Ep. 111 Why I Got Parkinson’s Disease(My Theory)

Jennifer’s video:
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Instagram: / jeremymac76
Facebook: / jeremymcdonaldmusic

[@julieanna8495]

I absolutely believe that extreme stress can bring on Parkinson’s.😕. In 2020, I was 61 and attending a State University that spanned 365 acres. I was perfectly capable of traversing that campus with a book sack filled with university textbooks/notebooks. No issues. My kids are grown and now Momma wants to fulfill a dream of college. Then Covid happened. First my 86 year old mom went on home hospice and stopped college to take care of her. She died later that year. Immediately after my narcissistic father in law went in home hospice dying of stage 4 COPD. Nothing and I mean nothing I did as a daughter in law was ever good enough for him . The stress was through the roof. He criticized every little thing. Floors not swept in the ‘correct’ direction.🙁. Shower not wiped down ‘good enough’.😒. I was running after him and my husband (his Son) who had a full time job that he was having to do via Zoom calls because we were at his Dad’s house-which was 3 hours away from our house.🙁. Food served was not up to ‘his standards’. 💕. I wasn’t rubbing the lotion into his feet correctly’.😔. You get the picture. This lasted almost two years before he died. His Daughter who lived down the street would talk about me because he kept the house at 84 degrees inside (and I would complain how hot I was) because he was always cold because he was dying and on many blood thinners. But I was running in circles in that house taking care of my husband who was in constant meetings, cruel sister in law, and father in law from the depths of hell. Finally he died. Six months later, full-on Parkinson’s symptoms. Walking stiffly, falling down, voice box clenching up, walking like an old woman using tiny steps. By now I am 65. So in the span of less than 4 years, now in Stage 3 Parkinson’s. 😔😒😮🧐. So yes, stress is a huge driver at least in my case. Oh and guess what? That sister in law is still talking about me and how I was always complaining about that 84 degrees inside the house.🙄🙄🙄. So now I have blocked her ass. These people can kiss my grits, as Flo used to say. I have no more fu€ks to give them. 😎

[@gloriamaryhaywood2217]

May I ask WHY you stayed at your father in laws house instead of returning to your OWN home? I know that I would've been OUT of there pretty quickly!😉

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Wow! That sounds like a nightmare, Julie! I'm so sorry you went through that. Keep in touch!

[@justinmariana12]

I agree with stress being a factor. I was taking care of a young lady battling stage four breast and liver cancer. My mother was a devout strict catholic. She did not like my friend. My mother abandoned me at 15. Ran away with another guy. At the age of 66, she had three heart attacks, left me a letter saying she disowned me. After she passed, I had to find a way to sell the home. As she promised it to my daughter, so stress from helping my friend, stress from selling the house ridden with fleas, family trying to get involved, I had a heart attack and stroke. 12/2019. I was diagnosed not too long after that. I have immense fatigue, body pain, nausea, among other symptoms. I have isolated myself. I use medical marijuana to at least ease stress. My son comes very often to check on me. I do very well with less people around me. Will be 72 in August, male.

[@tomrio9914]

Great quote,“I would not have changed a thing”. Stress can kill you. You seem to have it together better than most. You are the captain of your team and you always will be. Naysayers will come and go. We are sometimes known by the company we keep. That is not necessarily the real you. Peer pressure can be detrimental but I don’t think it can cause Parkinson’s. You got thrust into the role of front man. From the sounds of it you thrived. You pivoted and have a very good channel. Nothing has changed, you are great father and husband. It definitely shows. Don’t be shy and quit beating yourself up. Grab the bull by the… 😂

[@kendrapatterson4629]

Totally agree. I don’t have a D2 receptor (gene) and symptoms started 6 months after I lost everything (job (Navy), house, gf) and I started a new relationship that was toxic 🙃. Then, BOOM, Parkinson’s.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

That sounds like a recipe for Parkinson’s to me. Thx, Kendra!

