Les: finding his voice
Bendigo born and bred, Les started as an apprentice at the Ordnance Factory (now Thales) and worked there for almost 40 years. After roles as a fitter and turner, draftsman, planner, project manager and an estimator (although by his own acknowledgement not a very good one!) Les retired with his wife Sue to the coast side community of Ocean Grove in 2015. To Les it seems like only a day ago, as now living in Ocean Grove means “Every day’s a holiday.” Sounds like a tourist campaign, right?
Les keeps an active lifestyle, playing golf three times a week, going to the gym regularly and, working around the house. Of being retired Les says, "The best thing about having nothing to do, is you never know when you're finished."
Twelve years ago, long before his retirement, everything changed for Les when his daughter noticed his wonky handwriting. Les too had noticed his writing getting progressively worse over the years, with the then 55-year-old, thinking it was just part of ‘getting older’. Les’ perceptive daughter suggested perhaps it was Parkinson’s Disease and encouraged her father to seek a diagnosis.
After some to and fro with doctors, Les eventually connected with a neurologist in Melbourne who advised that 80,000 people in Australia live with Parkinson’s, and now Les ‘was lucky 80,001.’
The neurologist got Les onto medication, to help manage his symptoms, and over the last 12 years Les has accessed many complementary supports to manage his Parkinson’s.
One of the effects of Parkinson's is to make body movements smaller, as a result, the voice is produced with less force. This means for clients like Les, their voice is often quieter and doesn't carry like it used to. The Parkinson's also depletes dopamine in the brain, making it difficult for clients to hear or notice their softer voice.
“With Parkinsons, you don't realise how bad your voice is getting," Les said.
A speech pathologist may be able to help people with Parkinson's find their voice, via an evidence-based program like SPEAK OUT!® (developed by the Parkinson’s Voice Project)
With a range of exercises tailored to assist people with Parkinson’s, including what Les describes as ‘singing like a monk’, SPEAK OUT!® focuses on ‘speaking with intent’.
Les describes ‘speaking with intent’ as creating an awareness of how he speaks, by focusing on speaking clearly, slowly and at a level people can hear you. With the SPEAK OUT!® exercises helping to train his brain to override the effect of the Parkinson’s on his voice.
And the results for Les? Well, they ‘speak’ for themselves.
A few weeks ago, Les visited his daughter and mentioned, “I need to go practice my speech exercises” and she replied, “I thought there was something different!”
Les has now finished the SPEAK OUT!® program but continues to work on his ‘monk singing’ every day.
Les takes a positive attitude and a sense of humour into all parts of his life.
“If you took it (Parkinson’s) too seriously you'd be depressed all the time and it's not going to help.”
About Parkinson’s Disease
Source: Fight Parkinson’s
Parkinson’s is a complex neurological condition for which there is no known cause or cure. Parkinson’s is well known for causing body tremors, but with a range of complex symptoms unique to each individual, the disease can also stiffen muscles, slow movement, and change posture. Non-motor symptoms can also be part of the condition including pain, depression, anxiety, speech changes, and loss of facial expression.
Neurological disorders are now the leading cause of disabilities in the world and Parkinson’s is the fastest growing neurological syndrome. It's estimated that 57,000 Victorians are living with Parkinson's, and 219,000 people living with Parkinson’s across Australia (many more than the 80,001 number from when Les was diagnosed 12 years ago).
For more information on Parkinson’s Disease visit Fight Parkinson’s.
Speech therapy for people with Parkinson’s Disease
SPEAK OUT!® is an evidenced-based speech program for people with Parkinson's Disease. SPEAK OUT!® aims to improve a participants speech and voice through a combination of education, individual speech therapy sessions, daily practice, and regular assessments delivered over 8-12 sessions. These therapies may also have positive impacts on swallowing. For more information on SPEAK OUT!® visit The Parkinson’s Voice Project.
At Allied Therapy Services we have speech pathologists who can provide the SPEAK OUT!® program in person in the Greater Geelong region or via telehealth in other regions.