I find that I can pick someone with Parkies if I am out and about. I think my diagnosis and my history with my parents means I am 'tuned in' to others with the same condition. But, if I see someone in the community would it be a good thing or a bad thing to ask if they have Parkies? Here's some of my thoughts.

Is it just a number that we reach at which we are officially old? There is a number when we become a teenage (13) or an adult in a lot of cultures (21), but what is the number when you are considered elderly?

Parkinson's is not my all. It is a blip. It doesn't deserve top billing. Think of me for everything that I am, not for a diagnosis that doesn't deserve to be given brain space.

They say opposites attract and that is true. Some thoughts on how we support each other and try to understand each other. How we manage our differences and support each other's needs.

We have all probably heard of enablers who encourage unhealthy activities or actions. But it is disablers, that this focusses on. People in our lives who take away our ability to do for ourselves and become less able through not being encouraged to be independent.

Parkinson's is not just the physical symptoms that people might recognise. It is so much more and can be quite different for each individual.

My first day back at bowls for over a year. I had some challenges to overcome and some self advocacy that was needed, but I am proud that I managed as well as I did after so long away.

It may sound strange, but I often find myself feeling perhaps like a "normal" person - if there is such a thing - and forgetting for a moment in time that Parkies is along for the ride.

I am challenged by my recovery and can get frustrated with myself that I am not fully recovered yet. I need to cut myself some slack!

A comparison of the support that can be funded if you have an accident in NZ versus the support that is funded for those of us with a condition that means we need to stop work or have other financial needs.