[@annesaunders3580]

I just found your channel today and became your latest subscriber. I think you've hit the nail on the head with the heartache department. My husband had a profound amount of stress in his early life, had exposure to toxins as well and started getting sick in his early 40's and somehow I've sensed that the stress was a big factor in his Parkinson's. Thank you for making these videos, we need to talk about this subject honestly. Take good care of yourself - hugs to you; you are a good human being. ❤

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Welcome aboard, Anne! I’m glad you like what I am doing!😁

[@juliewithYOPD]

You've given me a lot to reflect on today JMac. A very thought provoking episode. Plus I have some new phrases added to my repertoire - "jacked up gene pool and nasty sandwich ". Love you man.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

I should buy the domain names for those phrases! I am glad that I made you think a bit. That was my intention.😊

[@kendc4725]

Some may say they wouldn’t want to swim in my family’s gene pool, but as far as I know there aren’t any relatives with Parkinson’s. I believe you’ve touched on something with the idea that it may, in some cases, be caused by a number of things working in concert. A great book that explores the possible role of chemicals (pesticides, solvents) and contaminated groundwater is “Ending Parkinson’s Disease: A Prescription for Action.”

[@JeremyMcdonald]

People seem to like my gene pool joke.😂 I will check out that book. Thx, Ken!

[@kendc4725]

@@JeremyMcdonald the book does a great job laying out the evidence for chemical causes.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

@@kendc4725 Awesome.

[@adawehi55]

Thanks for sharing. That took a lot of courage. I participated in a Parkinson’s DNA study. No markers. No surprise. No Parkinson’s in my family. I think i got it from toxins. My mother used a self service dry cleaner in the 60s. I remember the strong scent on my coats and other clothes. I forgot the name of the chemical, but I believe it is associated with PD. I started refinishing furniture in the 80s. Used Kilz on a 27 x13 room. I started painting with oils (and solvents) when I was 12. My husband died, suddenly, at age 43. I had nonmotor symptoms for years. Was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in my late 40s. That’s when the vertigo and night terrors started. Had MRI due to balance issues in 2017. No evidence of Parkinson’s. Low B12. Diagnosed May 2022 DATScan. I was told I’ve likely had it for years. It appeared to be mild and slow progressing until I was diagnosed. I believe I could have been diagnosed before the age of 50. Instead, I got injections in sciatic joints for stiffness. 🥸 Sounds like you had a brush with imposter syndrome. I felt it when I was a beginning teacher and when I became a therapist.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Thank you, Karen. I indeed struggle with imposter syndrome. Sometimes I feel like I don’t deserve all the wonderful things that have happened to me in my life. Meeting people like you encourages me to keep on trucking!

[@adawehi55]

@@JeremyMcdonaldI know those feelings. Have felt undeserving and almost embarrassed by good things that have happened in my life. On the other hand, none of us deserve Parkinson’s. You are doing a wonderful thing by using your gift of connecting with people to bring us all together.

[@rogerokelley]

Hey brother. Took courage to share that. More than I have. Sorry haven’t emailed yet. I will next week. Rock on 🤘 👍

[@JeremyMcdonald]

No worries, bro! Thx!

[@Wesbob89]

J!!!!!!!! Great video as always I think it’s so cool that you make these videos. I’m sure they help others with this. You brought up music and being the band front man. I just want to say you may not remember this but we came you your house on a hot summer afternoon and you played Wonderwall in your back yard and sang the whole song and it sounded exactly like the band it was great! Keep up the videos your killing it 😊

[@JeremyMcdonald]

I do remember that! Didn't your buddy get drunk and try to jump my fence? Good times.....😅

[@LifewithParkinsons]

Hi Jeremy, thanks for sharing this life story, must have been so difficult to just lose all of the support and love overnight. Tragic. I have seen research suggesting that emotional turmoil in life increases risk of PD Diagnosis. Thanks again for being so vulnerable.❤❤

[@JeremyMcdonald]

You have went through similar things, so I feel your pain l

[@Renee-b2y]

Hello amazing man!!! My uncle has been living with parkinsons for 25 years and has been involved in many research studies here in Australia 🇦🇺 the only common link they found with all of their different studies was exposure to pesticides. I also agree with the stress thing. Stress can kill. Your positivity is inspiring.....good on you for remaining positive for those living with PD. Sending you and your family lots of love and blessings!!!!!❤❤❤

[@JeremyMcdonald]

G’day! I love my Aussies! We are big fans of the Irwins in our family. I am so happy to be a bright corner of this weird disease. Thx, Renee!

[@Renee-b2y]

@JeremyMcdonald G'day back to you and they are a beautiful family. Keep doing the great things you are doing!!!! Sending huge hugs and heaps of positivity from the land down under!!!🦘

[@A3Kr0n]

Your thumbnail fooled me. I thought you were Sam Mitchell of Collapse Chronicles at first.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Nope! lol

[@ParkinsonsWigglesProject]

Yes emotional stress, trauma, and stress can trigger PD, especially YOPD! Then there’s the chemical cocktail we live and work in. Great video and thank you for sharing your story ❤

[@JeremyMcdonald]

You are the best, Jenn!

[@rosered9029]

That was so honest and real. I believe you are designed the way you are for a reason. I believe that about your friends and family as well. Release the past and embrace the fact that mystery belongs to...God. Brokenness and blindsides are ubiquitous (present in each one of us...). We all ARE a story, and are embedded in a much bigger story than we can imagine. Be loved. Be loving. My hubby and I married in midlife. He was diagnosed with PD around 55 and now, 12 yrs later, the easier ride is ending and it looks kinda scarier . 💩 happens, but that's just good ol' natural system fallout. It's the fact that every day is NEW that blows my mind.💌🎈

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Thank you! Great advise, too! The future isn't ours to know. Tell your husband I said hello btw!

[@ShowMeWhatINeedToKnow]

Great vid; thanks.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

You're welcome!

[@verily360]

The body is like an orchestra. If one thing gets out of sync it can lead the way to disease. I have RA and also I blame chemicals( formaldehyde in hair salon plus cleaning products and ammonia) and stress. But doctor has said I will never know the reason. Parkinsons is a lot more to deal with. Hope you get it under control

[@JeremyMcdonald]

So true! We probably never get a definitive answer as to why this happened to us. Thx for taking the time to comment!

[@1983mojo1]

Keep bringing it brother, Peace and love from Texas

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Thx! Will do!

[@p.thufailahmed]

My Parkinson's deses you help me

[@HIRANGAYANTHA]

Hi Michael. I am a government nurse by profession. I am very happy about the way you talking about PD. You are talking fully positive. I am a Buddhist. And Buddha told to do meditation and attain 4 the " Dhyana ". Then automatically our respiration and heart function stop itself. Thus continuing it we can extend out life time by leap and bounds . I was diagnosed it 2.6 years back . When i am doing meditation i can feel my heart rate and respiration going down , at times i can't feel it . I have been doing meditation for 2 years . Don't afraid, it will not damage our brain cells .it helps to decrease Dopamin level demand of our all cells in our body leading to brain will more cool . . I could manage my PD Symptoms very well. Doing Vipassana meditation, it teach us to see our body as a impersonel process and it's not our one and just a cause and effect . Thus doing this i could away from depression and the i could see the world like that. As my attachments decreasing i could feel my unusual moments also comming up to nomal .My mind becoming more cool and fresh as also same thing happened to my physical body aswell . .thus in my life i stress this following four steps to do for everyone 1) Meditation ( Therawada ) Sri Lanka 2) Medication 3) Exercises 4)Food❤ survived in present-day Theravāda, dhyāna is equated with "concentration", a state of one-pointed absorption in which there is a diminished awareness of the surroundings.( Sri Lanka) www.theravado.com/ my email [e-mail] Namobudhaya

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Very fascinating. I will check it out.

