An accident case

In his biography, Jukka-Pekka Palo reveals the health concerns of his last years. Jenni Host

Actor Jukka-Pekka Palo69, does Palo-in his biography (Tammi) revelations about his career, childhood and health, among other things.

Palo, who retired in the spring of 2023, says that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease a couple of years earlier. The actor noticed the first symptoms in the staff cubicle of his workplace at the National Theatre, when his right hand was shaking while holding a cup of coffee.

Italicized passages are excerpts from the book.

I went to an occupational health doctor who wrote a referral to a neurologist. He saw how my hand twitched and asked me to draw a circle on the paper. He immediately said that it was Parkinson’s disease. Confirmation of the diagnosis was obtained in the clinical trials of the Department of Neurology at HUSPalo recalls in his book.

According to the actor, his wife Riitta Anttonen-Palo was more shocked by the knowledge than he himself. Palo had somehow managed to wait for the diagnosis. According to the man, the disease is not the worst for him.

But the twitching of the hand is already such that it required slowing down the work. Writing is already becoming difficult, and I notice that especially in social situations, Mr. Parkinson tries to control my hand. That’s why I map out big opportunities. Fortunately, so far I have no symptoms other than tremors in my right hand, no muscle stiffness or slowness of movementsPalo says.

In May 2023, there was one more worry about the fire’s health.

I was in pain for one night and thought the chest pains were caused by heartburn. At five in the morning, Riitta called an ambulance, and the paramedics immediately took an EKG. After consulting Meilahte, they acted quickly and professionally, and I was rushed to the hospital. The blood test taken there showed that I had a heart attackthe actor says.

The departure had been close, but in the end there was luck on the wayhe adds.

After the expert cardiologist’s inquiries, it turned out that Palo had been under stress recently Young idealists -because of the demanding role in the play. The play had to be completely pulled from the repertoire. The theater role was Palo’s last, and he had to retire earlier than planned.

With his retirement, Palo’s diet also changed: today the actor drinks alcohol more moderately, rarely eats red meat, and his weight dropped five kilos in three months. Palo thanks his wife for her support amid health concerns.

I’m not bitter that my health is this way. I live each day as fully as I can. No one is left here, and everyone has their own destinyPalo states.

Liisa Talvitien The book written by Palo will be published on Palo’s 70th birthday, Wednesday, August 7, but the book is already available in bookstores.