Book review: O’Connor finds quiet certainty to carry on after Parkinson’s diagnosis

Annemarie O’Connor’s 'Twitch' is a must-read for anyone affected by Parkinson’s

• Twitch 
• Annemarie O’Connor 
• Eriu, £14.99 

 “Mom, I have Parkinson’s. I don’t know what to do.”

So writes Annemarie O’Connor, the Irish Examiner fashion editor, podcaster, and author in her honest, interesting, and darkly humorous memoir about learning how to cope with a devastating diagnosis.

O’Connor was 47 when, in December 2021, she was diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s disease — a progressive, degenerative brain disorder with no cure. It affects movement and mental health.

O’Connor’s mother, on receiving the bad news when she phoned her daughter for a chat, said: “Dear, you’ll carry on and you’ll do it because you have to. That’s all you can do.”

A strong woman, O’Connor’s mother was widowed at 35 with five children. 

She coped admirably and her “quiet certainty”, as O’Connor describes it, regarding her youngest daughter’s ability to keep going was well placed.

O’Connor, a regular columnist with the Irish Examiner, an advocate for people with Parkinson’s, as well as Irish Tatler Woman of the Year (in the Catalyst category) for 2023, is a remarkable woman who possibly didn’t know she had such reserves to pull on when life threw her a cruel blow. 

She describes herself as outwardly independent but a loner at heart who is afraid of being a burden to anyone. 

But as Catherine, one of her four sisters, said to her: “You need your people. Don’t forget that.” It was, O’Connor reflects, the best advice she has ever received.

O’Connor went through a battery of tests before she got her diagnosis at Cork University Hospital. 

Brought up in the US, O’Connor was 12 when she moved to the west of Ireland with her mother and siblings. 

She attended NUI Galway and alludes to an eating disorder that she had while a student. This is in the context of O’Connor’s depleted appetite and weight loss on her Parkinson’s journey.

The memoir is full of ups and downs when it comes to medication. It seems that for nearly every drug that works, there are often prohibitive side effects such as impulse control disorder.

O’Connor navigates the medicine, sometimes with humour, a great tool in her armour. 

She writes: “On occasion, the vibrations and body-popping make it look like I’m auditioning for a break dance crew — the girl who doesn’t dance.”

But as well as the humour, there are niggling worries about financial insecurity and O’Connor’s future. 

Being a single freelancer makes her vulnerable. She had to give up her role as a stylist as trying to handle pins and zips with a tremor made her a liability. 

Towards the end of the memoir, O’Connor’s typing ability is back on track allowing her to work at a good pace. 

A sister had suggested she try speech-to-text software but O’Connor resisted, feeling she had enough on her plate without having to learn the art of dictating her columns.

When Vickie Maye, features editor of the Irish Examiner, commissioned O’Connor to write a piece, opening up about her diagnosis and what it’s like to live with Parkinson’s, it was an opportunity to ‘come out.’ 

The article was the cover story of Weekend magazine on August 27, 2022. O’Connor says the piece was “deeply personal, but I didn’t feel exposed. Instead, I feel grounded, like I finally own my story.” 

There was a huge reaction to the piece which resulted in O’Connor accepting invitations to come on the Brendan O’Connor Show as well as Tommy Tiernan’s chat show.

In the introduction, O’Connor writes that she had a choice to make. “I could play it small and stoic and ‘manage’ my condition, or I could share my medical coming-out story and, in doing so, help others who might feel similarly broken.” 

O’Connor made the right choice. Her book is a must-read for anyone affected by Parkinson’s. It’s also a compelling read for anyone who appreciates memoir writing.

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