Description

Erma Bombeck meets Michael J. Fox in “Shake, Rattle & Roll With It: Living and Laughing with Parkinson’s.” Vikki Claflin is a writer, humorist, and professional public speaker. After many dark days spent coming to terms with her diagnosis, Vikki’s natural comic optimism and irreverence began to surface, and she started writing about the funny side of living with Parkinson’s disease. “Shake, Rattle & Roll With It” s a collection of Vikki’s honest – and hilarious – essays about the ups and downs of life with a chronic illness. She shows us how to laugh at ourselves by first laughing at her, as she unabashedly shares with us her most embarrassing moments in her battle with Parkinson’s. Chapter titles include: “Hey Doc, Call Me When They Find a Cure, Okay?” “Thank You for Calling Google.doc. Yep, You’re Gonna Die.” “Date Night. This isn’t How I Remember It.” “I Gave Hubs a Pole Dance and He Can’t Stop Laughing. It’s Been Two Days.” “The 20 Best Things About Having Parkinson’s.” A true gift to anyone living with, or caring for someone who lives with a chronic condition, or who just loves a good belly laugh, “Shake, Rattle & Roll With It” is pure joy, and should be on everyone’s MUST READ list.Quote:I’ve never been much for standing around waiting for the grapes to ferment before I enjoy a glass of wine. My brain seems permanently set on “Chop, chop, people. Let’s do this!” When I was officially diagnosed with Parkinson’s, I spent a brief period working though the shell-shock (primarily letting go of the last shred of denial possibility), then launched a search to find the funny.If I was going to live with this for the next 20-30 years, I was decidedly not going to spend it trudging through the five stages of grief. Denial was over. Anger was a waste. Bargaining seemed fruitless (I already had the disease). Depression was so…well, sad. Acceptance was an option if it didn’t involve giving up, but even that sounded too passive. For me, laughter was the only suitable response to what was coming.Five-plus years later, I had a manuscript pile of real-life anecdotes, stories, and musings on the lighter side of Parkinson’s. I’ve also learned some powerful lessons about living with a chronic illness.ContentsCoverTable of Contents Title Page CopyrightIn Praise Of Vikki Claflin Dedication Acknowledgements PrefacePart 1: On Shaky Ground (The Early Years)Part 2: Finding the FunnyPart 3: It Takes a VillageMore PraiseAbout VikkiPaperback: 216 pagesPublisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; First edition (October 28, 2014)Language: EnglishISBN-10: 1497476895ISBN-13: 978-1497476899ASIN: B00PFUNFQ6