[@johnbutters3312]

Thanks Jeremy for all the background to your theory. And link to Jennifer's broken heart video. Best wishes, John, NewZealand.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

I always enjoy my Kiwi viewers! Thx, John!

[@doriscorr334]

Hi Jeremy, I like your Rammstein shirt. I think I got my PD because of pesticides in the environment. 10 years ago I got my urine tested and they found Glyphosat in my urine. 5 years ago I had breast caner and of course that was stressful for me. So I think a had 2 reasons why I got PD. Experts say that the disease starts early. So I can not be sure what caused the PD. I like your honest way to talk about your feelings and your life. Schöne Zeit from Doris from good old Germany

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Liebe Grüße! Rammstein is so metal! I think pesticides are slowly killing us all. Toxic stuff good for nothing but poisoning the water and soil. I’m so happy to hear that you enjoy my perspective on life Stay in touch!

[@cherigrogg7229]

No one in my family history had Parkinson's. My Parkinson's symptoms started shortly after completing chemotherapy and radiation for breast cancer. I've always said I believe that's what caused my Parkinson's.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Chemo is brutal! I watched my grandma suffer terribly.

[@cherigrogg7229]

@@JeremyMcdonald I'm sorry you had to watch her go through that. 😢

[@user-bh3hc9tm5e]

Hi Jeremy, thanks for sharing your personal experiences that you think might be the factors in you getting this nasty disease, i think you are absolutely right, stress, genetics and pesticides all are big factors, although not everyone gets it so sometimes we can just be predisposed to it, i can look back 20 or 30 years, my family use to say that I was very weak looking and I struggled to do physical things that others could easily do.. one of those things I guess. Jp

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Wow! Your family would say that you looked weak 20 years ago? Yikes! It seems like you might have been struggling with it longer than you might have initially thought! Thx, JP!

[@user-bh3hc9tm5e]

Yes most definitely Jeremy, but they can't diagnose it that early and even if they could what is the use as there is no treatment,..

[@JeremyMcdonald]

@@user-bh3hc9tm5e Yep. Sad but true!

[@shawns6135]

100% it can contribute.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Thx, Shawn!

[@mikefoster4277]

Hey J, I am thinking that the herbicides and pesticides are the cocktail that caused mine. I have had what a lot of people would consider a stressful life though I have always been blessed with the ability to compartmentalize, or “turning off work” when at home or weekends away. Anyway, back to the herb and pesticides. We have always had property, which even when I was a younger buck, had me scratching for time with family and friends. One way to maintain property was to spray roundup instead of hand weeding. My wife warned me against this, but I was a guy, so what do you do? Listen to your bride or get er done? Well, you get the picture…and when we moved to Texas, the bugs were huge and formidable, and plentiful. So, what to do? There is a product called Demon, that is a neurological nightmare for all things creepy Crawley…even scorpions. AND people, I believe…never sprayed in the wind, but never covered up either. Shoes and socks were always covered by the time I was done spraying. I do not have early onset, and my symptoms seem pretty manageable, but that is where I think this nemesis came from… You and yours have a great Fourth of July, and be nice to each other, Mike

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Demon? Damn, that just sounds bad! That and the Roundup had to be factors. Enjoy the 4th!

[@jodydaguimol]

i def agree with you

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Thank you!

[@MyPDDaily]

The plant nursery sounds like a huge culprit! I wonder what was your point of no return. I wish scientists could measure it quantitatively like radiation. Maybe we could stop others from developing Parkinson’s symptoms. 😢

[@JeremyMcdonald]

I think the point of no return was all the mental strain of the following years. I think my body just trapped all that negativity and stuffed it under the rug so to speak. But it found me eventually.

