Minds, bodies and voices: Cedar City group raises Parkinson’s awareness

CEDAR CITY — Attendees gathered at the Cedar City Senior Center last week for a Parkinson’s awareness event featuring resources, exercise demonstrations and cake.

In this file photo, Dan Dail pummels the heavy bag at Snap Fitness, Cedar City, Utah, date not specified | Photo courtesy of Southwest Parkinson’s Fitness, St. George News / Cedar City News

The event was organized by Kristy Spencer, coordinator of the Southwest Parkinson’s Support Group and Dan Dail, founder of Southwest Parkinson’s Fitness. Dail was diagnosed with Parkinson’s 13 years ago, and Spencer was a care partner to her husband Bob for 34 years after his Parkinson’s diagnosis.

After Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s is the second most common neurological disorder, affecting approximately 1-2% of individuals 65 and older, Dail previously told St. George News. Dail said at the event that Parkinson’s is complex and trying to find a cure is like playing whack-a-mole.

There is no substitute for fitness, and exercise should be rigorous and done often, he said.

“Movement and that motion you go through actually changes your brain chemistry,” he said. “There’s no longer a question of, ‘Does it?’ or ‘Will it? or ‘Maybe it does,’ it changes your brain chemistry and some of those changes can help delay the onset of Parkinson’s symptoms.”

The Davis Phinney Foundation

Cidney and Pat Donahooare ambassadors from the Davis Phinney Foundation. Cidney Donahoo was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease when she was 47 years old in 2010 and retired from her job as an educator in 2014, she said.

Cidney and Pat Donahoo speaking at the Parkinson’s Awareness event at the Cedar City Senior Center, Cedar City, Utah, April 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News

“That was hard,” she said. “I’d always been productive and then I didn’t have that to go to. I didn’t have something to go to. That was really hard. (The Davis Phinney Foundation) has given us a purpose. It’s something that we care about and that we can share with others and hopefully, help them to live their lives too.”

Cidney Donahoo became involved with the Parkinson’s community through cycling and participated in Ride the Rockies in Colorado with the Davis Phinney Foundation, Spencer said. Cidney Donahoo still cycles and has added yoga, strength training and boxing to her regimen.

“Exercise helps her stay healthy and manage her Parkinson’s symptoms,” Spencer said.

Pat Donahoo said that every Parkinson’s case is different.

(L-R) Pat Donahoo, Cidney Donahoo, Kristy Spencer and Dan Dail pose for a group photo at the Parkinson’s Awareness event at the Cedar City Senior Center, Cedar City, Utah, April 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News

“If you’ve met one person with Parkinson’s, you’ve met that one person,” he said.

Cidney Donahoo said the foundation helps people with Parkinson’s “live well today.” The organization conducts research and offers resources for health care professionals and those with Parkinson’s, as well as their family, friends and care partners, according to its website.

Pat Donahoo said the foundation started the Care Partner Monthly Meetup on the first Tuesday of every month hosted by Connie Carpenter Phinney, the wife and care partner of Davis Phinney, the foundation’s founder.

Other webinars offered by the foundation include the YOPD Council series, during which those diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s can meet for a monthly discussion and the Live Well TODAY Webinar series, which focuses on important topics for those with Parkinson’s and their caregivers.

Those interested can also order free copies of “Every Victory Counts” and “Every Victory Counts for Care Partners” from the Foundation’s website. Pat Donahoo said the books were written by doctors as well as people with Parkinson’s and that the care partner manual includes verbiage from caregivers.

Minds, bodies and voices

Southern Utah University Health Scholar Mikayla Barton said she uses the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment during her classes. She said participants will use full-body motions while yelling and counting out numbers to work out their minds, bodies and voices.

Barton asked Rob Saunders to join her. He donned a gait belt to demonstrate how she can support an individual in her class as they execute a series of motions.

Mikayla Barton and Rob Saunders demonstrating Lee Silverman Voice Treatment exercises using a gait belt at the Parkinson’s Awareness event at the Cedar City Senior Center, Cedar City, Utah, April 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News

Barton said her class is less about physical exercise and more about coordination and exercising minds. Her class focuses on small things people do every day, like standing up, she said.

“We want to remind ourselves what we need to do in order to be successful in the tasks that we want to do,” she said.

Barton’s class is held every Thursday at 10 a.m., an hour before Rock Steady Boxing begins at Snap Fitness on 145 North Main Street.

Rock Steady Boxing

Southern Utah University Health Scholars Emily Burns and Reed Muir teach Rock Steady Boxing classes at Snap Fitness.

Burns said she created a class that’s slower-paced with more volunteers for those who need more one-on-one support.  Additionally, she uses more modifications, like seated workouts for those using a wheelchair.

“I base my workouts based on what you need and you still get a great workout,” she said.

Muir said his class is designed to be more mobile and participants can expect more ground-based exercises.

“We don’t have quite as much transition time between exercises to try and get our heart rate a little bit more elevated,” he said.

Burns said both classes emphasize boxing, coordination and balance, as well as Parkinson’s-specific functional training. Muir put on a gait belt and stood on a balance board to demonstrate exercises intended to improve balance and coordination, such as throwing a ball or doing squats.

Emily Burns and Reed Muir demonstrating exercises from their Rocksteady Boxing classes, Cedar City, Utah, April 12, 2022 | Photo by Alysha Lundgren, Cedar City News

“The purpose of it is to try and offset your balance so you have to catch yourself,” Burns said. “So, if you’re walking or doing anything at home that (makes) you feel very unstable, this will strengthen that and you don’t have to worry about falling as much later.”

Burns said class times can vary depending on the coaches’ schedules but currently classes are held at 11 a.m. Muir’s classes are Monday and Wednesday and Burns’s classes are every Tuesday and Thursday. On Friday the pair hosts a combined class.

A man in attendance asked if there are resources available for those who are unable to attend a class. Burns said Rock Steady Boxing produced videos featuring exercises that can be done at home using common household items like brooms and soup cans.

According to the Rock Steady Boxing, Indy HQ YouTube channel, the “On Your Own” series was created during the pandemic to keep Rock Steady Boxing coaches and boxers “engaged and inspired.”

Additional information

Spencer said the Southwest Parkinson’s Support Group meets on the second Tuesday of each month at 1 p.m. in the Cedar City Senior Center on 489 East 200 South.

For additional information on Southwest Parkinson’s Fitness, visit the group’s website. For more information on the Southwest Parkinson’s Support Group, contact Spencer at 435-559-9681 or [email protected] or Dail at 435-463-7285 or  [email protected].

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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