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Dance Therapy Helpful For Parkinson's Patients
Dr. Holly Phillips
wcbstv.com -
For people struggling with Parkinson's disease, there may be something that offers them a better quality of life: dancing.
Michael Lieb has been suffering from the disease for the past eight years.
"I'm not letting it rule me, I'm trying to rule it," he says.
Lieb says taking part in "Dance for Parkinson's" is giving him the upper hand in his fight.
"It has been the source of great inspiration and a source of hope," he admits.
Parkinson's robs people of their ability to move and it affects 1 percent of the population. There's plenty of ongoing research into the illness, but still no cure.
One thing doctors say they do know is dance seems to have an impact on the illness and researchers are trying to explain why.
"They have sort of a new life, to improve the quality of the rest of their days and weeks," says Dr. James Young of Rush University Medical Center.
Some say dance may even be more beneficial than regular exercise because music stimulates parts of the brain affected by Parkinson's disease, and being together forms and important sense of community.
"I've always known that dance can impact people's lives, but for these people it's especially amazing. In fact I'm going to get a little choked up, because I'm so proud," says Sarah Fuller, a dance instructor.
After 12 weeks of dancing, many participants say they don't use their walkers much anymore.
"It's enabled me to perform movements that I didn't think were possible for me, even before I was diagnosed with Parkinson's," says Lieb.
Lieb adds he's not only gained more flexibility and balance, but a new outlook on life.
Research is also being done on whether dance could be beneficial in other illnesses that affect movement such as stroke, Alzheimer's disease, and Huntington's disease. But for now, experts believe as long as it's done safely it certainly can do no harm.
Typically, treatment for Parkinson's involves medication. Yet, sometimes surgery is an option to help the tremor or rigidity that comes with the disease.
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