April 17, 2008

An estimated 1.5 million Americans suffer with Parkinson’s disease. Close to 13,000 of those individuals live in the state of Virginia.

A few years ago, the University of Virginia conducted a study on the affects of yoga on the disease, positive results led to a continuation of a program offered at Charlottesville’s Senior Center.

The evaluation was so encouraging that the university contacted the senior center, knowing they could offer more room while reaching the target population of individuals affected with Parkinson’s.

Terri Arnold is one of thousands living in Virginia with Parkinson’s disease. She's also one of dozens in the Charlottesville area, who spend two days a week at the senior center doing yoga to help stifle the symptoms of the disease.

“If I miss it a week or a day I can tell the difference. I'm very stiff, but it loosens us up, makes us flexible and we're comfortable with ourselves,” Arnold said.

UVa and the Senior Center sought out a yoga instructor to continue aiding seniors with encouragement, motivation and a strong belief that yoga can change their lives.

“They have difficulty getting out of bed, yet they make it twice a week and they are the most dedicated bunch of students I have ever seen,” instructor Shaaron Honeycutt said.

“I've seen a huge improvement in their emotional well being as well as their physical well being. Many of them were very introverted very inward and now they're more interactive and more responsive with their external world,” Honeycutt said.

Yoga helps with strength, flexibility, and balance, some of which is lost in Parkinson’s patients as their brain slows the production of dopamine. Other symptoms include the loss of ability to speak clearly, and difficulty swallowing.

“If you work with them on a continuing basis you can stave off some of the symptoms or dare I say maybe even turn them back a little bit,” Honeycutt said.

In a self-reported evaluation, where 68 percent of the class participated, 46 percent said they found they had more energy and fewer symptoms of their disease.

The yoga class is offered in partnership with the UVa adult neurology department and the American Parkinson Disease Association.