had, um, recorded me to see how many decibels I was doing it. Cause I remember it's supposed to be as loud as you can, um, for as long as you can. And I'll get back to that in a second. So after that first thing, I got off the video, I shut my computer, I walked in the room and my wife looked at me and she's like, are you okay? And I'm like, uh, yeah. She goes, well, you don't look very happy after your speech therapist. I thought you'd be excited. I said, I feel like I'm in kindergarten. This goodbye. Uh, and, and, and she's like, Oh my gosh. So thankfully, you know, she talked me into going back to another day, another day, another day. And I just, it's repetitive and it's, it's memory. But what I learned was that your, uh, your speech, right? Your speech, it's a muscle, the things that you're speaking with her muscles and just the way you exercise your arms, right? And you get into rhythmic movements with your arms. You're building back that muscle. You're building back that speech as well for that thing that I talk about where the word disappears from my head. You're going over and over and over words. We're saying the same words over and over again on purpose. You're, you're building this, this up. So I say this to say that I say all of that to say this, why am I such a big believer in speech therapy and then saying that you should do it is that after the thing was done, it was a 30 days every day, every day of doing this plus doing things on my own of just repetitive speaking and stuff. When I went the, ah, for as long as I could, as long as I could, I went for 49 seconds or some crazy number and my decibels had increased by 30 or 30 to 40 decibels after 30 days. My wife, all of a sudden she started saying, man, you're talking again at parties. You're talking again. When we're out, we're talking to groups again. You're talking loud. I can hear you. I can hear you. I'm like, my God, I, I'm the biggest advocate of, of speech therapy. And, and, and when do you take it? When do you take it? Remember what I said? If there's one takeaway from today, but I've given you five of them, but, but another one is don't wait until you need help to start building your team. Don't wait till you need help to build your team. You start now. If I would have known, but that's, that's what speech therapy would done, done for me. I would have done it from the beginning. I would have started right away. And then I would have done, like I said, every two to three years, I'd do it again. Every two to three years, I'd do it again. Or when my wife says to me, you're talking lightly again, I can pick up and just do it myself. But if I don't have the accountability to do that, I can call them up and I'll start another, another session and we do it for one week. And then my brain, it kicks back in. I do it again. I keep doing it. I keep doing it. I keep doing it. And my voice stays consistent. My swallowing is better. My, my memory, my word recalls better. And I'm so happy. So that's my advice. That was my big game changer. Even if you don't think you need it, I'm telling you now's the time to do it. Okay. So that's building your healthcare team. That's how this works. When do you start? Start now. Even if you don't need it, if you're getting, even get the people put on your team, just put them on your team and then think about it later. But you need to get this team going. And the last, again, I'll say it again. You're the quarterback. You're the quarterback. Unless you have a really strong loved one, a partner, caregiver. Um, cause I, sometimes I think they're the quarterback and I'm just sort of, uh, running along behind them. Um, but, but that's good because they love me and I love them and that's what helps. So I hope you got value out of today. I hope you're getting value out of this community. I am so humbled, literally humbled. I I'm so humbled. That's all I can say. All right. We'll see you on the next one.