Prior to your diagnosis of Parkinson's were you. A risk taker? Did you always want to win? We're you a perfectionists? Competitive?

[isis6361]

I am a pdns looking at pre morbid personalities of PWP. Were you a person who sought excitement? Thrills? Challenges? Or has your ipd changed your personality?

[froggatt55]

Prior to my diagnosis in 2003, I was an extrovert who loved being the centre of attention I was a risk taker in certain pursuits. I was a perfectionist, competitive and always wanted to win. I was not particularly into excitement and thrills apart from sexual encounters. I did not suffer fools gladly

Now into my 11th year since diagnosis, I can say my personality is one of an introvert who hates being the centre of attraction. I am much more tolerant of others. am still competitive but I no longer have to win - I am a much better loser and don't really mind who wins

[isis6361 in reply to froggatt55]

Thank you can I use your words for my talks please and what country are you in

[froggatt55 in reply to isis6361]

Certainly you can. I live in the UK

[ecker]

yes i was a good looking guy , model wife, range rover and all the confidence in the world ,i was a good runner and would almost die to win .whoever remembers who got a silver medal .now im not the main man i ask who cares and you can take part without winning .now the range rover the model wife blah blah have gone im probably happier and less arrogant as for parkinsons you can only play with the cards your dealt, so the quicker one gets over the Why Me phase , and get on with the rest of your life the better

[Susie01]

Prior to the onset of PD symptoms, I was very competitive in physical and mental pursuits, confident in my abilities. I never liked to be the center of attention but my home was always the gathering place for family and friends. My physical and intellectual abilities were diminishing prior to diagnosis (took years to be diagnosed). I had to resign from my job due to physical and cognitive changes. That really blew my self-confidence! I now socialize with only a close network of friends, cognitive and physical changes have compromised my abilities, I have much less self-confidence.

It is hard to say how much of this is directly the result of PD and how much is the result of age and circumstance. I still hate to loose at Scrabble but no longer feel that I must be in the top at physical challenges. I would love to have the great job that I am competent in, but I know I can no longer perform at that level. The acceptance process has taken a while!

[quirkyme]

My husband has always been careful and cautions. He often would say, "think twice, speak once." Don't hurt your reputation or hurt others by being rash or quick to anger.

The feature I see in PwPD around here is a strong tendency to be scrupulous in doing things well (not perfectionism so much) but wanting to be well-regarded. So he drove himself to achieve or rather to get things done, that needed to be done. Inner directed, devoted husband and father, now retired and 6 years into this. He's had a loss of self confidence and is working through feeling embarrassed at his present self. He's very private about his body so some PD symptoms are very hard on him. All this means a lot of losses and working through them, lots of grief that needs to be dealt with. (His father died of cancer when he was age 17 and somehow he got through college).

One of the reasons I love him is that he's collaborative and not competitive in any of the brash extroverted way we have in the USA. He's always wanted to help others succeed as well as do well himself. He was the manager everyone went to because "he's the only one who listens" and "he's the only one who cares." Maybe, like me, he cares too much about others and drove himself to hard.

This is kind of silly but might be of interest in sorting out the introvert /extravert thing.

upwave.com/recharge/extrove...

[margie]

I have always been self conscious of the way I looked and still am , but with PD I can only do so much. Things change some for the good and some things were hard but I have adjusted. I fight PD every day, to regain as much of me as I can. I was diagnosed in 2004 at 55 . I am 64 now. We moved recently to another part of Florida and am adjusting to this. I feel blessed. I had a stroke in 2004, and was paralized on my left side and it took a year for me to come back 99%. Times are hard, but I could sit back and feel sorry for myself or live, and live the best that I can. Time is getting shorter as each day passes and I want to LIVE as much as I can. I started riding a 3 wheel tricycle because of balance problems. I really enjoy it. I have been riding for 6 weeks now and I am up to 4 miles everyday that it does not rain. When I started riding I could only go 1/2 a mile. I begin taking little steps and work my way up. I pat myself on the back that I made it each day.

[Hidden]

I am an Aries.

Have always been a perfectionist never competitive and self conscious but always could speak my mind....still am all of those things. Once was very excitable, before PD, now its hard to be excited over anything........we travel extensively but it is only once into the adventure that my spirit flickers and begins to glow.

I do have to be occupied and find I cant relax at all......obsessive with keeping a spotless home but then I always was. Back then though I could settle and read a couple of books in a week....not now. I start but other thoughts invade and thats that.

If I do manage to read something its always Fact never fiction. Even before PD preferred fact or fiction based on fact.

I don't know if anything I have said helps.......there haven't been any major changes in my personality apart from apathy. I wish it spilled over onto my obsessiveness with cleanliness.

[Blondir]

Pre PD I would take calculated and considered risks , I wasn't overly competitive , I was and still am a perfectionist but I am a little more relaxed about it when it dosen't happen , I didn't take fools lightly and didn't take prisoners - recent comment from the chap who cleans out my pond twice a year I a much nicer person since I retired early - so is that the PD or retirement ?