The Shake It Up Show
The Shake It Up Show is a podcast about Parkinson’s disease, hosted by Shake It Up Australia ambassador Amy Ruffle. We’ll be talking to a range of people whose lives have been impacted by Parkinson’s disease and hear their stories.
This series is about the different experiences in the Parkinson’s community, discussing a range of things including the road to diagnosis, coping with change, different therapies and interventions, misconceptions and everything in between. We’ll be hearing from people living with Parkinson’s, people with Parkinson’s in their family or community, researchers working on Parkinson’s treatments, and more.
Subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and Apple.
To support Shake It Up Australia, you can get involved or donate today.
Episode One: Clyde Campbell
Shake It Up Founder Clyde Campbell shares his journey from his own Parkinson’s diagnosis to founding Shake It Up Australia. He spoke to Amy about some of the ground-breaking work currently being funded by the Foundation, his approach to life, and his advice for other people living with Parkinson’s.
“I always say – you’ve got to enjoy the present, you’ve got to design the future, and I need to make an incredible difference to everyone close to me. If I do all those three things, it makes me happy.”
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Episode Two: Rob Ruffle
On this special episode, Amy speaks with her father Rob Ruffle. Rob shares his Parkinson’s story, the symptoms he initially experienced that lead to his diagnosis and interventions he has found helpful.
“I’m hoping I can do my bit for Parkinson’s research, for Shake It Up Foundation and to hopefully help someone else who might be going through a similar situation.”
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Episode Three: Sandra Gerschwitz
On this episode, Amy has a very open and inspiring conversation with Sandra Gerschwitz, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s at age 45. She shares her journey to get doctors to take her concerns seriously, her experience dealing with her diagnosis, and why she feels it’s so crucial to smash the stigma around this disease.
Sandra is preparing to trek Mt Everest with Trek Ready Himalayas, so we also hear from Gary Mckitterick Gillett about his experience running annual treks to raise money for Parkinson’s research, and what’s involved.
“Don’t be ashamed of it. Search out and find groups. I have met some amazing people… that’s a positive that has come out of this disease. Get out there, learn about it, there’s so much support there. Just ask and don’t stop asking.”
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Episode Four: Professor Carolyn Sue AM
On this week’s episode, Amy speaks with Professor Carolyn Sue AM from NeuRA about her ground-breaking Nix gene therapy research.
In this study, Professor Sue and her team will explore if the Nix protein restores mitophagy and mitochondrial function in people with the PINK1/PARKIN gene mutation. The team is now working on the theory that overexpressing the Nix protein using gene therapy could stop the progression of Parkinson’s.
“When brain cells start degenerating it’s because they lose energy, just like if you have a mobile phone that loses charge. Energy fuels active things like making the synapses work, it allows proteins and molecules to be transported around the cells and helps get rid of the rubbish that stops the cell from working properly. In Parkinson’s disease, all of those processes are slowly or gradually lost. This new treatment works on a new way to recharge the batteries.”
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Episode Five: Kristy Johnson
On this episode, Amy speaks with fellow Shake It Up ambassador Kristy Johnson about her mother’s experience with Parkinson’s and Lewy Body Dementia, her family’s experience in their role as carers for a loved one with Parkinson’s, and her advice for other carers to support their own health and wellbeing.
“Carers also need to be cared for. Their mental health, their physical health, is just as important… make sure you reach out for help, whether it’s a carers support group online, or just talk to a friend.”
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Episode Six: Glenn Gloury
On this episode, we speak to retired Principal and sports enthusiast Glenn Gloury, who shares with us his Parkinson’s story, from initial symptoms to the treatments and exercise he has found helpful, and his advice for others dealing with a recent diagnosis of PD.
“You’ll need to go through a grieving stage… But once you get through that, you need to accept it and take every day as it comes. Keep moving, keep doing whatever you possibly can that you were doing before. Talk to people about it, talk to your family. Don’t be afraid to let people know that you do have Parkinson’s.”
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Episode Seven: Joanne Colquhoun
On this episode, Joanne shares her Parkinson’s story, her experience with Deep Brain Stimulation, and her fundraising adventures hosting karaoke nights to support Shake It Up and Parkinson’s research.
“Don’t put off doing something and think, oh I’ll do that when I retire. Do it when you can, just get things done. I’m so grateful that I have done lots of things that I wanted to do.”
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Episode Eight: Emma Tinkler
On this episode, we speak to the joyous Emma Tinkler about living with both MS and Parkinson’s, the challenges of misdiagnosis, and the mind and body based interventions she has found helpful. You can follow her journey on instagram @livingwithpdandms
“Talking about Parkinson’s helps me put a positive spin on my disease. It’s a really fantastic way of trying to make a positive impact.”
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Episode Nine: Professor Malcolm Horne
On this episode we are joined by Professor Malcolm Horne to talk about his career in Parkinson’s research, developments he has seen in his time, emerging treatment options and what he hopes to see in the future.
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Episode Ten: Christine Jeyachandran
On this episode, we speak to Christine about being diagnosed with Parkinson’s while she was on the other side of the world and how gymnastics has changed her life.
“We really need to keep raising money for a cure. As I get on with my Parkinson’s, drugs are less effective… we need to find more treatments to stop this disease progressing.”
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Q&A with Amy Ruffle
Shake It Up ambassador Amy Ruffle is a woman of many talents. She’s an actor, producer, comedian, and now – host of the Shake It Up Show, a new podcast series launching this April for Parkinson’s Awareness Month. We had a chat with Amy to learn about the world of podcasting and share what you can expect from the Shake It Up Show.
Learn about The Shake It Up Show
