For those who care for someone with Parkinson's disease
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Today was our first visit to Rock Steady Boxing. Man, it was INTENSE! 1 1/2 hours of non stop, NOT kidding, non/stop boxing and exercises! He was sweating profusely! What was encouraging was seeing how all levels of PWP were trying so hard! They were doing all kinds of exercising between punching bags...they were shouting encouragement to each other, shouting out commands, etc...I am completely impressed by this program! *I* could not sustain that level of commitment, but each of the 30 people did! They kept encouraging each other! At one point, I cried when one of the women said, “I started one month ago and couldn’t get up from the floor withou help, now I can roll over onto my stomach AND get up without any help and without holding onto something!” Another told Carl he could not do “anything”, but after two months, he doesn’t use a wheelchair anymore! An amazing program! Drawback is they only offer it in a class 45 minutes away (one way), so it IS a commitment! |
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| My husband has attended RSB twice a week for about a year now. It is a true workout and my husband is convinced it is slowing the progression of his disease. |
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Rock Steady is pretty intense! 1 1l2 hours and they only stop for two, 2-minute breaks! Watching the progression of the boxers makes me cry...everyone tries so hard! It is a big commitment, so we still only go twice a week, but it is very worthwhile. I have watched many, many of the PWP move better, become more vocal shouting out exercise countdowns, and laugh and laugh! Such a positive experience! Give it a try! There are all levels of stamina and strength, but the benefits are well worth the effort! |
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my husband just started it. He was unsure whether he would like it, but now he is fully on board! It is an amazing thing to see everyone working so hard. His session is about an hour long. so glad we heard about it from his neurologist. |
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Update: We have been going now for several months and Carl still loves it! The instructors push up to a limit, but they are very encouraging and help keep the sessions active. We saw the neurologist and he is very pleased with Carl's stamina and abilities and they both feel that the activity at Rock Steady is a large part of it all. We attended a softball game and picnic and are preparing to help out at the MJFox bike ride through the vineyards in August. We will be volunteers this go around, as we haven't been on bikes in 50 years! I wish everyone had access to this boxing, if only for the camaraderie. |
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I am new to the Forum and am so happy to hear all the positive things about the Rock Steady Boxing. We have one a few miles away and plan on checking it out this next week. Hoping my husband will go as it does sound wonderful. The girls who did his BIG and LOUD therapy said we should go that is it a wonderful program. I really like reading comments from people who are experiencing the same problems. It means a lot. Thanks We went this past weekend for his Evaluation at the Gym so they could see his movements. He did great and loved the boxing part. He is enrolled to start on Oct 1st. So, I am hoping that he enjoys it and gets a lot out of it. Thanks for all the encouragement! I will keep you updated. |
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Welcome to the Forum! Rock Steady is a commitment, but it is worth the effort! I go, too, but I am the “cheerleader”, not a boxer! I encourage your husband to go. Some of the kindest, most energetic instructors you will come to know! |
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| Well, it's almost a month since my husband joined Rock Steady Boxing and he is still loving it. He is getting to know some of the other men/women and the feeling more comfortable with the instructors now. They are having a Lunch pot luck on Halloween which we rearranged a Dr. appointment to attend. If you have any doubts in this program, give it a try. It has been most helpful to my husband. Go RSB |
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I am glad to see so many trying to help themselves to slow the progression of this terrible disease. My husband never did any exercises to help things and maybe if he had, he wouldn't be where he is today. Keep up the good work. |
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| I am so happy to read these great posts regarding Rock Steady Boxing (even if they are a bit old). My 79 year old husband is newly diagnosed and I have been reading anything and everything I can get my hands on including many posts on this forum so that I can help us both understand and deal with PD. I found RSB classes in our area and I am hoping to sign him up ASAP. My husband walks daily and is willing to take one class. Is RSB the best class available for PWP? What other classes/activities have you found helpful to your PWP? Thank you all for your support! I am very nervous about how this disease will impact us and I know we will need all the help we can get! |
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Hello PDNewbie and All- I need to ask an indiscrete question about Rock Steady. My husband suffers gut problems to the extent that I don’t think he could get through the class. How would he get the gloves off fast enough to run to the bathroom then put them back on….(then repeat) I know the class can be very helpful but just wonder how others handle this. Also, the local class is 45 minutes away and through the city. We are reducing his driving and this would be difficult for him as well. Cannot ask for a ride from anyone in case he needs to hurry to a bathroom…. Thanks and I appreciate any thoughts. NoMatterWhat |
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NMW, i don’t have any answers but I’m right there with you. Our local Rock Steady Boxing class is about half an hour away but even that is too far for my husband to drive, and I’m still working so I can’t take him. There is a local PowerMoves class for people with Parkinson’s, but he doesn’t want to go to that one. We are still looking for something that will work (well, to be honest, I am still looking). I’m thinking of paying the lady that runs the PowerMoves class to do a few private sessions and then after that he can do the exercises on his own. I just wish there was someone I could hire to come over a couple of times a week to encourage him to do them. He won’t do it unless I or someone is there to motivate/insist. |
