Donna's Story
Michael J. Fox clearly put a face on Parkinson’s disease when he was diagnosed 26 years ago.
So many of us, myself included, had no idea that Parkinson’s falls under the umbrella of dementia.
Several years ago, Donna Rajkovic was having pains in her shoulder. She was also dealing with an uncontrollable twitching thumb on her right hand. After two years of a wide range of tests and physical therapy, Donna had a DAT scan that gave her a clear answer. She would be one of the 60,000 people diagnosed each year with early onset Parkinson’s. “I was actually relieved – I finally understood what was happening to my body that was progressively getting worse.”
Parkinson’s medical description is a disorder of the central nervous system that results from the loss of cells in various parts of the brain, leaving patients less able to direct or control their movement.
After Donna came to terms with her new future and garnered the support of her three sons and husband, she decided she was going to fight the disease that was once referred to as Shaking Palsy some 200 years ago.
Today, Donna goes to physical therapy twice a week at Oakland Physical Therapy where she works with Kristie Kava who helps keep Donna’s arms and legs strengthened as well as limber.
She also trains with a personal trainer, Charles Lacasse, at Fitness Together in Novi. Owner Boo Sadikot sat and discussed with us how the baby boomer generation has different physical training needs as they age because of a variety of new diseases, such as Parkinson’s and other dementias, that they are now living with.
Donna joins the fight alongside Michael J. Fox. For the last two years, Donna’s creation of the Team Fox in the D Gala has raised over $320,000.00 for the foundation where 100% of the funds raised goes towards the Michael J. Fox Foundation’s vision for helping find a cure.
During our first day of filming, Donna shared a great deal of wisdom as well as advice for those who might be facing a diagnosis of Parkinson’s. She also helped us to better understand what it’s like living trapped in a body with Parkinson’s. For this, we are thankful for her courage to share her story in an effort to help others.
We also want to thank Dan Dean, managing editor of Observer & Eccentric, who spent the day with us learning about our film, "On the Front Lines of Alzheimer’s & Dementia." Dan is on his own journey with his father who was recently diagnosed with dementia.
To learn more about how you can support this very important film, please go to: http://ontodaysfrontlines.com/alzheimers/