It was a relief to find out I had Parkinson’s.. it meant I wasn’t going mad
Courageous Gareth says the show must go on
BRAVE DJ Gareth O’callaghan has admitted he was relieved when he was first diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease because he thought he was losing his mind.
The former RTE star, who also battles depression, was forced to publicly reveal he is fighting the condition because his symptoms were becoming so noticeable.
He said: “I was tripping and dropping things. People look at you when you drop a cup of hot coffee at work and scald your foot.
“I fell out of the bath one morning and there was no explanation other than my feet gave way.
“I couldn’t figure out why manoeuvring a fork was so difficult before I was diagnosed. They could turn getting a mushroom on to a fork into an Olympic sport for me.
“I never gave much thought to these strange little conundrums until they all started to come together.”
Prior to his diagnosis the 4FM broadcaster, who turns 57 next week, had been feeling unwell for the past few months but had put it down to “stress, worry over financial issues and general life anxieties”.
He told the Neil Prendeville Show on Cork’s REDFM: “Stress to Parkinson’s is like setting fire to a bale of dried hay, it eats you. It can cause ferocious tremors and your speech can be affected.
“When I was diagnosed, I found out that I had had it for a couple of years. In a way that was a relief to me because I wasn’t going mad.”
Following his public announcement on Twitter, the Dubliner said he still feels like it’s all a bad dream, adding: “I am waiting for somebody to tell me it was a misdiagnosis.”
Gareth said he was “absolutely devastated” when he first received the news but is not letting it get the better of him.
He added: “You have to take on this whole new world and incorporate it into your own life while not letting it destroy you and command you.
“You have to remind yourself it doesn’t define you and you can stay active and doing what you are doing.”
The father of three, who wrote a book about his struggles with depression, is nervous about what the future holds.
He said: “I am worried about all that lies ahead. You invite in depression and anxiety if you give up on life and it chews you up like a shark.
“You have got to put on your mental jacket and say, ‘The illness is not going to get near me’.”
In 2016 Parkinson’s claimed the life of Muhammad Ali, while other famous sufferers include the late Johnny Cash and Robin Williams, Michael J Fox, Linda Ronstadt, Bob Hoskins, Billy Connolly and more recently Neil Diamond.
But, unlike Diamond who last January announced his retirement from touring after his diagnosis, the show will go on for Gareth.
The former 2FM broadcaster said he has no plans to give up his daily afternoon radio gig as it will also help him battle the incurable disease.
He added: “The radio show is more than a few hours of music, it is a way of life for me.
“The power of music can take you back to more pleasant times and help you to cope with stress and anxiety.”
You have to take on this whole new world while not letting it destroy you GARETH O’CALLAGHAN ON REDFM YESTERDAY