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We are very fortunate that the Rock Steady Boxing class is only 15 minutes from our house. My HWP has been doing the class for around 4 weeks now. He attends twice per week. I drive him there and everywhere because I don’t think he should be driving anymore. He likes it a lot, but continually talks about quitting because he is afraid of falling and he feels like he can’t keep up. At 79, he is the oldest, but one guy is 78 and several others are in their 70s. Others are younger, with one gal only 52. They have now placed a chair in the exercise room for him to rest, if needed. They do a wide variety of exercises that change with each class. Boxing is always part of the class. They also walk on a treadmill, do lots of stretching exercises, and then do random things like drumming. After the second class, the instructor sent me a photo of my husband and other participants in a maze the instructors constructed out of blue painters tape. The PWP had to navigate the maze to pick cotton balls off of the tape. She said they were working on balance and dexterity. I thought it was a very creative idea! The class has also provided much needed emotional support for my husband as he is getting to know other people with this disease and learning how they are coping. My husband was also concerned about bathroom issues, but it has not been an issue for him so far. They actually only wear the gloves part of the time. I suspect others have similar concerns. I will tell you that from the start my husband had trouble just putting the boxing gloves on and the instructor had to do it for him. They wear a fitted knit glove under the boxing gloves and he also has trouble with those. He literally practices at night and has improved. They still help him with the gloves, but not as much. I think the other participants can get there own gloves on. He feels bad that he is the “worst in the class”. I wondered if that was actually true and so I watched part of the last class. Although others appear to have worse PD symptoms (more tremors and stiffness), he does seem to be in the worst physical shape of the class. They have 2 instructors and one spent much of her time with my husband. I watched them doing some common and simple stretching exercises at the end of class. He was the only one doing them in a chair and he couldn’t do several of them. I figured I would show him at home, but after multiple attempts to show him, he still couldn’t do them. I think his cognitive issues may have progressed because he just couldn’t understand what to do. I hope he sticks with this class or is willing to take another class for PWP. I keep telling him that it doesn’t matter what the others can or cannot do. He just needs to compete against himself and try to improve. Otherwise, what’s the alternative? |
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I appreciate the replies to my questions and learning how uou have integrated the Rock Steady program into your Lives. At this point we are so overwhelmed with Dr appointments my husband is stressing which causes poor sleep, confusion, frustration, urgent trips to the bathroom and just overall mental exhaustion from him worrying about what time to leave, how long to get there, what car to tale, etc though we say it all out loud multiple times… i am finding understanding in your statement that the disease progression has left your PWP unable yo understand what to do. Watching my husband battle with his inability to understand, plan, recall or act on our scheduling and other current tasks is shocking. He is having more trouble than ever with simple commands like ‘take your medicine now’ because an hour or two later i find out that although he went to the kitchen, opened the pillbox, and poured a glass of water he never actually swallowed the med. I am watching him slip farther into this disease and am trying to help and be present-to think of the good-to cherish his ‘I love you’s… He is very motivated physically and works very diligently here at home with exercise. I am not sure he will pursue RSB… I will let you know. NoMatterWhat |
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NMW, I understand how doctor visits and other issues are taking over your lives as it is happening to us too. We have an ongoing list of doctors to visit and issues to address. I often have to set aside my other plans to make these visits a priority as PD begins to take precedence in our lives. I have also been aware of the need to sometime soon begin handling my husbands medications. Our neurologist brought up that issue at our last visit — somethingI had not even realized could be an issue at this point. Shocking is an apt description for so much of this disease. This last year we have had one shock after another. The first was last summer when I saw HWP in the ER after he fell flat on his face on concrete resulting in 14 broken bones in his face. The first sight of tremors in his hand last fall was certainly unexpected. However, it has been shocking to see how quickly the tremors have moved to other parts of his body. Sometimes at night, his entire body now shakes so much that he can’t sleep. I didn’t quite believe my eyes when I first saw him drool this winter. Now, it is commonplace. The cognitive issues and lack of facial expression are also shocking and awful and all happening so quickly. There are even little shocks like not being able to put on a seatbelt much of the time and never quite getting his jacket over one shoulder. I spend much time reading about PD so I am more prepared for shocks that will likely occur in the future and they won’t create so much emotional havoc. |
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Even though my HWP has had it for so long now I feel I will never get used to the idea that he is sick. Seems like we’re both stuck in a bad dream. I just need to vent sometimes so badly. He is trying hard to keep it together and function but it is so hard for him. Doesn’t want to do the boxing yet. I can’t convince him to go although he went once about 2 yrs ago and seemed to like it. He thinks it will exhaust him too much. I am trying to keep myself from falling deep into the dumps. I try to remember that he could be so much worse. Our every waking moment seems to revolve around this darn disease and I am getting resentful. Doctors can only help so much and then it’s left for the poor wives to deal with everything day in and day out. Such a helpless feeling. Why did this have to happen to us? He already had the prostate cancer, that seemed like enough to handle. I just have to figure out how to suck it up better and just keep putting one foot in front of the other. It is alot to do with one’s attitude. Maybe if I just smile and laugh more it will affect my pleasure level. I’m rambling but it’s nice to have someplace to just let off steam. |
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I have to say, I am scared to death about the unknown the future brings and what our PD experience will bring before it is all over but I love my husband dearly and having this forum and you all to share with helps me everyday. When I check in I find you mentioning things I recognize in my own life. I really feel less alone. NoMatterWhat |
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| NMW, I echo everything you wrote. |