Roughly 14 years ago, Kona resident Donna St. John was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, a neurodegenerative brain disorder that affects one’s movements, body and emotions. At first, she refused to believe it. For a long time, she found ways to ignore symptoms and cope. She did so until she could no longer conceal it. St. John sometimes cannot control her shaking or the fact that she falls — a lot. While treatments exist to alleviate symptoms, they don’t slow the progression of the disease, which is gradually robbing her body of its strength. There’s no cure. Still, St. John isn’t giving up. In fact, she’s fighting back, thanks for Martin Petrofes and his program that works on specific needs of people with Parkinson’s disease. Petrofes owns Hawaii Fitness Academy LLC, a new business that provides specialized programs for clients having discomfort or dysfunction issues. As a corrective exercise specialist, Petrofes typically helps people with a variety of musculoskeletal imbalances and movement pattern disorders. He tries to undo their poor movement habits and postures, re-establish flexibility and strength, and teach them how to maintain their new health status on their own. Petrofes said helping all people achieve their goals, overcome barriers, and live a fit, pain-free and healthy life is his passion. As an instructor for the Parkinson’s Network, a Colorado-based nonprofit public charity, Petrofes has found West Hawaii is lacking in resources for people struggling with this disease. He’s determined to not only change this, but do something about it. Subscribers follow the link for the full story by WHT reporter Carolyn Lucas-Zenk.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Dec 2014 22:00:08 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015