Parkinson’s pose work of art
A Parkinson’s sufferer in Britain is turning her disease into a work of art. Mother of four, Nicky Pywell, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease when she was just 29, but tries to use her condition to her advantage by posing as a living statue. According to The Daily Mail, as Ms Pywell’s muscles stiffen as a result of the disease, her joints contract and tighten and she is unable to move.
A Parkinson’s sufferer in Britain is turning her disease into a work of art.
Mother of four, Nicky Pywell, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease when she was just 29, but tries to use her condition to her advantage by posing as a living statue.
According to The Daily Mail, as Ms Pywell’s muscles stiffen as a result of the disease, her
joints contract and tighten and she is unable to move.
She now raises money for Parkinson’s UK by doing a Marilyn Monroe impersonation in her home town of Coalville, Leicester, for two hours at a time.
“I become a living statue for two-and-a-half hours. I get stiff, all my muscles get rigid
and I’m unable to move if I don’t have my medication,” she tells The Daily Mail.
“It was the idea of being stiff that led to being a statue. I do take little breaks but
every time I am out on the platform I don’t move.
“I love Marilyn Monroe – she was a good actress and beautiful and glamorous. I find it
really fun, I enjoy it and people say I look like her.”
Ms Pywell first sought her GP’s advice after she thought she had pulled a muscle while
using a hedge trimmer nine years ago.
As time went on her left arm began to shake and drag but it took another three years and
four neurologists to diagnose because doctors reportedly thought Ms Pywell was too young to be diagnosed with Parkinson’s.
“People aren’t aware that I’ve got it unless I tell them and you get funny looks from
people who make assumptions,” she says, reflecting on her disease.
“For me to accept I’ve got Parkinson’s it was easier for me if I told the world rather than
tell people one by one. It’s something I’ve learned to live with and not to be ashamed of.”
