Are your symptoms holding you back from doing the things that you once loved? Or maybe you are a family member and you want to help your loved one participate in their life with a sense of joy.

According to the National Parkinson Foundation (Parkinson.org), approximately 1 million Americans are diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Although it is a progressive disease of the brain, research also tells us that you can do things to help your brain slow the progression of PD and the symptoms that come along with the disease. You can then optimize each day by helping your brain and body with the things that you have control over.

One of the ways you can do this is by exercising the sensory systems. Both the visual (eyes) sensory system and vestibular (ears) sensory system are responsible for providing the information the brain needs to make decisions related to movement. Exercises that coordinate the visual and vestibular sensory systems help the body balance, coordinate, and respond more quickly.

According to Johns Hopkins Physical Therapy “Movement, especially exercises that encourage balance and use of both sides of the body can actually slow the progression of Parkinson's disease.”