Let them, Let us, Yes, And

Empowering the PD Community Through Success Stories™

Parkinson’s disease has always been surrounded by stories—some helpful, many harmful. “It’s just tremors.” “You don’t look like you have PD.” “It’s not that bad.” These phrases, often spoken casually, can land with surprising weight. They erase complexity. They minimize struggle. And, perhaps most damaging, they silence possibility. Hope may not be the best strategy, but hopelessness is definitely an emotional tourniquet.

Let us find our center.

The truth is, stories have power. They shape perception—of ourselves, of others, of what’s worth fighting for. If the prevailing narrative around Parkinson’s is fear, pity, invisibility, or dismissal, then the world—and sometimes even the person diagnosed—begins to believe it. That leads to inaction, e.g. “that’s just the way it is.” Ah, but don’t you believe them…

The PD community, people with PD, care partners, family members and medical providers, must tell stories that matter - Success Stories™. 

Success Stories™ aren’t about pretending everything is fine or slapping a motivational poster over suffering. They’re about honoring the fullness of life with PD—grit, humor, grief, creativity, confusion, triumph, and love. It’s about reclaiming authorship. It’s about saying, This is my story, and I deserve to be heard.

This mindset echoes the philosophy in Mel Robbins’ best-seller, The Let Them Theory: we cannot control the beliefs, judgments, expectations, or disappointments of others. Let them. We cannot force the world to understand PD. Let them. We cannot make people speak carefully or treat us gently or recognize our invisible symptoms. Let them.

What we can control—what is ours—is how we respond, how we show up, how we tell our stories.

It’s the serenity prayer brought to life:

Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

the courage to change the things I can,

and the wisdom to know the difference.

We can’t cure Parkinson’s today. We can’t control its timeline. We can’t outsource salvation. And we certainly shouldn’t place the burden on one heroic figure or institution—Michael J. Fox, the MJFF, NIH, prominent neurologists—to fix everything for us. Support them, absolutely. Participate in research. Donate if you’re able. Champion their work. Pray, hope, cheer, celebrate—all good.

But don’t let those hopes replace the place where your influence is undeniable: your own action, your own voice, your own agency. After accepting “Let them…,” invoke “Let me…”

Let me tell my story. Let me reach out to others. Let me challenge assumptions. Let me create something meaningful. Let me choose connection over isolation. Let me define what courage looks like for me.

This is the core of Acceptance. This is the heart of Yes, And…eXercise! This is how community storytelling becomes activism.

When one person shares a Success Story™, someone else feels less alone. When ten people share, the world begins to listen. When thousands share, public understanding shifts. Research priorities shift. Funding shifts. Humanity shifts.

Not because someone powerful gave us permission—but because we used the power we already had.

Let us be the authors.Let us be the narrators.Let us be the witnesses.Let us be the amplification.

Not in competition with science, but in collaboration with it.

Parkinson’s doesn’t get the final word. We do.

Yes, we can. Yes, we will. Yes, And…

Write your Success Story™—and let it change everything.

Join our Sustainers Circle to get your copy of the Success Stories™ 2026 calendar. There’s a new Success Story™ each month written by someone in the PD community who is working to change the narrative of PD and needs your support. 

Get your Success Stories(tm) 2026 calendar today by joining our Sustainers Circle.