Parkinson's didn't just happen to me. It happened to my wife, it happened to my kids, it happened to my friends, even they didn't sign up for it. I may be the one diagnosed, but they're the ones living with it too. Let's talk about the impact that this thing has on us and on them. Hey, friends, welcome back. If this is your first time here, I'm Bryce, and this is Living With Parkinson's, the good, the bad, and the reality. And this podcast is all about telling the truth about Parkinson's, the parts that are hard to say out loud and the parts that need to be said even more. Today's episode is a little different because it's not just about us, not just about me. It's called Parkinson's doesn't just affect me, but it affects us. And let's get right into it. When I was diagnosed, I remember thinking, okay, what now? But what I didn't realize in that very moment was I wasn't the only one who got diagnosed that day. My wife got diagnosed, my kids got diagnosed, my friends, even my co-workers all got handed something they didn't ask for. They didn't have the symptoms, they didn't have those physical symptoms or those cognitive symptoms, but they live with the fear, the unknown, the awkward conversations, the shifts in plans, the long waits, the short answers, and the weight of watching someone you love change in ways that are progressive. And honestly, you can't stop. Imagine, right? We go through that ourselves, don't we? Those that are diagnosed with it. We feel that. It's frustrating. It's frustrating. It's frustrating. We go through all these different emotions. We don't know what one why one day is good and one why one day isn't so good. We don't know what the future looks like. We have all these fear and doubts and things that run through our minds. And, you know, we keep ourselves positive and we keep moving forward, which we do, and it's great. And, you know, we believe that, at least I believe and I hope you believe too, that, you know, a diagnosis of Parkinson's is not a death sentence. Right? We still have a good life to live. We're going to do life. We're going to do it today. We're going to live it. That's what we do here. That's what the followers of this channel are, my inner circle, where you're doing life. We're doing it hard. We're living life and we're going to enjoy it. We really, really are to the best we've come down. But think about it, those around you, right? Those around you, they have those same feelings and those same kind of fears. So what are we going to do about it? Well, let's talk about our care partners for a second. The people who stay, the ones who help sometimes without ever calling themselves caregivers, the ones who do the dishes, carry the bags, sit in the waiting rooms and Google symptoms late at night. They feel guilty for being tired. They feel helpless when they can't fix it. They feel invisible when people ask, but how is he doing? They carry so much and half the time they're doing it quietly. Then there are friends. Some stay and some slowly disappear. Can you relate to that? I sure can. Let me know in the comments. Did you, did you lose friends? Have you lost people? Have you lost your peeps? Which really weren't your friends if you lost them? And that's an easy way to get over it quickly. It's not always out of malice. Sometimes it's discomfort or fear, or sometimes they just don't know what to say. Honestly, what can hurt more than the disease itself, right? But some people, surprisingly few, they lean in and they show up. They don't flinch when you freeze and they don't treat you like glass. They still invite you. They still listen. To those people, you have no idea. You have no idea what that means to us. You really don't. It's amazing. It's amazing. I want to say something really clearly here. Parkinson's puts pressure on relationships, even the strongest ones, right? It creates, it creates new rules, right? New rules, rules, rules, rules, and rules. Hey, it creates, creates new roles. Caregiver, scheduler, symptom spotter, advocate. And sometimes you miss the old dynamics, the way things used to be, the spontaneity, the lightness. But if you're lucky, and I mean really lucky, you adapt together. You end up breathing together. You grow together. And yeah, you still laugh. It's not about going back. It's about finding your new rhythm, even if you're off beat sometimes. And if you're watching this and you're loving someone with Parkinson's, you probably don't hear this enough. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Not just for what you do, but for who you are. But understand, you don't need to fix everything and you don't have to be perfect, but your presence, your presence, that changes everything. And here's what we need from you. Patience. Sometimes we freeze. Sometimes we forget. Sometimes we're moody. And sometimes we are really agitated and frustrated. Be patient, not just with us, but be patient with yourself too. We need honesty. We don't need you to sugarcoat it. If you're scared or overwhelmed, say it. Say it, because we're in this together. It's not just us, right? It's you too. We're in this together. Boundaries. Take care of yourself. You don't have to pour from an empty cup. You can't pour from an empty cup. And it's okay to ask for help. In fact, we