Amy Huberman’s father has opened up about his battle with Parkinson’s.
The painter and designer has revealed he has been suffering from the illness for the last five years, and admitted he is trying his best to get on with his life.
“I fall every few weeks and you can’t put your hands out to save yourself, so that’s dangerous,” he explained.
“I already have fusions in my spine from falling. Then I came off the chair in my office, hit my chin off the ground and broke my front tooth.”
Opening up: Harold revealed his personal battle | VIPIRELAND.COM
Speaking to the Irish Independent, with Parkinson’s Awareness Week starting today, Harold revealed he was “in shock” when he was diagnosed.
“I was with my endocrinologist – I’ve had diabetes for 26 years – and he turned to me and said ‘by the way you’ve got Parkinson’s’.
“I can’t write any more but I can paint, which is very strange,” he explained.
“Some people can’t write but they can ride a bike, others can’t stand but they can dance. It’s a very strange thing.”
Doing his ‘best’: Harold is living his life to the full
Despite his struggles, with Harold saying the illness is “ever-declining…you keep going down and down”, Amy’s father said he lives each day to the full.
“I’m still enthusiastic about life,” he admitted.
“There’s an intensity that comes onto you, that you try not to put onto other people, a feeling that you want to get things done, you want to get out.
“So I don’t stay in bed any longer than I need to. I make the effort to get out for a walk every day, even though I don’t always have the strength to walk.
“But you just keep going and you do the best you can,” he admitted.
–For more information check out www.parkinsons.ie
