{"id":4206,"date":"2025-04-04T04:38:32","date_gmt":"2025-04-04T04:38:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.villages.com.au\/?p=4206"},"modified":"2025-04-04T04:39:17","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T04:39:17","slug":"celebrating-progress-at-the-pecs-parkinsons-support-group","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.villages.com.au\/retirement\/celebrating-progress-at-the-pecs-parkinsons-support-group\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating progress at the PECS Parkinson&#8217;s Support Group"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"4206\" class=\"elementor elementor-4206\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-45c2c75 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"45c2c75\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-fe14aa2\" data-id=\"fe14aa2\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0180b58 elementor-drop-cap-yes elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0180b58\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;drop_cap&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.15.0 - 20-08-2023 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p>Kerry Corrigan is living proof that exercise can have a powerful impact. A client of Resthaven Paradise and Eastern Community Services (PECS), Kerry is a long-time member of the PECS Parkinson&#8217;s Support Group. Before joining, he struggled to lift his arms above his shoulders. But today, Kerry proudly raises both hands high above his head, showing just how far he\u2019s come.<\/p><p>The PECS Parkinson\u2019s Support Group has been supporting people living with Parkinson\u2019s Disease for nearly 25 years. Each week, members come together to take part in a range of activities designed to support both physical and cognitive health.<\/p><p>&#8220;We focus on balance, muscle development, and flexibility, key areas to help maintain quality of life when living with Parkinson\u2019s,&#8221; says Marta Krzystoszek, Resthaven&#8217;s Occupational Therapist, who leads the group. &#8220;We also work on activities that help with cognitive challenges associated with the disease.&#8221;<\/p><p>Kerry, who\u2019s been part of the group for over a decade, and Tony Spagnoletti, another long-time member, are just a few of the people who have benefited from this supportive community. Newer members like Silvano Baldin and Maureen Lockley are also finding the group helpful.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-0c180b3 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"0c180b3\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-3dd76d4\" data-id=\"3dd76d4\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a1b4545 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"a1b4545\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.15.0 - 20-08-2023 *\/\n.elementor-widget-image{text-align:center}.elementor-widget-image a{display:inline-block}.elementor-widget-image a img[src$=\".svg\"]{width:48px}.elementor-widget-image img{vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"451\" height=\"257\" src=\"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture12.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-4209\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture12.jpg 451w, https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Picture12-300x171.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 451px) 100vw, 451px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-42a03e5 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"42a03e5\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-1de26a6\" data-id=\"1de26a6\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-31b220a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"31b220a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>On the social side, the group is a space to share experiences, learn about new medical breakthroughs, and find new ways to manage symptoms.<\/p><p>&#8220;The staff makes everything fun and motivates me to do my exercises,&#8221; Kerry says. &#8220;They make me feel right at home.&#8221;<\/p><p>The group doesn\u2019t just offer exercise; it provides holistic support. Marta and the team also assist members in finding gym programs, swimming classes, and physiotherapy, as well as help with purchasing home equipment to make daily activities easier.<\/p><p>&#8220;Our cognitive work focuses on helping individuals tackle everyday tasks,&#8221; Marta explains. &#8220;For instance, if someone is struggling with multitasking or thinking through daily tasks, we work together to find solutions and steps to reach their goals.&#8221;<\/p><p>April is Parkinson&#8217;s Awareness Month, with World Parkinson&#8217;s Day on 11 April. Parkinson&#8217;s is the fastest-growing neurological condition in the world, affecting over 150,000 people in Australia. Early signs include tremors, muscle stiffness, slow movement, and balance issues.<\/p><p>Resthaven offers Parkinson\u2019s Support Groups at several locations, and My Aged Care can help you access these services.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kerry Corrigan is living proof that exercise can have a powerful impact. A client of Resthaven Paradise and Eastern Community Services (PECS), Kerry is a long-time member of the PECS Parkinson&#8217;s Support Group. Before joining, he struggled to lift his arms above his shoulders. But&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4207,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-retirement"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4206"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4212,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4206\/revisions\/4212"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4207"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.villages.com.au/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}