Before I was diagnosed by my MD neurologist, but had a good fortune to be examined by a functional neurologist. Functional neurology believes that all brain ways to the rest of the body flow through your eyes. So by testing different movements of the eyes it can be determined what part of your brain needs to most stimulation. In my situation my right side was affected by Parkinson's and so the left brain is the one affected. What's really interesting is I can stimulate my left brain through eye exercises which I do every day. The eye exercises increase my cognitive skills, my and energy level and some of my motor skills. I went I went through a weeklong intensive exercise program with the doctor and now I only go back twice a year for routine checkup. By doing various IHS he can tell if my brain is still being stimulated close to the level that it was after the weeklong intensive exercise program. The last two times I've gone the brain was actually stimulated at a higher level than it was my left after the weeklong exercise. I've not seen anyone post information about this, but I would be interested if anyone else's experience positive results with the functional neurologist.
I witnessed a very unique experience as a parky came in on Monday the same week I was there. He was bent over at about 45° walking with a cane to keep from falling down. On Friday that week he was standing straight up and down and did not need to cane.
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I say, don't knock it until you have tried it. It is non invasive and there are no negative side affects, AND it works. Even the medical community can not say that. It works for me and several people I have personally witnessed. I just put that out there to see if anyone else has hade an experience with Functional Neurology.
Bailey, I think you are being very hard on Functional Neurology. Having just read an article on training in Oregon I found it to be balanced & possibly of some help to PwP. Not all alternative therapies are 'snake oil' practices, though finding competent practitioners can be difficult & time consuming.
Very interesting article. My treatment and experience with my FN was nothing like the article described. There was no manipulation, only focus was on the eyes and brain. The article mentioned neither.
The article was interesting in a number of ways. The blatant bias against not just functional neuropathy but chiropractic in general bordered on the ancient practice of witch hunting. In fact by emulating the practises he criticises he is putting himself down.
"Patterning" developed by the Institute for HumanPotential (by & Delacato) is something of which I have had first hand experience. The article states many times that examples given by alternative practitioners are not supported by scientific studies but neither are his.
Having just reviewed what I have written so far I see it is in danger of becoming a rant which is not my intention. I am actually quite positive but I am getting carried away. I'll send you a private message via the site
this is don todd first post a couple of weeks ago does it sound like this works for him
"I am 68 and officially became a Parky a little over a year ago. I am still adjusting to my new normal. The changes include loss of coordination of my right hand, loss of strength on my right side and, when I am tired, my speech is affected. One of my daily activities that went away is my ability to type.
With that said, if I had a choice of what disease I wanted, PD would be on that list, excluding most other diseases..
I am not on the heavy meds yet. My biggest challenges are slowness of movement, getting dressed, getting out of the car, getting into bed, and of course, getting up from the couch.
I am trying to stay very active. I am still working, exercising and even trying to play some golf, although my game has changed for the worse
I just learned about an indoor training bicycle called Theracycle (theracycle.com) that looks very appealing to me. Has anyone had an experience with It? They have a Parky testimonial on the benefits but I wanted to ask around as well.
Now you have me confused Bailey. I thought I signed up for a Parkinson's support group, am I wrong?
I would rather hear an insincere complement then a sincere grouch. My mom used to tell me if I didn't have anything nice to say about somebody don't say anything at all.
I’’m curious to learn more about your therapy, Don Todd. What did the exercises entail? Did they help in any way with motor skills issues you have? Could you yourself measure the impact?
I’d not heard of Functional Neurology before now - nor of Chiropractic Neurology - but have become aware of the underutilized role that optics can play in therapies for the brain and body.
Am attaching a couple of links on the use of prism glasses. These cases did not involve Parkinsons but you may see some parallels.
The first two are about Clark Elliott, a professor who had a whiplash-induced concussion and suffered the effects of that for 8 years. Eyeglasses with prisms in them were part of what brought him back.
Separately, there’s this case of a college baseball player sidelined by intense back pain. Regular physical therapy and chiropractic brought little relief. Prism eyeglasses and a form of physical therapy called Postural Restoration put him back in the game.
I read these accounts and wondered if at least some PD symptoms, such as gait and imbalance, might be alleviated by therapy using the eyes. (I can attest to already getting relief from the Postural Restoration therapy alone..but that’s another thread.)
(PS: I wrote that last sentence w some hesitation as sometimes contributors get pounced upon for writing about what worked for them in alleviating their PD issues. I’ll admit, I’ve read some things here from time to time that didn’t seem quite plausible but mightn’t we address them with questions rather than rough up the writer? That way others won’t be afraid to write about their experiences, the sharing of which just might be a help to others of us w/PD. That’s one of the points of this site, right?)
That is a tough question to answer. In a perfect world any functional neurologist would do, in the real world I'm sure they very just like other doctors do. If you are aware of a functional neurologist I suggest you schedule an appointment with them and after the first meeting you can come to your own conclusion if that is the right one for you.
My functional neurologist is in Portland Oregon. He has a personality type to want to solve problems not patch up the symptoms.
hmmm. sounds wacky but on the other hand, i know for a fact that there is a similar effect achieved in art described in 'Drawing on the Right side of the Brain' by Betsy Edmonds. you can't believe what you can draw by doing it upside down. also, singers use their left eye to look at a hand movement or handkerchief which then stimulates the right side of the brain and allows one to sing better. our daughter is a singer and that is one of the techniques she uses to hit a difficult high note or to hold a note longer. also, there was a parky who designed glasses which worked to aid in walking. don't know what ever happened to his research but i do know he had early onset and that he worked with the people who design jet plane helmets for virtual 'seeing'. it changed his gait dramatically. i thought he would develop it further but haven't read anything about it in several years.
for all those who scoff....remember, what we know now is merely the 'current wisdom', not the end all and be all of all knowledge.
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