Parkinson's disease: "I managed to reverse the progress of my Parkinson's disease".

Hello Leparigo, thank you for agreeing to share your story with us here on Carenity!

First of all, can you tell us a bit about yourself?

My dad was a printer. I was a quiet student, I always liked learning. I was a sporty teenager (I cycled a lot) and I loved reading. I studied art and art history at the Ecole Technique de Paris XI and graduated as an upholsterer-decorator. I am self-taught and I succeed at almost everything I do ("what's the point of being modest if nobody knows it?", as Sacha Guitry said). In the army, I was transferred to the work organisation office of the Adjutant-General's military group, not far from Baden-Baden. That's where I learned to type on a typewriter. I also learned management there which was useful to me all throughout my professional life.

My wife and I have two children and three grandchildren. This year 2021 will mark our 50th wedding anniversary! According to our children, we are "marriage dinosaurs".

I worked with my wife and we were successful. The end of Les Trente Glorieuses (The Glorious Thirty years following WW2) did us well despite the economic storms. Decorators for 30 years in Paris, we worked for museums, theatres, cinemas and large homes, including abroad. We were fulfilled by our children who were highly successful in their studies and their work. Our grandchildren are walking in their mother's footsteps.

Of course, we like art and painting, reading, and culture. We love DIY, hiking, going to the seaside, travelling... We love all things delightful and beautiful!

You have Parkinson's disease and were diagnosed at 65. Could you tell us prompted you to see a doctor? How did you feel when you got the diagnosis?

I first went because of a 'blank' I experienced when speaking at a debate. So I decided to go and see a doctor. He wanted to reassure me, but told me up front it was Parkinson's disease! He sent me to a neurologist with a CT scan. I knew in my heart of hearts that I was a bit in denial. The diagnosis was confirmed by an unkind specialist: "You know, it is a degenerative disease that cannot be cured! It's just like Alzheimer's..." I asked in return, "Doctor, what will happen?" And without hesitating or rephrasing, he replied, "It's irreversible... Degeneration is incurable." I was stunned for at least 10 days following my appointment. The harshness of his words and the lack of emotion! I finally had to accept that Parkinson's was officially coming into my life which made me rethink some of my plans and plunged my family into disarray.

So conventional medicine wasn't providing you with any sort of hope for healing and you couldn't accept it. What did you decided to do then?

After this "sentence", I got back on my feet and I felt almost guilty, probably because of my ignorance, and I refused to accept the disease. I bent against my will to the treatment. I researched on the internet and in specialised books. I had read several times in several places that people with Parkinson's disease or other "incurable" diseases had pulled through thanks to their will and their research. Why not me?

After 30 months of torture on allopathic medicine*, I decided to take up the challenge. My retirement was becoming well occupied by the fight against tremors and pain. So I immersed myself in neuroscience literature for several years, studying and writing the whole time. After devouring more than a hundred books and just as many articles on Parkinson's disease, I selected the information that would become my care "protocol".

*The term "allopathy" or "allopathic medicine" is a concept used by advocates of non-conventional medicine to refer to evidence-based conventional medicine.

Could you tell us about the alternative therapies you have tried? What did they bring you? What really worked for you?

I've tried a few therapies including: brief fasting for 4 to 5 days, homeotherapy (of which I have kept the essential), herbal medicine and I eliminated all allopathic medicine targeted for people with Parkinson's disease. I also do brisk walking and (natural) light therapy, which is essential.

Herbal medicine was the most effective, associated with organic food and nutrients that are essential to the proper functioning of brain cells and of my intestinal microbiota. Physical and intellectual exercise and listening to music are good supplements that stimulate restorative sleep. I also got rid of everything that could cause this pathology.

Would you say that you've managed to silence Parkinson's disease? How long has it been since it last manifested?

With this new lifestyle, in only six months, and with only 200mg of mucuna pruriens (velvet bean), I am back to "normal". So yes, I have managed to reverse the progress of my Parkinson's disease through a major commitment: maintaining good quality of life, moving away from any oxidation and environmental pollution, keeping up the healthy diet that I chose, including my intake of mucuna pruriens every morning on an empty stomach.

