AI Interviews Me About Climbing Kilimanjaro For Parkinson's Documentary
Following my recent blog post about Parkinson’s and ChatGPT, I decided to flip the script and ask the popular AI chat tool to interview me by giving it the following prompt: “I was diagnosed with Parkinson's at age 49 in 2017 and I'm going to make a documentary of my preparations and attempt to climb Mount Kilimanjaro this summer. Ask me some interview questions.”
What follows is this interview. The 10 questions were generated by the AI wizardry of ChatGPT but the answers are 100% human, produced by me.
ChatGPT:
What inspired you to take on such a challenging endeavor, especially with your diagnosis of Parkinson's?
Marco:
It is especially because of my diagnosis of Parkinson’s that I decided to attempt to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. I felt like I needed to raise the bar for myself instead of lowering it due to Parkinson’s.
ChatGPT:
What kind of physical and mental preparation have you undergone to attempt this climb?
Marco:
For the mental part, I try to redirect any negative thoughts about failure into positive affirmations that I can do this and I will do this. I meditate daily to relax myself and help my body and mind sync up so that they feel as if they are on the same team, which doesn’t always seem to be the case with Parkinson’s! Physically, in addition to my daily exercise regimen, I’m starting to go on long hikes. Two days ago, I hiked through the jungle in Puerto Rico, where I live, and I made the mistake of picking a trail called El Toro Verde that was full of narrow gullies and slippery mud paths interspersed with deep bogs. After five hours of grueling effort, I learned not to be afraid to turn back before reaching the summit if your gut tells you that this is the thing to do to keep you safe, carefully study the route in advance to know what you’re in for and be prepared with the right gear. A better pair of shoes and some hiking poles would’ve gone a long way toward keeping me from falling, which I did many, many times.
ChatGPT:
How do you plan on managing your Parkinson's symptoms during the climb?
Marco:
As anyone with Parkinson’s or who cares for someone with Parkinson’s knows, symptom management is the name of the game. I have managed to keep my medication levels fairly low for now with the help of exercise, diet, good sleep and meditation, along with a generous sprinkling of luck, but the disease keeps nipping at my heels. One of the things that I need to be ready on the climb for is the cold because my body doesn’t handle it well anymore and once I start shivering it can become uncontrollable, so I will bring a battery-operated heated vest to keep my core warm. