Parkinson Social NetworkExciting News for our Parkinson Community!
The news from the Inova Movement Disorders Center is that their team of Movement Disorder Specialists is growing! Dr. David Whitney recently began seeing patients at his office in Fair Oaks as well as in Gainesville.
The title of this presentation may sound familiar, but it is constantly being updated. I’ve attended it several times, but each one is different as new advancements are added. I can highly recommend that you attend!
Advancements in the Treatment of Parkinson’s Disease: Neurorestoration and Beyond
Thursday, October 10, 2019, 4:00 pm
At: Fairview Park Marriott
3111 Fairview Park Dr., Falls Church, VA 22042
Join the Inova Movement Disorders Center for a discussion about the new treatments for Parkinson’s disease and the future of our field, followed by an extended question & answer session where patients and their families can direct the conversation. You can also meet the team’s newest Movement Disorders Specialist, Dr. David Whitney.
Please RSVP, as space is limited:
marie.bermudez@inova.org / 703-776-3130
Parkinson Social Network is involved in organizing this annual event now in it’s 33rd year. Caregivers can enjoy the time connecting with others who understand first-hand what it means to be a caregiver.
Caregiver’s Conference: The Art of Friendship in Caregiving
Presented by the Northern Virginia Dementia Care Consortium
Monday, November 11, 2019 from 8:00 am – 3:30 pm
At: Korean Central Presbyterian Church
15451 Lee Highway, Centreville, VA 20121
Topics – Speakers
Creating a Dementia Friendly Virginia – Melissa Andrews
Latest Updates in Dementia Research – Dr. Tabassum Majid
Mona Lisa and the Art of Dementia Care – David Troxel
Ethical Challenges in Dementia Care – Dr. Michael Gillette
Physicians of the Human Spirit – David Troxel
Who Should Attend
• Family caregivers
• Volunteers working with older adults
• Professionals in aging and related services
$35 conference fee. Fee includes continental breakfast, lunch, snack, materials, and certificate of attendance.
Register at https://nvdcc2019.eventbrite.com
This conference sells out quickly. Purchase your ticket today! Registration ends Nov. 3rd or earlier if capacity is reached.
For more information about the conference, please call Lindsey Vajpeyi at 703-270-0043 or click here to download the flyer.
Sentimental Journey Chorus
There are still openings for the new Sentimental Journey Chorus for people with early and mid-stage dementia and their care partners. The Chorus meets at Insight Memory Care Center in Fairfax on Monday mornings. This chorus is a new initiative through Encore Chorale, for all singers 55 and over, with a Chorale in Reston and a Rock Chorale in Oakton. Register at www.EncoreCreativity.org.
Music Therapy
Joshua Schrader at Capital Music Therapy Services is working to start a music therapy class for Parkinson’s soon. If you are interested, please email Josh at joshua.schrader@capitalmts.com.
Parkinson’s in local news
Thank you, Susan Kousek, our speaker at cafes Fairfax and Ashburn this month, for sending us this article: Herndon Teen Wins National Scholarship for Method to Diagnose Parkinson’s Disease. From the article:
“Kopparapu developed what the institute said is the first diagnosis system for early-stage Parkinson’s disease using an MRI scan. The Herndon resident was inspired to create the system — which is accurate nearly 97 percent of the time — after his grandfather was diagnosed with the disease at a late stage and was unable to use commonly-prescribed medication to fight the disease.”
Click here to read more!
Rock Steady Boxing NoVa
Alec is working on adding a new Rock Steady Boxing location in the Springfield/Alexandria area and developing a waiting list. If you want to add your name to the list, please contact Alec Langstein at nova@rsbaffiliate.com, call 571-730-8553, or visit rocksteadynova.com. The faster the waiting list grows, the faster he can get the program started!
More boxing news! Click here to check out the article about local Rock Steady Boxer, Anna Grill, in the Summer 2019 issue (page 6) of In Your Corner, a free publication by Rock Steady Boxing.
Growing Resilience: Mindfulness & Body Awareness for People with Parkinson’s Disease
Kickoff weekend:
Saturday September 28th – 2:00-4:30 pm* (note – first class 2.5 hours)
Sunday, September 29th – 2:00-4:00 pm
Sundays: October 6, 13, 20, 27 – 2:00-4:00pm
Location: Emmaus United Church of Christ – 900 Maple Ave E, Vienna, VA 22180
Instructors: Carolyn Black-Bagdoyan and Trish Stotler Cost is $345
There are still spaces available for this 6-session class series is designed to bring the benefits of mindfulness and body connection to people with Parkinson’s, and empower them towards greater inner resilience, well-being and quality of life. We combine strategies and techniques drawn from the clinically studied Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program with therapeutic yoga practices. Each class will include an adaptive yoga practice.
