I believe.....
Believe there will be a cure some day,
I do not want this Parkinson's to stay!
Out of my life you must go,
I have had enough with the curling toe!
Please come quick with your research and trials,
Dont want to see tears, only the smiles!

By Bean

As an English Professor, towards the end of one spring semester, I was downward spiraling with Fibromyalgia exhaustion to the point of not being able to conduct an hour long class. I would lose my train of thought...however, my students were very kind and would remind me, and since I had taught for 20 years so all the information was in my long-term memory, I could get the lesson going again. But then at the end of the hour, I'd step out of the room and be so disoriented that I couldn't remember where I was supposed to go..to my office...to the writing lab...to teach another class.

At the time I was supervising five other very kind and caring instructors, and soon, they started helping me after each class. However, I was tripping and falling over students sitting at computers, etc. It was quite obvious that I needed to take a short-term medical leave of absence at the end of the semester...which I did and within 4 weeks, Social Security Disability approved me based on my doctor's excellent notes documenting how I had worsened in ten years.

So, basically, I took an early retirement based on illness (disability). Then, it was six months later that I was diagnosed with Parkinson's when tremors started. I had probably had PD at least 3 or 4 years prior.

Not a pretty story. I was depressed for a while because I missed teaching and the students, but found a women's support group at church which helped me adjust to retirement.

Now, four years later, I am a happy camper and glad I "retired" when I did. By the way, my colleagues at the college still include me in their lunches and social events, so I do enjoy all aspects of life more now than when I was so exhausted and working!!

Maybe one way to approach the retirement subject is by suggesting to your husband that he won't be so tired all the time and he can finally do the things he'd like to do (hobbies, fishing, traveling????).

Good luck.

40 years in education, last several as a school principal, loved every minute! But stress and fatigue caused me to leave. Fortunately am on long term disability until I reach retirement age, then will get pention and social security but will have to adjust my lifestyle. Can't complain, symptoms much improved, good life, grateful!

I was a senior operator for a semiconductors company dealing with quality control and was made redundant due to my pd but i took them to an employment tribunal and won. Since then i applied for over 300 jobs the interviews i had as soon as i told them i had pd the look on there face told me i had no chance then my condition deteriorate and hit me with distonia in a very aggressive form now when i tell any employers about that they might as well do a runner there and then. So now i make jewellery and scarfs at home and when i sell any i donate 20% to Parkinsons UK. I am hopeing after i have the DBS that may enable me more of a chance to get work but we will see.

Great question. I am a tenured professor and academic clinical research scientist. When I first got my diagnosis, one of the first people I called was my department chair. She had personally struggled with Multiple Myeloma, going in and out of remission for several years, and know what it's like to suffer with an uncertain future. This wise woman said to me, "Call me back in 6 months. Just know that if you produce half of what you are currently producing, you will still be an asset to this institution."
Well, I started Sinemet, choosing a Movement Disorders doc who engaged in clinical research herself and who understood the kind of cognitive pressures that my dopamine-depleted brain would be facing. It's now 6 years since symptom onset and about 4 years since official diagnosis. I am still working but it's definitely harder. I don't feel like my cognitive 'abilities' and critical thinking skills have declined but my processing speed has definitely declined. So it is definitely harder to maintain the illusion of multi-tasking. Yet, I have managed to maintain a good level of overall productivity and have no plans for retirement, since I LOVE my work so much. I know that I am so fortunate to have tenure and a supportive work environment. I am also fortune to have my work be something that stimulates my brain daily. I exercise HARD every single morning and, although I take an occasional nap on the couch in my office (when the sign on my door says 'meditating'), I do think that working so hard takes a toll on me.
I recently took off 3 weeks when my father was hospitalized and eventually passed away from advanced PD complications. Friends visit after my father's death commented on how relaxed I seemed and how much better I looked than usual. So, yes, I am functioning still at a high level at work and have tried to 'just say no' more often to academic opportunities. It is really important to me that I don't sacrifice my relationship with my spouse and the rest of my beloved family so that, when I do have to retire, I will still have some energy in me to enjoy the rest of my life.
I am also fortunate to be totally 'out' at work about having PD (or some people wouldn't believe I even have PD; my meds are titrated to maximize my daytime functioning). That would be another stressor that would be hard to tolerate.