I've been living with tranquillity and satisfaction of well-being for 5 years without any resurgence of my Parkinson's. I've managed to silence it. I admit that I was the first to be surprise! I started putting measures in place, out of ignorance, that ended up helping. However, if I had known that it would take 2 to 3 years of literary research to "validate my personal protocol", not to mention the periods of despair with Mr. Parkinson by my side keeping me company, I probably wouldn't have started. I got caught up in my own curiosity and neuroscience with an involuntary effect: my obsession to succeed! I silenced my Parkinson's disease!

You wrote a book, "Ma victoire sur Parkinson" (My Victory over Parkinson's disease). What did writing this book bring you personally? Why is it important for you to share your journey with as many people as possible?

I didn't set out originally to write a book, but it at first brought me "mental gymnastics", a reintroduction to writing to relearn how to use precise words in explaining things. Words are the mirror of thought and the image of description. Writing on a keyboard became a pleasure which is undoubtedly a good way to "knock the rust off" the cortex connections. Writing about Parkinson's requires a full understanding of how the neurons work, both those that are involved in Parkinson's and those that aren't. Then you have to detail complex concepts and synthesize them so they can be understood by everyone.

Without meaning it to, sharing my journey became obvious to me. From the first signs of Parkinson's, I started keeping a journal, like a log book on my physical and medicinal condition. My family, friends and the people I met noticed the improvement in my condition and pushed me to talk about it. Something clicked, and I knew I had to share my story. My manuscript got better as my explanatory research progressed with scientific references.

My research has lead me to some initial findings on how to deal with this neuronal disorder. Conventional medicine has not sufficiently investigated the physiological and nutritional causes of this disease.

I don't pretend to be the scientific solution on my own, but I like Confucius's motto: "I prefer to see things with my own eyes rather than have them seen and reported by 100 other people". Not to mention that there are Parkinson's patients around the world who have taken charge of their lives and are now in remission: in Germany, England, South Africa, Canada, India and the USA, by modifying their diet, daily sport or other alternative medicine. This indicates that a physiological solution exists but is beyond the reach of conventional medicine in developed countries.

Let us not forget that throughout the world, patients with Parkinson's disease have taken the matter into their own hands and are now in remission: in Germany, England, South Africa, Canada, India and in the USA, by changing their diet, exercising daily or other types of alternative medicine.

This is what I summarise my book that was published in January 2021.

What advice would you give to other patients with Parkinson's disease?

Make sure you are dealing with a good specialist who has a strong understanding of this disease. For many years, I had a limited mistrust and confidence towards specialists after several therapeutic disappointments and several specialists with skills that proved, over time, to be insufficient. This is what made me want to understand the disease. If your neurologist rushes through your consultation, does not ask you about your past professional life, where you live, is not interested your digestion, your diet, the quality of your sleep and if you end up with 4 to 6 medicines, change doctors!
Also, if you live near vineyards or fruit orchards sprayed chemicals or pesticides, if you live near a busy road such as a ring road or near an airport, move!

First of all, you need to take care of your gut (especially the microbiota) so that the wall of the digestive tracts performs well and is not inflamed (porous), letting pathogenic bacteria to pass through. To do this, you should stop eating oxydising foods to fight the acidification of the neuronal vessels (tissues acidosis). You should also supplement with minerals and other substances because some nutrients such as selenium, zinc, copper, vitamins B1, B6, B12, E, C and D have disappeared from our daily diets. You should complete your treatment with light therapy, yoga or meditation to reverse the subconscious and the disease's progress. Just believe in it to do it.

You should also follow a well-chosen, hypotoxic and tonic diet. The diet needs to be strictly followed long term and considered as the first line of care, as it was in the past. Physical exercise such as brisk walking 4 to 6 km/h for 60 to 90 minutes, or more if you can, is essential. We are made to move, to exert ourselves in order to eliminate toxins and excess medication, to make our cells work, to strengthen our bones, to maintain our muscles, especially the heart, to oxygenate our brain which needs hydrogen to function well. You should walk 40 minutes to 1 hours, five times a week.

