Dancing with Parkinson’s, without limits
share
BOULDER, Colo. — The way Ketul Arnold dances, it’s evident he once taught yoga to dancers at The Juilliard School in New York City. With his eyes closed, he lets the music move his body in dramatic, sweeping motions.
It’s harder to believe he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease 10 years ago.
Parkinson’s disease affects the nervous system, and it shows up differently in everyone. It typically affects mobility, balance and speech. Arnold uses a walking cane to keep his balance and he has some difficulty speaking.
Around the time of his diagnosis, Arnold’s neurologist recommended he check out a free dance class designed for people with limited mobility, including those with Parkinson’s disease.
Though he initially hesitated to join because he felt self-conscious about his limited movement, Arnold now attends the weekly Dance for Parkinson’s Disease class at 3rd Law Dance/Theater in Boulder, Colorado.
Arnold, who remains seated for the class duration due to his poor balance, nevertheless moves with a fluidity and spontaneity that most of us can only achieve when no one is watching.
“I appreciate the fact that I get to move to music I don't listen to ordinarily in ways that I don't move ordinarily,” Arnold said.
“But not only that, I think the most important thing is to have fun. I get to laugh. I get to smile. I'm with other people who are having fun, and I think that carries more healing and energy than anything in this program,” he said.
A self-described devotee of the program, Arnold said he’s attended class almost every week for the past 10 years. Despite living with the progressive disease for a decade, Arnold said some of his symptoms are better now than when he first received his diagnosis.
His tremors, which used to make it difficult to eat because he struggled to handle utensils, have since disappeared.
Dance for Parkinson’s Disease, which has a presence nationwide, compiles a running list on its website of research into the effects of dance on Parkinson’s symptoms, including a 2021 study specifically looking into the long-term benefits of the Dance for Parkinson’s Disease curriculum.
Research generally supports that engaging in regular exercise or dance can help slow the progression of motor function decline in people with Parkinson’s disease.
“I see it every day in the class because people who come regularly seem to stay vibrant,” said Lisa Johnston, director of 3rd Law Dance’s Dance for Parkinson’s program and one of the class instructors.
Johnston got involved with the program in 2018 as a volunteer. Her interest in the class stemmed from her background in aerial dance and her personal connection with the disease through her stepfather, who had Parkinson’s.
The hour-long class is held twice a week in person and four times a week virtually, with one of the virtual classes taught in Spanish.
On Tuesdays, the in-person session is held at the Dairy Arts Center in Boulder.
As ballerinas in leotards shuffled past and patrons perused an art gallery down the hall at a recent session, about 20 participants and three instructors filed into a bright dance studio, with a large mirror taking up one wall.
Walking canes hung on the ballet barres lining the room with walkers and wheelchairs next to them.
All the participants started the class sitting down. Most chose to stand about halfway through, though a few, like Arnold, decided to remain seated. The foot movements — stomping each foot, turning out their foot from the heel, et cetera — are ones that participants can achieve even while sitting.
The arm movements are straightforward as well, designed for the dancers to work on balance and flexibility. But it’s not just about exercise — after all, it is a dance class. Each movement forms part of choreography designed for specific songs.
Improvisation is encouraged, too.
For someone with limited mobility, a dance class can be intimidating at first, like it was for Arnold. But the class is designed to help participants regain their confidence along with their physical strength.
“One of the keys of this program is that it really changes the perception of the people who come here,” Johnston said. “They think of themselves as very limited. They're looking at what they can't do. They might spend the day or their weeks at doctors appointments and all those kinds of things.”
“And then they come into a dance class and suddenly it's about all of the things they still very much can do.”
Many of the people who attend the class come regularly, and the scheduled class time isn’t the only place participants hang out. Picnics, coffee meet-ups and paddleboarding are all on the social agenda.
When Mia Thomas started going to the class about a year and a half ago, it was all about the community for her. She came in support of her friend with Parkinson’s disease, who she still attends the class with.
It wasn’t until several months after she joined the class that she received her own Parkinson’s diagnosis. Thomas said already being part of a community of people living with Parkinson’s disease brought her comfort while she digested the news.
“I can't imagine it differently,” Thomas said. “I think about the people who don't have that community. I've called a few people that are friends of friends or relatives of friends who have been hit by this news, and I've been able to talk about how living a good life with Parkinson's is very possible.”
Now a year into her diagnosis, Thomas said she doesn’t notice her symptoms – poor balance, a slight tremor, stiffness in her face – while dancing. Thomas is a bit of a worrier, but dancing and other physical activities put her in a state of calm, during which she rarely experiences symptoms.
But more than the physical benefits she gains from the class, it’s the solidarity among the group that Thomas values.
In a group of people dealing with similar challenges and fears, nobody stays a stranger for long.
“It's a disease that just will progress with time,” Thomas said. “The uncertainty about how that will progress, what might have to change in our lives, our longevity itself – those things are just understood among the group. There's somehow a sense of camaraderie and love and affection and goodwill.”
“It's a good lesson for how we should be with everybody with whom we don't know what we share, but there are always shared things.”