Quebec woman spearheads t-shirt fundraiser to raise awareness of little-known Parkinson's symptoms

April is Parkinson’s awareness month, and Parkinson Quebec has launched its very first t-shirt collection for the occasion. The project, called En route avec le Parkinson (On the road with Parkinson’s), is the brainchild of Diane Patenaude, who herself has been living with the disease for 27 years.

Although the disease is well known to the general public, most people are unaware of the array of symptoms that people with Parkinson’s have to live with. The goal of the project is to raise awareness about symptoms other than tremors, such as depression, balance problems, slowness of movement, difficulty expressing oneself, body rigidity, etc.

The funds raised will be donated entirely to Parkinson Quebec and regional partners in order to improve the services and support offered to those affected.

According to the Parkinson Quebec website, 25,000 people live with Parkinson’s disease in the province, and this number is expected to double by 2040.

The idea for the campaign was born when Diane Patenaude was in a traffic jam. Upon noticing a sign on the truck in front of her that read “Attention, frequent stops,” she told her husband she also needs a sign like this, since she too makes frequent stops when walking.

She says the public is not well informed about the effects of Parkinson’s.

“The disease is so poorly known that people sometimes think you’ve taken a hit when you fall,” said the 63-year-old, who has received derogatory comments about her loss of balance in the past.

Patenaude wants people to know that Parkinson’s disease affects more than the elderly. She was diagnosed when she was 36 years old, which came as a major shock.

When she attended a conference on the disease, Patenaude said she found it “very difficult” to be surrounded by elderly people, most of whom were walking. Through her testimony, she hopes to inform the public that one can be affected even at a younger age.

“I want to communicate that the symptoms are often more severe than people think. It’s not just tremors. In fact, not everyone has them.”

T-shirts from the En route avec le Parkinson collection are on sale until May 20 for $25 each on the parkinsonquebec.ca website.

This report was first published in French by The Canadian Press on April 23, 2022.