The Story Behind NextStep®
New Invention that Alleviates Parkinson's Disease Symptom without Medication Hits the Market
Neurologists who treat Parkinson's are elated with results of the NextStep®. The device allows "freezing" victims to walk again.
After Mike Tucker's diagnosis of Parkinson's disease, an incurable and debilitating illness that affects the central nervous system, he responded by rallying his entrepreneurial spirit in search of solutions for the many life-altering symptoms he and hundreds of thousands of Parkinson's Disease (PD) patients live with daily. Five years later, his invention, christened the "NextStep®", has hit the market with heavy acclaim from neurologists and PD patients alike.
Called a "miraculous breakthrough" by Dr. Joel Trugman, a renowned neurologist who has researched Parkinson's for decades, worked with Tucker during the development and testing stages of the NextStep®. He now recommends it to his patients and other neurologists. "This is the first time in years I've actually been able to recommend a treatment that I know will help PD patients and make them more independent." Dr. Trugman elaborated that the device is most useful in the morning and evening, when medication to control freezing episodes has worn off.
As many as one million Americans suffer from Parkinson's disease, according to the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, most notably Michael J. Fox and Mohammed Ali, Tucker's invention will significantly improve the quality of life for hundreds of thousands whose Parkinson's symptoms include "freezing". Freezing is when the natural flow of movement is hampered. It refers to sudden, temporary difficulty initiating or continuing a movement, such as a step. The patient can actually feel as if they are "frozen" to the floor. For many, this means they literally stop in their tracks and cannot move. Interestingly, it occurs often when walking toward an "exit" door or in hallways and rest rooms.
What Mike Tucker has invented is a medically sound walking aid that consistently breaks a Parkinson's freeze with the use of the visual cue wand - an obstruction that allows the sufferer to take their next step.
"It can be a significant problem," says Tucker. "People with this symptom don't feel comfortable going out in public, because you never know when a freeze will happen. I invented the NextStep® for my own use to free myself of that fear. Now, after using it for 18 months, I feel safe leaving my house. And I want every other Parkinson's shut-in to feel the same sense of independence I do."
The NextStep® was developed by Parkinson's NextStep, LLC, a company whose mission it is to create and develop products that serve, enrich, and foster independence for Parkinson's sufferers.
Parkinsons NextStep LLC, Founder and President, Mike Tucker
[Flashback - 20 years ago - 1986]
Mike Tucker is 29 years old, a father, a husband, and a good provider. He's a fitness fanatic. You can find him in the gym, six days a week, working out, lifting weights, body building. He's also a cop - a tough, hard one, with a part time security business on the side. Mike is in charge of his life. Mike is in control.
[Today]
Mike Tucker, now 49, spends hours writing poetry. He teaches Sunday school. He has time for his family and friends. He doesn't work anymore doing what he loves. He had to resign as CEO of the multi-million dollar security company he built. Mike is no longer in charge. Something else was.
On March 12, 1996, Mike was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
This able bodied, confident achiever was left with a diagnosis, but no answers about what this disease would do to his life, his body - how he'd adjust. The doctors did tell him that the body he had worked so hard to perfect would slowly become weak and unreliable. Mike was no longer in control. He was determined to change that. Someday.
Five years after his diagnosis, Mike began to experience "freezing" episodes, a symptom of Parkinson's. One that makes you unable to move, to walk, to take your next step. You are literally "cemented" to the floor. He no longer went out to eat with his family or ventured out on his own. He never knew when a freezing episode would occur. Mike became a prisoner of Parkinson's - rarely leaving his home. That's when he realized his body couldn't change, but he was in charge of his mind.
Mike changed himself. Suddenly, each new morning, cloudy or bright, was filled with shining rays of light, hope, joy, and gratitude. For the first time in his life, Mike saw every moment as a blessing from God. Each day brought new challenges, new opportunities, and new obstacles.
With little to no muscle, Mike became the strongest he'd ever been in his life.
