I am so grateful for every day that I get to share with my wonderful husband, he has brought so much joy to my life and has helped me grow as a person. Parkinson’s Disease has brought new challenges, but it cannot take away the many good things still happening or the love I feel for this man. Having said all of that, there are days when his PD makes life difficult for both of us and the struggle can cause stress in our relationship. Let me tell you about the other day.

My husband has good days and bad days and it is usually obvious which he is having. Tuesday was a bad day, he was tired, achy and just not himself. When this happens, he tends to shut down, doesn’t want to do anything even have a conversation. He will still participate in his on-line exercise groups, he has a responsibility to them, but nothing with me no matter how hard I try. It gets exhausting as I attempt to be the cheerleader and make life lighter for both of us until I finally give up and the house gets really quiet.

Then I remember that we have lost three friends from our PD group in the past year. I think about how their partners must be feeling and am suddenly aware that whatever kind of day we are having, at least we are both here and able to share it. That’s where I find my positive feeling for the day and am overcome with gratitude. Good or bad, may we have many more days to share before PD finally wins the battle.