While nosing around the blogosphere I came across a very nice PD blog in which the author stated that she did not like the word "parkie". She explained that the term demeaned her and reduced her to a diagnosis, whereas she is a real person who happens to have PD. I think she preferred PWP (person with parkinson's).
PWP is a good term, easy to type, offensive to no-one, and to the point. But I still like parkie as a noun and as an adjective) for in-group discussions, and among my friends and family. I think it is jaunty, slightly humorous term, not solemn, not fearful.
I also use the term "parked out" at home to describe that feeling when my symptoms, especially the invisible ones, are unusually strong.
Anybody have a feeling about "parkie" to refer to a PWP?
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Parkinson_Schmarkinson
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I'm not thrilled with the use of the word "parkie".... It just has a trite, flippant sound to it.... sounds too similar to "perky" ....or "parakeet"....but maybe I'm just being a grouch. I prefer just to say PD or PWP.
I don't mind being called a Parkie. The label does not change the fact that I have PD and the label does not make PD worse. The label does not define me. It is just a tag for the disease.
I do not mind being called a Parkie. It is only a word after all and does not make me a different person. I have been called worse. Whatever you call PD you cannot change the fact that you have got it.
call me whatever you like. I have many titles, another won't hurt.
I am
mother
wife
daughter
sister
friend
boss
chief cook and bottle washer
I am still me,
Caroline
i dont mind been called a parkie either . but i do hate that its called parkinsons disease . i never use the word disease i just say i have parkinsons or im a parkie .does anyone here feel the same ? i have met patients on other sites that dont like it either .
I totally agree and will add my view that Parkinson's is a condition, not a disease. It is a feature which generally comes with age but can strike younger people, too.
It is no different (apart from the obvious) from other conditions, like deteriorating eyesight, which also occur with ageing.
It doesn't really matter what you call it, but I would guess that most non-P people would not understand Parkie and you wind up spelling out the word in full anyway
Ha Ha is does doesn`t it? .......like something you would say in rehab lol
I dont like the term PWP, it sounds like a chemical !! and I never ever use the word "disease"...that just makes it sound contagious and people dont wanna come near you !
So yes we are all different...but we are members of an awesome worldwide community......"Meet the Parkies"....now there`s a film! ha ha
I am many things - a husband, father, brother, grandfather, uncle, man, disabled. I am also a jazz lover, a Manchester United fan, a Mancunian, even a British fan of the Washington Redskins(for my pains).
But none of these descriptions defines me. I am a unique person, and am surrounded by millions of other persons, each unique in their own special way, as is self evident from the contributors to this web site.
What I am not is a Parkie, or any other expression which ties me to my condition. We are all different, and thank goodness for that. Variety is the spice of life!!
I personally like "Parkie" when talking amongst fellow parkies and friends and family because it is on the lighter side. Less weighty than PWP. Parkinson's is weighty enough without adding the gravitas of an acronym.
I would rather refer to myself as a "Parkie" than a PWP. It's less clinical and is more light-hearted. The disease is serious enough, without us taking ourselves too seriously on top of it, with heavy clinical labeling. It's good to lighten up a bit.
Best wishes to all the fellow Parkies out there. Jane
I worked as a diabetes nurse educator for years, we did not use the term "diabetic", instead, a person with diabetes. Personally, I don't like the term "parkie" but make if it does not bother you, go for it!
I don't want to be called a "Parkie"; sounds like an object to me. I don't mind PWP.
I hate that word too ''Parkie!'' It makes it sound as if it is almost a fashionable complaint with all the recent celebrity status about it all. No! I call it a F****** Demon! I may just be a grumpy old man though, and too set in my ways to accept all this modern usage of words.
I reckon just get on with life. Curse the bad parts (It does make you feel better) and bless the good ones.
I don't care for "parkie": it sounds like we are members of a fun club. This is not a fun club. I think it also reduces a person to a label for a disease. I am not "a parkie" (except in that I go to the park a lot). I am a person. A PWP in a medical context. Thank you for being sensitive enough to find out how other feel about this term. As for me, it grates a little when I hear it. If I'm depressed, it bothers me more. I think that because we are all in varying degrees of hope and despair, people can call themselves whatever they want, but should be conservative and sensitive in how they refer to other people, which is what you're doing. Same goes for PD humor and puns: use them pertain to yourself if you want, which I often do – but don't use them in reference other people. You don't know where that person is emotionally.
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