[@GoProGoalieUzi]

Thx for sharing buddy ❤❤❤ looking good 👍🏼 for me, there’s a rumour that two of my uncles had pd back in the 1920’s in Pakistan. But no one can confirm that. Some say concussions can cause it? I have been elbowed at least 5x in the head as an ice hockey goalie in my late 20’s-40’s. But I was never checked for concussions..? Anyway it is what it is..❤❤❤🇨🇦eh

[@JeremyMcdonald]

It is what it is….so true!

[@robertgeorge4323]

SUGAR!!!

[@1999zrx1100]

I find for every reason you think that’s how you got it there are 10 people who did the same that didn’t. My Dad got Parkinson’s in his late 60’s, he was a Machinist / mechanic that probably had hands covered in solvents and oil all day, he was in a family business that I know was extremely stressful for him. So ya maybe there is something there. But how does Michael J Fox get it & probably never been exposed to chemicals on a daily basis. I understand what you are going through, I was diagnosed with MS about 7 years ago, knew something wasn’t right 25 years ago but figured it was just something in my back because of sports etc. So ya I wrestle with how and why me constantly. Worked in the Pulp and Paper Industry, lots of chemicals. The more I explore the more I realize we will never figure out these bodies we are in. So complicated, today’s Doctors are just scratching the surface. Anyway hang in there…. Your surrounding sure look amazing. Derek 🇨🇦

[@JeremyMcdonald]

I realize that I will never know for sure what caused my PD and I am fine with that. However, as I said in the beginning, curious minds want to know. Thx for taking the time to comment and watch!😁

[@1999zrx1100]

The medicines they are using today are a far cry from what was available 25 years ago for my Dad. Let’s pray for a cure for both these bastard diseases. 🤓

[@JeremyMcdonald]

@@1999zrx1100 Amen!

[@jackmcloraine5354]

Had my biannual with my MDS this morning. Wanted to ask about my young hockey playing concussions, vertigo episodes, dizziness over the years. But how do you cram that in during a 45 minute appointment?

[@JeremyMcdonald]

There is never enough time!

[@adawehi55]

@@jackmcloraine5354 I see several specialists, so I started taking a list to my doctor visits. Sometimes, I just hand them the list. My appointments are nowhere near 45 minutes. I’m jealous.

[@teresasmithnewton]

No PD in my family. I’m a genealogist and have checked out deaths for at least 3 generations before me. Overall, family lives long, except for smokers and heart issues, and they died in their 80s. Herbicides-My ex did herbicide spraying on an industrial scale for a living, plus used Roundup generously at home. He’s just fine. DDT-Riding bikes through the fog behind the mosquito spraying truck in the 1960s. Paraquat-Probably consumed my fair share of contaminated marijuana in the 1970s. Immune system-Have had 2 thyroid autoimmune diseases. Had thyroid removed 2 years before diagnosis. ADHD-Diagnosed as adult but had all my life. ADHD folks have dopamine issues. Stress-In personal life and work life. Some unresolved trauma from adolescence that followed me for decades.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

It seems like it’s a different combo for everyone.😎

[@joec2174]

Hi Jeremy . Get tested for primary immune. Deficiency. Then we will talk more. It’s my saga with pd

[@JeremyMcdonald]

@@joec2174 Interesting! Thx!

[@JeremyMcdonald]

@@joec2174 I looked it up and that’s definitely not me.

[@joec2174]

@@JeremyMcdonald

[@SDWP]

I think mine was laying in wait and a few head trauma incidences brought it to life.

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Head trauma will do it. Thx, Michele!

[@joec2174]

@@SDWP the lying in wait statement is so true. Especially if you review all the signs we had over the years. Regards and compassion.

[@SDWP]

@@joec2174 Thank you

[@lindacrist6736]

GOD may be working with you in ways that can not be understood

[@JeremyMcdonald]

Thank you!