Pattie Petty, the wife of former NASCAR driver Kyle Petty, has revealed that she has Parkinson’s disease. It was confirmed through a new test at the University of Kansas Hospital. Petty talked exclusively with FOX 4 medical reporter Meryl Lin McKean, and says Parkinson’s won’t stop her efforts to build a camp in Kansas City for kids with chronic illnesses. Petty is the sunny personality beside husband Kyle, and behind Victory Junction, a camp for sick kids. Petty noticed mood changes in recent years, and she linked them to the death of their son, Adam, in a crash 11 years ago. “I just assumed the depression or the emotional mood swings were that I’d lost my son, my husband’s job had changed, I see the children at camp and they’re not healthy and I can’t fix it,” she said. Petty is now living and working in Kansas City to build a camp like North Carolina’s Victory Junction near the Speedway. The down economy was making fundraising harder, and she thought maybe that was behind the depression, too. But she had another symptom — her hands shook. While having dinner with a doctor in Nashville 18 months ago, she asked if it could be Parkinson’s Disease. “Because my hands are tremoring and he said, ‘Oh, you have the disease,'” she said. It’s the same disease her dad had. Petty began taking medicine to control Parkinson’s symptoms, which include mood swings. She also began receiving care at the University of Kansas Hospital. Just last week, Petty had a brand new test called DaTscan to confirm the diagnosis. It looks at function of the brain instead of anatomy by spotting changes in brain chemistry. Petty wants others to know she has Parkinson’s, but she hasn’t lost her wits. “It’s always nice to get all the facts that my cognitive skills are there,” she said. And her desire is there to keep working for the kids. “Nothing’s gonna stop me. I think anytime God puts something on your heart, to do,” Petty said.(FOX 4 News)(9-27-2011)
MORE: Petty, 60, suspected she had Parkinsonâs in early 2010 when she began experiencing resting tremors and aching muscles â two symptoms her father suffered in the early stages of his 15 year battle with the disease. A doctor in Nashville, TN, confirmed her concerns giving her an initial diagnosis based on her distinctive outward symptoms and started her on anti-Parkinsonâs drugs last summer. âAfter watching my father live with Parkinsonâs, it was not a surprise when I was told that I may be suffering from this disease as well,â explained Petty. âI followed my doctorâs advice and began a series of medications, so that I could continue my plan of working a couple of weeks a month in Kansas City laying the ground work to open Victory Junction Midwest.â Victory Junction Midwest is slated be the sister camp to Victory Junction in Randleman, NC, a camp for chronically ill children started by Petty and her husband in honor of their oldest son Adam who died in a NASCAR practice session in 2000. âWhen I was introduced to the medical staff at University of Kansas Hospital,â Petty continued, âI knew immediately Victory Junction Midwest was not the only reason I was meant to be in Kansas City. Even after receiving the unfortunate results from DaTscan, I feel relief,â explained Petty. âI am relieved that my family and I are confident in my diagnosis and can focus on the work we have ahead of us to live with Parkinsonâs disease. Kyle and I have already been blessed by the outpouring support to bring Victory Junction Midwest to Greater Kansas City and we feel doubly blessed that we have a strong and dedicated group of professionals at University of Kansas Hospital providing us with the latest medical technology and assisting us with this disease. This âofficialâ diagnosis does not change our efforts in Kansas City. My hands may not be still, and I might move a bit slower right now, but we are moving full-steam ahead to change the lives of chronically ill children in the Midwest.â
âPattieâs dedication to Victory Junction Midwest is firm,â said Kyle Petty, her husband of 33 years. âStaying active is an important part of managing Parkinsonâs and that will not be hard for my wife. Pattie will not let Parkinsonâs regulate her life. She will continue her initiative to expand Victory Junction, while our kids and I will support her and help her cope with this disease.â(Victory Junction)(9-28-2011)
