It's no secret that I'm a huge Michael J. Fox fan, pretty much because the Back to the Future movies are my favorite movies ever. So anytime I have stuff to write on him, I geek out like Miss Manda finding a post about Jessica Simpson. Anyway, he had an interview with People magazine about different topics involving his Parkinson's Disease, so peep it!!
On Parkinson's Effects: "I refuse to define it in terms of a hardship or a difficulty ... It is what it is. You either get Zen with this [stuff] or you lose your mind." Having the disease "is part of an amazing life. And not an 'otherwise' amazing life," he clarifies. "It's part of what makes my life amazing."
On Suffering From "Bradykinesia" Daily (which leaves his speech slurred, his face void of emotion and his arms heavy at their sides): "It can be affected by whether or not I've eaten enough protein, or if there's a low-pressure system in the weather ... If it's cloudy outside, I can feel it."
The Fox Family: "Our family life is so normal. [His kids] don't see me as suffering from anything. The joke is, we'll be going to school and I'll say, 'Choose to have a great day!' and they'll roll their eyes at me. They see me as positive, upbeat ... Parkinson's doesn't even come up."
Fox's Doctor on His Health: "Michael's doing terrifically well," Susan Bressman, Chair of the Department of Neurology at New York's Beth Israel Medical Center, says. "He copes so beautifully and he's such an optimist that he's a role model for everybody -- whether you have a disease or you don't."
On Opting Out of New Surgical Treatments: "The next time they're going into my brain, they're going in with the goods to get it done. If they can't do that, then I'm not ready."
Coping and Looking Forward: He and Pollan "haven't looked back. For everything that's worse, there's something that's better ... I really love my life. That's just me. I understand Parkinson's is a real hardship for [some] people, and I'm not trying to be insensitive to them. But I have to be realistic about my situation. Yes, it's a horrible condition. Would I choose not to have it? Yeah, I think so. But it's not my choice."
The Next Decade: "I'm almost sure that in 10 or 12 years we'll have much better medication for it. Based on how I feel now, I'll be okay for at least 10 more years." So what does "okay" mean to Fox? "Living a life, that's not much different than what I live now."
Seriously, if everyone was as positive as this guy, the world would be a better place. A little too fluffy for my taste maybe, but definitely a better place.
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