Free Resources for Living Well with Parkinson’s in 2024

free a person holding a light bulb in front of a laptop with the number 2024 written in front of the blurry background. The 0 is the light bulb. There are lines and dots that are glowing gold throughout the picture. The lightbulb has a brain in it.

The challenges of Parkinson’s change year to year, day to day, and even hour to hour. One thing about Parkinson’s that doesn’t change is our commitment to providing all possible resources for living well with Parkinson’s at no cost.  

As another year begins, we want to remind you of some of the most valuable and essential FREE resources available. 

Ten of Our Most Important Free Resources

  1. The Every Victory Counts Manual® and Companion Website: The Every Victory Counts manual and its corresponding online resources provide a comprehensive overview of need-to-know information about Parkinson’s. It is both a great introduction for the newly diagnosed and an indispensable resource to keep by your side as you continue to live well with Parkinson’s.
  2. Live Well Today Webinar Series: Our Live Well Today Webinar series features conversations with Parkinson’s experts and provides need-to-know information. In 2024, these discussions will be live, and you’ll be able to ask our webinar guests questions in real time. Check out our past webinars and register to attend upcoming events.
  3. Our Ambassador Program: Davis Phinney Foundation Ambassadors are people with Parkinson’s experience available to help answer questions about living well with Parkinson's. They can also connect you with resources to provide support. We have more than 100 Ambassadors located in 35 states and Canada. Most of our Ambassadors are people living with Parkinson’s, but some are care partners or people with other direct experience of Parkinson’s (e.g., healthcare providers).
  4. Our Monthly Meetups: Every month, we hold two recurring meetups via Zoom: one for people living with Parkinson's and one for care partners. During our Living with Parkinson's Meetup, we talk about all aspects of Parkinson’s. Click here to register to attend the meetup. During the Care Partner Meetup, Connie Carpenter Phinney and Davis Phinney Foundation Ambassadors and care partners Pat Donahoo and Gail Gitin discuss the concerns, challenges, and questions of many Parkinson’s care partners. Click here to register to attend the meetup.
  5. Care Partner Training: Our Care Partner Training program is a comprehensive educational program created specifically for Parkinson’s care partners. The sessions include discussions with a movement disorder specialist, clinical social worker, registered dietician, and care partner mentors. Register here to view recordings of all 10 sessions, or pick and choose the ones that best suit your needs.
  6. Our Healthy Parkinson’s CommunitiesInitiative: We created the Healthy Parkinson’s Communities (HPC) initiative to help inspire and support communities of any size working to change how people live with Parkinson’s. The aims of the initiative include ensuring Parkinson's community leaders have the knowledge and resources they need, encouraging and supporting data-informed actionsthat improve the quality of life for people with Parkinson’s, and increasing Parkinson’s awareness in local communities. Click here to learn more about the HPC initiative and get involved.
  7. Our Hispanic Community Resources: Spearheaded by Claudia Martinez, Juan Carlos Gordillo, and Nadia Guinart, our Hispanic community resources include written and video content, a growing number of Spanish-speaking Ambassadors, and in-person events. We will continue to expand these resources in 2024.
  8. Our Blog: During our 20 years supporting the Parkinson’s community, we have produced over 1,000 pieces of written, video, and audio content on our blog. This content is both educational and inspirational, and all our posts are curated with the intention to help you live well today. 
  9. Our In-Person Events: In 2024, we are resuming more of our in-person events from the pre-COVID era! This year, the Victory Summit® will return; we’ll be releasing the dates and locations soon. All of our in-person events will be listed here once they're announced. 
  10. Our Staff: Our staff is always excited to hear from you! If you have questions, something to share with us, or want to say hello, you can reach us by emailing contact@dpf.org or through our staff bio pages 

New Programming in 2024 

PD SELF® is an educational program for people with Parkinson’s that provides self-efficacy skill building in motivation, confidence, and knowledge to improve quality of life. The first cohort of PD SELF classes begins in January 2024, with a second cohort tentatively planned to being in August 2024. 

Keep an eye out for updates on this exciting new program--and more to come! 

Free Resources from Other Organizations 

There are many other free resources for living well with Parkinson’s available. Below, you’ll find information about some of our favorites from other organizations. 

Parkinson’s Voice Project

The Parkinson’s Voice Project offers free speech therapy through their SPEAK OUT!® program. Speech therapy helps improve speech deficits and swallowing issues caused by Parkinson’s.  

Power for Parkinson’s: Free Mind and Body Fitness Classes

Power for Parkinson’s offers free virtual fitness classes via YouTube. 

Dance for Parkinson’s: Free Dance Classes 

Dance for Parkinson’s offers free Zoom classes, a digital library of 300+ classes, and a five-volume Dance for PD At Home instructional video series. Dancing helps with many aspects of living with Parkinson’s, including fluidity of movement, balance, and executive functioning.

Young Onset Parkinson’s Network Community Gathering and Resource Navigator PRogram

The Young Onset Parkinson’s Network (YOPN) is a hub for those with young-onset Parkinson’s. In addition to their monthly community gathering, they offer a “Resource Navigator” program, which provides members of the organization a free session with a counselor or social worker. YOPN membership is free. 

FREEWILL

Living well today involves having attainable plans for the future. This includes having a plan for your estate and your legacy. FreeWill can help you create a will in 20 minutes or less to help you maintain peace of mind and know that your wishes will be known to your family and community.

Laughter Yoga

Laughter Yoga is a delightful way to work on deepening your breath, strengthening your core, and improving your sense of well-being. There are free sessions on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. 

Clinical Trials

Many people with Parkinson’s benefit from participating in clinical trials. One of the most common aspects people appreciate about trial participation is how much time they get with expert care providers. The Fox Trial Finder is an excellent resource for finding clinical trials, as is Clinicaltrials.gov 

Support Groups

Many of our Ambassadors are in support groups, and we’d love to connect you to those resources. Contact us at blog@dpf.org, and we’ll put you in touch. Additionally, many organizations comprising the Independent Parkinson’s Network offer support groups, including some that virtually meet. 

We can't wait to share 2024 with you!

Additional Resources 

Davis Phinney Foundation YouTube, Featuring Hundreds of Educational Webinars 

Sparx3 Exercise Clinical Trial 

The Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative 

The Parkinson’s Foundation’s PD GENEration  

Every Victory Counts Manual and manual for Care PartnersWANT MORE PRACTICAL ARTICLES LIKE THIS?

You can learn much more about living well with Parkinson’s today through our Every Victory Counts® suite of resources. Each manual is packed with up-to-date information about everything Parkinson’s. Click the link below to reserve your manual(s).

Reserve Your Manual(s) Now

Thank you to our 2024 Gold Partner, AbbVie, and our Silver Partner, Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma America, for their ongoing support of these must-have manuals. Additionally, we’d like to thank Barbara and Dale Ankenman, Abby and Ken Dawkins, Bonnie Gibbons, Gail Gitin in loving memory of Gene Gitin, Irwin Narter, and Lorraine and J Wilson for their generous donations that allow us to make these resources available and free to all. 

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