Nanny (Carole) Fisher
Living with grace & courage while battling Parkinson's for fifteen years.
'Keep a stiff upper lip' — advice she would give when facing challenging circumstances in life.
— Nanny (Carole) Fisher
Her Journey
Fifteen years of living fully — in spite of everything.
Nanny (Carole) has been married to Papa (Larry) for 60 years. They reared 4 children, all married with their own families. They have 12 grands, 2 bonus/step grands, and 3 great-grands. She is a woman of strong faith, loves her family, and loves spending time with family and friends. Nanny and Papa loved attending sporting events for their grandkids at every opportunity, loved having the family over for pool parties and always had the most beautiful yard with flowering plants and hanging baskets overflowing with blooms. Nanny still loves pretty things, and a well put together outfit.
Parkinson’s has definitely brought it’s challenges. When diagnosed, Nanny was a vivacious woman who loved to travel, had lunch with friends, played bridge several times a month, watched grandkids and tutored math students after school. Slowly over the course of the past 15 years, these activities have waned due to the disease. More and more household responsibilities shifted to Papa, as they became too difficult for Nanny to do. Our family has rallied around Nanny, and Papa, as both of their lives have been impacted. In the early years, we participated in Moving Day as a family. In recent years, we’ve coordinated bringing meals to them on Sunday evenings. Nanny started displaying signs of dementia due to Parkinson’s a couple of years ago which has been an additional challenge. We’ve learned to adjust as a family, and meet her where she is. All the while being a support to Papa, as caregiving and managing meds is a tough job, even with the assistance of professional caregivers.
What’s interesting and challenging about Parkinson’s is that it seems no two people experience it the same.
Fifteen Years, One Day at a Time
The Diagnosis
In the spring of 2010, Nanny’s sister was visiting from out of town and noticed her handwriting getting smaller and smaller as she wrote a grocery list. In addition, she noticed a tremor in her left pinky and encouraged her to get checked. At the time Nanny was overseeing care of her own mom who was in assisted living with increasing needs. Nanny and Papa located a neurologist, and the doctor ordered a number of tests. Nanny, Papa and two of their daughters went to the follow up appointment which is where they learned the news of Nanny’s diagnosis. After Nanny and Papa left, the two daughters stood in the parking lot and cried. A defining moment when we realized life would never be the same. Nanny responded like she does, with resolve and grace.
Finding a New Rhythm
Nanny became more intentional about moving her body. She got a stationary bike and rode it a couple miles a day, went to the mall and walked with a friend, and over the years has participated in a physical therapy for Parkinson’s (LSVT BIG exercises). She was very intentional most days about riding her bike and keeping her body moving.
Five Years In
Nanny and Papa celebrated 50 years of marriage in 2015. Their adult children hosted a beautiful dinner/event to celebrate their union, the life and family they’ve build together. During this time, the entire family attended Northpoint Community Church and would meet up as a big group after church each Sunday. That was a big highlight for Nanny (and Papa) to see their kids and grands.
The Hard Seasons
As time went on and the disease progressed, church on Sunday became less possible due to mobility challenges. Nanny started using a cane pretty regularly to walk around, and then a walker for longer distances. Nanny and Papa realized the need to move to a home that eliminated the need for Nanny to navigate stairs, so moved to a home in a staged care community in October of 2018. Mobility became increasingly exhausting and challenging beyond short distances, so a rollator walker was great for those situations. Nanny was able to do a little more traveling with mobility assistance. The family has pitched in, helping her with various things, and when Covid happened, we coordinated daily family FaceTime calls in order to keep regular connection. We all realized the importance of relational connection even if we couldn’t connect in person. Nanny and Papa got a puppy during Covid as well, which has led to lots of laughter and love from Freddie.
Still Finding Joy
Nanny LOVES Freddie, and Freddie LOVES Nanny. He is her loyal companion. It seemed at first like it might be a lot to have a dog in the house, but Freddie has brought so much cheer to each day. He is a funny dog, and makes her laugh regularly. She also loves when family is near. She enjoys doing Sudoku, jigsaw puzzles and watching Fox News. And still to this day, it’s very important that she gets to pick out what she wants to wear each day.
Fifteen Years. Still Her.
Nanny is “one tough cookie” with “a strong constitution,” which are two other phrases you might hear her use. She is the matriarch of our family, and the picture of tenacity and perseverance. Everything she does now takes the most effort. The simplest of tasks…blowing her nose, putting on a shirt, putting on a shoe, brushing her hair…take all that she has, yet she still tries and still wants to do it herself. She hasn’t given up and keeps fighting the good fight, despite living with a disease that has ravaged her body. She lives with Parkinson’s and now Parkinson’s dementia, but is a hero in our eyes for how bravely and gracefully she has faced this disease.
Moments We Cherish
Her earlier years
Always smiling
Loves her grandkids
Celebrating 50 years of marriage
Family is everything
The cute couple
Enjoying the new pup
A growing family at the beach
Always cheering on Wilson
My grandmother lives with Parkinson's, and watching the determination it takes to face this disease every day has motivated me to contribute in the best way that I know how — by running.
— Wilson Fisher
Honor Nanny (Carole) Fisher's Story
Every dollar donated to the Michael J. Fox Foundation brings researchers one step closer to a cure — for her, and for the millions of others living with Parkinson's today.
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