A father-of-two has revealed the subtle sign that was the first indication he had the neurological disease Parkinson’s.
Abby FitzGerald, from Bromley in south London, noticed that her husband Ed’s left arm had suddenly stopped swinging when he ran in the summer of 2023.
The marathon runner, now 50, initially brushed off her concern, dismissing it as a minor injury.
It was only once he began struggling to type with his left hand in October that year, that he booked a GP appointment.
Tests eventually revealed the real cause was Parkinson’s — an incurable condition which causes pain, shaking of the limbs and difficulty moving.
Now Mr FitzGerald is urging others not to ignore the potential signs of the progressive brain disorder.
Recalling his shock diagnosis, the marketing director, said: ‘My wife kept telling me, “make sure you swing your arm”.
‘I thought it might be something to do with a trapped nerve, but I didn’t think much of it.
Abby FitzGerald, from Bromley in south London, noticed her husband Ed’s arm had stopped swinging when he ran over the summer of 2023
The marathon runner, now 50, brushed off her concern initially, dismissing it as a trapped nerve
‘If I knew what I know now about the symptoms of Parkinson’s, I might have known something was wrong sooner.’
Mrs FitzGerald, 49, who works at Greenwich University, added: ‘Ed and I have always enjoyed running together, but about eighteen months ago, I noticed that his left arm wasn’t swinging when he ran.
Now Mr FitzGerald is urging others not to ignore the potential signs of the progressive brain disorder
‘To be honest, I didn’t think too much about it — certainly the idea of Parkinson’s never entered my head for a second.
‘I didn’t know a lot about Parkinson’s and wrongly assumed that it was a disease that only affected older people.
‘Finding out that Ed had Parkinson’s was a huge shock. He’s always been such an active person, and the idea that he might not be able to do the things he loves to do was unbearable.’
Parkinson’s affects around 153,000 people in the UK and 500,000 Americans.
Every hour, two people are diagnosed with the condition in the UK and the disease costs the NHS more than £725million a year.
Early signs of Parkinson’s include a tremor, stiffness, slowness of movement, and loss of smell.
Tests showed he had Parkinson’s — a neurodegenerative condition which causes pain, shaking limbs and difficulties moving
Determined to turn his diagnosis into something positive, he is now running the London Marathon in April for charity Cure Parkinson’s
Balance problems such as issues with coordination and muscle cramps are other common signs.
Mr FitzGerald said he had previously noticed a lack of mobility in his arm when he was on holiday, but didn’t think anything of it.
He added: ‘One year, we were on holiday in Lanzarote, and I noticed a lack of mobility in my arm, but at the time I didn’t make the connection.
‘I also had extreme fatigue for a long time, but I thought I was just knackered from working too much.’
But in December 2023, following a series of scans, he was given the life-changing diagnosis.
‘The doctor said something like, “how do you want the bad news?” and told me I either had a stroke or have Parkinson’s,’ Mr FitzGerald said.
‘But said it was more likely to be Parkinson’s.’
Determined to turn his diagnosis into something positive, he is now running the London Marathon in April for charity Cure Parkinson’s.
Symptoms can include uncontrollable tremors, slow movements and muscle stiffness, but experts say they often only appear when about 80 per cent of the nerve cells have been lost
He has already raised almost £13,000 on his JustGiving page.
‘I wanted to give something back and do something positive,’ he said.
‘I knew that I could wallow in a pit of despair or make something good out of it.
‘The charity has been very good to me, and I wanted to give back to them.’
He added: ‘I have been really humbled that people have dug so deep to help a cause that’s very personal to me.
‘People are donating who I haven’t seen for years, people I have never met, friends of friends, colleagues — people from all parts of my life. It’s been really heart-warming.’
He also said the marathon holds a special personal significance.
‘Part of the reason the London Marathon was right for me was because my wife ran it in support of a childhood leukaemia charity after my son was diagnosed with leukaemia at six-months-old,’ he said.
The marathon also holds personal significance given his wife Abby ran it in 2010.
‘There’s a strange circularity to me running this marathon in that sense.’
Since his diagnosis, Mr FitzGerald has been forced to make changes to his daily routine.
He said: ‘I now have to work from home a lot and sometimes have to take a 30-minute nap in the middle of the day because I’m so exhausted.
‘At first, I was worried about whether I’d be able to keep working with Parkinson’s, but I’ve been really supported by my colleagues at work.’
But despite his exhaustion, his diagnosis motivated him to incorporate even more exercise into his daily routine.
He said: ‘The irony is that now I probably do more exercise than I did before.
‘I do a greater variety of sports now. I even took up non-combat boxing because the research suggests the more active you remain, the slower the progression of symptoms is likely to be.’
Mrs FitzGerald added: ‘He’s tackled this challenge as he approaches everything in life — with huge determination — he’s taken his training really seriously and is often up running before sunrise.
‘I’m incredibly proud of him. The fact that he’s raised so much money for Cure Parkinson’s is amazing, and hopefully brings this fantastic charity one step close to finding a cure.’
Parkinson’s is a poorly understood condition which sees nerve cells in the brain that produce the vital hormone dopamine die off.
Experts are still working to uncover what triggers this process, but current thinking is that it’s due to a combination of genetic changes and environmental factors.
While there is no cure, treatments are available to manage symptoms and maintain quality of life for as long as possible.
The condition places great strain on the body which in turn leaves a person vulnerable to deadly infections.