Getting quality sleep is important because some Parkinson's symptoms can be caused by insomnia and vice versa. Sleep must be restorative, it is essential to reverse the progress of degeneration. We don't sleep a third of our lives for nothing! Let me explain: it is during the night sleep period that the dopaminergic neurons created dopamine which will be stored in the axon terminals to be released on waking, during the day for our muscular contraction and released continuously to ensure any desired movement.

Getting quality sleep is important because some symptoms of Parkinson's disease can be caused by insomnia and vice versa. Sleep must be restorative, this is essential to reverse the degeneration process. There's a reason why we sleep for a third of our lives! Let me explain: during the nocturnal sleep, dopaminergic cells create a substance called dopamine which will be stored in the synaptic boutons to be released when we wake up, during the day for our muscles to contract and is released continuously to ensure we can make the movement we want to make.

It is also important to be careful with your daily intake of L-DOPA because it causes muscles to relax in the two to three hours after taking it. More than 95% of L-Dopa does not reach the brain. About 50 minutes after intake, the treatment stimulates the muscular plexuses for 1 to 2 hours, which make patient forget their Parkinson's symptoms for a short while. An hour later, the patient will need another dose to feel the same effect. The increased doses prescribed by the doctor won't help as the patient will be relaxed during the day but the tremors will reappear: the brain drowns in L-DOPA. The medicinal solution is to respect the chronology of the neurohormones and our circadian cycle. How is this done? The dose of L-DOPA (100 to 300 mg) is physiologically associated with melatonin which comes into action from 9 pm to 6 or 7 am. That means that the intake of synthetic or natural L-DOPA (mucuna-pruriens), in order to compensate for a possible dopamine deficiency, should be taken between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m., 2 hours after a light dinner, and in the morning as soon as you wake up between 6 and 7 a.m. This is the key, the discovery that I expand on in my book, to manage to get rid of Parkinson's symptoms. This is something that most neurologists are unaware of because this therapeutic method is not taught during their training. 

How do you see the future? What are your plans?

Since I've managed to get back to a normal life, I've had many plans. I've been able to realise a few projects, but some are temporarily hindered by COVID-19, like travelling and cultural trips. I've been able to share my knowledge through the Parkinson's & Nous charity and its forum, and then of course here on Carenity as well. I am drawn to write and I've developed a taste for it - it's the only way to speak without being interrupted. I continue to hike as well. Seeing friends, family, the joy of seeing our brilliant grandchildren who give us hope for a better future... Anyway! There are not enough hours in the day and for my wife and me life has returned to normal again, except for the constraints linked to the pandemic.

My view of the future is also focused on current research that is relevant to reverse Parkinson's, such as: a vaccine to inhibit the alpha-synuclein protein or the implantation of new neurons. Let's see the bright side of things: people are working on making progress in Parkinson's!

Last but not least, do you have any other advice for Carenity members?

During all these years I have shared lots of advice with Carenity members while also staying in my place, because I am not a doctor or medical professional. I will continue to do so, even though I sometimes feel that I cannot give proper advice, out of respect for medical law, which protects us from charlatans and quack doctors. 

Don't lose hope. Taking charge of your own destiny is key, taking information from Carenity and medical associations, being an active participant in your care and not being afraid to ask your GP or pharmacist questions: Why this medication? Why this quantity? You're allowed to say "I read this, what do you think?". Your doctor is here for this, he or she discovers diseases and cares for patients, but he or she must also listen to the patient, prescribe to help, to alleviate pain and discomfort. Do not forget that the body heals itself, you just need to help it and supply it with what it lacks.

Any final words?

My next to last word will be for Carenity: I'd like to thank the whole team. Thanks to this site, I wasn't alone facing the turmoil after my diagnosis. Exchanging on here has taught me a lot. I still take pleasure in the discussions I have here with exciting and passionate people. I met an amazing person through Carenity, we are united by our shared diagnosis and she helps me in my research. Mimi and her husband have become our good friends. And my last words: Take charge of your own destiny!

Yours truly, Carenity France Ambassador JC Prévost, alias Leparigo.

Note: This testimonial does not constitute nor replace medical advice, make sure to consult with your doctor before changing or stopping your prescribed treatment!

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