On one particularly symptom free day, a "good" day, unburdened with the omnipresent physical and emotional pain, Mike decided to try his hand at an old hobby he loved - woodworking. He was intent on creating a cane that would not only keep his body stabilized; he wanted to invent a device for the cane that would get him moving again during a freezing episode. He knew that stairs, a foot in front of him, or a piece of wood thrown at his feet could often "trick" his mind so that he could take his next step. He needed to create some sort of obstacle, a reliable one, that he could use - on his own - that allowed him to move forward.
Two years later, armed with his invention, a rather rudimentary wooden appendage attached to a cane, Mike was able take that next step. He was free to enjoy life again. He dreamed of being able to share his invention with other patients of Parkinson's, but he didn't have the energy or the funding to make that happen.
Then he met a pupil who attended his Sunday school class. He shared his story with him. The man was so moved by Mike's tenacity and the genius of his invention, that he agreed to become his partner. They worked for years with engineers, neurologists, and other Parkinson's sufferers to develop the solution, a device they appropriately christened the NextStep.
The NextStep has become, quite literally, Mike's next step. His goal is to provide for everyone who experiences freezing episodes a way out. To be free from their own private prisons so that they, like he, will become independent and self-sufficient once again. This business is Mike's mission. Mike is, once again, giving to others, rather than being taken care of by others.
And Mike likes giving far better than receiving.
Parkinson NextStep® CEO Scott D. Dawson, Jr.
Scott D. Dawson, Jr. is third generation real estate.
And now, he's also an entrepreneur.
How Scott got involved in building a company, which is a step (or two) outside his comfort zone, is a story built on becoming a part of someone else's dream.
Scott was first introduced to the idea of the NextStep by Mike Tucker, a Parkinson's disease sufferer and Scott's Sunday school teacher. Although Scott had not known Mike very long, his witness every Sunday while he battled Parkinson's disease, this horrific, debilitating disease was inspirational in itself. One Sunday about a year ago, as class was coming to an end, Mike pulled out this cane with a plastic device on the end. He then explained what he had been working on in his spare time. This was the first time I had actually learned about one of the symptoms of Parkinson's called "freezing" that afflicts thousands of Parkinson patients. Mike explained how the device works by creating a visual cue to allow him to walk during a "freezing" episode. Mike then further explained that he was struggling financially and his energy levels were so up and down with the medications that he really had no means to take this project any further. He had decided to just use it himself and donate it to the University of Virgina's medical department where Mike had received treatment and monitoring of his disease.
As the next couple of weeks past, Scott couldn't get this man and his invention out of his mind and heart. He spoke with his wife, Canyn, and explained how heavy this was weighing on him and how he wanted to find a way to help Mike. Without pause, his wife told Scott he had to do it. Later that week, Scott and Mike went to lunch to discuss his device, neither knowing what to expect. Mike agreed immediately that they should work together, even though he had experienced so many road blocks in the past.
The next thing they knew, Parkinson Next Step, LLC was created. Scott and Mike, partners now, were off and running.
In Scott's Words…
I cannot express how inspirational this adventure has been for Canyn and myself. Here is a 49 year old man with this debilitating disease who looks at his diagnosis as a blessing. How can such a young, successful businessman, who owns his own company and is completely healthy, have his entire life turned upside down and still truly believe his disease was a blessing from God? Just as a bystander, it's tough on me to watch the pain. Unless you've seen it firsthand, you cannot begin to understand the physical and mental effects of this disease.
Mike and I usually meet at the breakfast table about every two weeks to catch up and get business issues out of the way. I told him the other morning how much I loved him and what an inspiration he was to us. When I'm thinking I'm having a bad day, just the thought of Mike lightens my mood. My worst day can't compare to his. I can't imagine being forced to crawl around my own house on my hands and knees because my brain won't signal to my feet to step.
When we first started this company, I was in it to not only help him, but for it to become a financial venture as well. As time has passed, money became less and less important. Now, just to watch the expressions on the faces of the people who use the NextStep (and their loved ones) is the biggest return on any investment I've made. People can now independently take care of themselves through a freezing episode. I have already seen a customer in tears because they now had the freedom to get out and enjoy life again.
As Mike had his mouthful of the usual cheeseburger for breakfast, he looked at me with his inspiring grin and said "Now you get it".
