Talking Loud and Moving Big

It's actually a therapy aimed at PD. It seems that we reach a point where there is no longer any unconscious movement, only what we decide to do. As this trend takes hold two things happen--our ordinary movements become weaker, especially when we are doing them unconsciously. Smiles become small, speech grows soft, handwriting shrinks.

Then our ability to multi-task disappears. If you aren't focusing on an act or movement, it just sort of tails off altogether--you drop what you were holding while you opened the door, or you fell as you were reaching for something because you didn't move your feet in that direction, too.

But you can reverse all that by learning to "talk loud and move big." So, if those around you are noticing the "stone-face" most of the time, and asking you to stop mumbling and you can't read what you write any more, this may be for you. It's called LSVT-BIG, and it has been proven to make significant inroads in movement, speech and more. You need to find a therapist certified in LSVT-BIG and the process takes four weeks to learn (not sure how much time per week, but what else do you have to do?).

Another approach has been developed by John Argue, whose background is in theater, Tai Chi and yoga. The obvious fit with theater is projection of your voice, larger movements and graceful movement. John has a book and video supplementary materials to teach his approach. It means learning to act consciously, learning the art of movement--graceful, mindful and complete (body awareness, conscious effort, mono-tasking).

My only trouble is that reading about these things seems to lead me to seeing the progression of symptoms in myself. Was it denial--that I really was just ignoring what was happening? Or is this the power of suggestion, like the hypochondriac who develops every condition they read about? In either case, the point of it is a specialized kind of exercise I can try to a greater or lesser extent depending upon the extent of my symptoms or similarities to the developments I described. Exercise--face it--is what I need. So, buying the book, finding the therapist, or a personal trainer is going to help, no matter where Iam in a progression. Whether I am imagining your symptoms, denying them or just plain experiencing them.