want you to. You know, have you heard that, you know, when you go on an airplane and they're giving you the instructions beforehand that hopefully none of you or none of us and me in particular have never had to deal with, but, you know, they say in case of an emergency and that, and they say that the, um, you call those mass things will drop out. You're the mass, the oxygen mass will fall from the ceiling. And you know how they always do with the, the stewardesses and stewards. They always, they're always like, you know, put your mask on first, put your mask on first and then help somebody else. Because if you lose oxygen, you cannot help somebody else. So you need to help yourself, make sure you're in a good place first, and then you're in a good place to help us. And if you feel like you're burning out, are you feeling really tired? That's, you know, feeling tired and overwhelmed when that overwhelmed feeling is becoming overwhelming, overwhelming, well, I mean, um, that's, that's your key. That's your, that's your node. And, you know, there's as much support out there for you as well. There is care partner support groups. There are communities like this, where there's care partners, full of care partners, this community, you know, leave something in the comments. If you have struggling, you're having a bad day or, um, you know, you want some support, put it in the comments and others, others read the comments, please. Cause people are actually in the comments, reaching out to others, not just me. I don't have all the answers. You know, I have a story and I think I'm an okay storyteller and this is my wheelhouse. This is what I like to do. And I have 15 years of experience with this thing. I didn't read all this in a book. I live it day to day. So I have stuff to give, but you do too. And, you know, if you want to help read the comments and help me respond, if you have an answer, answer it, please. Don't, don't, I want to be really clear about that. So this is a community. It's not a priceless community. It's a community. If you're a care partner and you're having a great day or whatever, just introduce yourself. Tell us your story. Let's, let's start doing life together because guess what? We're all in this together. We're all going through the same thing and we're all here and we're all here to support in whatever way we can. I think it's amazing. And someone asked the other day, my inner circle that I do, and you'll see something on the bottom. That's, I think it's scrolling around the bottom. That's just a group. That's me. That's me and my group. And if you want to be a part of that, please do, please join that. It's for care partners as well. It really is. Anybody, anybody who's dealing with Parkinson's in their life. And just to be clear, I don't make money on this channel. I don't make money on the swag and things that are up there because everything that we get, anything, anything, any dollar, someone gives us a super thanks and thank you for that. Got our first one last week, a super thanks. That was amazing. Every single dollar, we're going to reinvest it in getting the word out there and getting more people involved and getting more people that are out there struggling. They don't know where to turn. We're, we're, we're, we're, we're going to, we spend that on that, on advocacy, on outreach and to reach more people. So if you give, if you feel, if you do give a super thanks or whatever, join the inner circle or buy a t-shirt or buy a mug, whatever it might be, you're just helping get the word out. You're helping supporting Parkinson's, you know, people that are out there in the trenches, trying to get that and help, trying to help somebody, somebody to help somebody feel better today. So I just say it like that, but anyway, please introduce yourself and please let's, let's, let's do life together. And remember Parkinson's might live in my body, but its reach goes far beyond me. It touches every relationship that I have. It changes how I connect, how I show up and how I lean into others. But here's the beauty in it all. When Parkinson's shows up, love will show up too. Believe me, it does. Peace, patience, understanding, grace. It doesn't make it easy, but it does make it possible. We don't get through this alone. We get through it together. So if this episode hits home and you felt the ripple effect of Parkinson's in your relationships, drop a comment below. If you know my story and you can go back and watch or listen to the other podcasts. I went through, you know, a divorce. I didn't work out. Someone didn't want to be with me. It's not really rough, but no. So I get it. And Parkinson's does affect relationships. So comment below. Let's, let's talk about it. And don't forget like, and subscribe if you can, please, and share this with somebody you who know is walking this path with you. Share it with your caregivers, sit down with them. If you're watching this or, and or just send it to them, share it to them and let them know you love them. Let them know you're thankful for them and let them know that you get it right. This is Living With Parkinson's, the good, the bad, the reality. I'm Bryce. Really thankful for you being part of us, being part of this and being part of us. You have a great week.