Click here for more information on their website or contact Carolyn at hearttreeyoga@gmail.com
More from the Davis Phinney Victory Summit in Philadelphia
The PowerPoint presentations from some of the speakers are now available for you to read and download.
• Not Just the Shakes: Non-motor Symptoms – Heather Koons, MD, Vanderbilt (Nashville, TN)
• Cognitive Challenges & What to Do About Them – Daniel Weintraub, MD, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (Philadelphia, PA)
• Punching Back at Parkinson’s with Exercise – Michael Braitsch, DPT, Tribe Wellness (Richardson, TX)
• Live Your Best – Amy Carlson, Davis Phinney Foundation Ambassador (Monrovia, CA)
• Cultivating Happiness – Connie Carpenter Phinney, MS, Care Partner, Davis Phinney Foundation (Louisville, CO)
To check out these presentations, click here to go to the Philadelphia webpage, then click on Event Materials and Presentations.
Parkinson’s on the Move
We met a lot of interesting people at the Davis Phinney Victory Summit. Angela and Karl met Alexander from Parkinson’s on the Move and shared information about his website. There are videos of workouts, an exercise library with individual exercises, yummy recipes, and videos to help you reduce stress. There’s something for everyone, of all abilities. Use of the resources on their website is free, but you can also contact them about your own personalized program. Click here to learn more about Parkinson’s on the Move!
Senior Spelling Bee
Thursday, Sept 26, 2019 10:00 – 12:00 noon
At: Hunters Woods at Trails Edge
2222 Colts Neck Rd, Reston VA 20191
Join us for this exciting event that brings together seniors from across Northern Virginia for some fun competition! Come and cheer for your favorite team!
For more information please contact Toni Reinhart 571-373-7464 or toni@tonireinhartdementia.com. Toni has said she’ll be wearing her bee costume at the Spelling Bee . . .
I hope this newsletter is helpful and we’ll see you Out & About soon! This week we’ll be at our Side by Side support groups. Katie Fair will visit us to talk about driver rehabilitation. I hope you can join us! Details on our Side by Side page.
Cheers,
Sonia
email: Sonia@ParkinsonSocialNetwork.org
As Summer Comes to a Close
I hope you’ve all had a wonderful Labor Day weekend holiday! It’s hard to believe that summer is coming to a close and the weather will soon be cooler.
Our Funny Month of August
At our Cafe Ashburn last week, and in keeping with our theme of humor, one of our friends arranged for us to view a Mary Maxwell YouTube video and we enjoyed her dry sense of humor. If you google Mary Maxwell and YouTube, you can see the various videos of her thoughts on getting old.
Click here to see the video we watched on Wednesday.
We also chatted about our favorite I Love Lucy episodes which you can also find if you search on YouTube.
I met Gretchen at the Davis Phinney Foundation Victory Summit in Philadelphia. On her flyer it says “Each one of us has a face. It is the beauty of our faces that we want others to focus on.”
“I AM” The Face Of Project
Gretchen White is a one woman non-profit, “I AM” The Face Of Project – www.iamthefaceofproject.org. She was taking photos at the Victory Summit for a book she is working on that will show the beautiful faces of people with Parkinson’s. Her goal for this book is to have 100 faces, but if she gets 50, she will be very happy. At the moment, she is very close.
If you or someone you know want to be a part of this project? Gretchen is asking people to send Gretchen a black and white photo of their face. Click here for a photo release form. Please make as many copies as you need.
Gretchen will also need your first name, age, date when diagnosed, country where you live, and a brief (one paragraph) about you to include.
The deadline for the book is September 30th.
If you’d like to contact Gretchen, her email address is: iamthefaceofproject@gmail.com
Luscious Landscapes – Art Exhibition
We often talk about how Parkinson’s seems to bring out creativity in people and we have several artists joining us at our various cafes. One of our carepartner friends, Linda Bankerd, will have her paintings featured at Touchstone Gallery in D.C. from September 4 to 29.
Click here for more details about Linda’s exhibition.
A Positive Brain – podcast about Parkinson’s and PSN
I recently sat down with Toni Reinhart and Peggy Breda to record a podcast about Parkinson’s and the Parkinson Social Network. According to the description we talked about “how this grass roots organization is helping people with Parkinson’s stay connected, active and social through companionship, cafe’s and donuts!”
Click here to listen to the podcast. Click here to choose from the wide range of topics – all to do with the brain – that Peggy and Toni have covered in their other podcasts.
I hope this newsletter is helpful and we’ll see you Out & About soon! Click here to see more about our events and others in our community.
Cheers,
Sonia
email: Sonia@ParkinsonSocialNetwork.org
Parkinson Social Network 