Bill Schmalfeldt

Bill Schmalfeldt is a man on a mission. Having been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2000 at the tender age of 45, Bill retired from his job as a writer with the National Institutes of Health in 2011. At the time, he decided he wanted to spend the rest of his life, however long that might be, spreading the word about Parkinson's disease research, the hunt for a cure as well as new and better treatments, information for caregivers, stuff like that.

Bill got lost along the way. He found himself embroiled in a political war between right wing bloggers and a person they seek to destroy. As his disease worsened, Bill found himself less able to deal with the evil of certain people in the right wing, and he withdrew from the battle.

Now, Bill is back on track. His 2011 book, "Put On Your Parky Face" has been updated to 2014 and is about to be (if it hasn't already) released as an audiobook on Amazon, Audible and iTunes. The book is about Bill's experience as a "Parky" from his diagnosis through his participation as a volunteer in a clinical trial in 2007. Bill is one of 15 people in the United States to volunteer for brain surgery as part of this trial to see if people in the earlier stages of PD can survive the surgery and tolerate the implantation of deep brain stimulation hardware.

So far, so good.

Bill has launched an Internet radio station devoted to what he calls "our Select Society of the Slow, Stiff and Shaky." You can hear his broadcasts on his blog, http://schmalfeldt.org -- a podcast will be in the offing shortly.

As he sneaks up on his 60th birthday and, shortly after, his 15th anniversary as a "Parky," Bill intends to put the negative behind him once and for all and to focus his energies on the search for a cure, the hunt for new and better treatments for this crippling neurological disorder.

"Put On Your Parky Face" and its earlier versions are available on Amazon and CreateSpace.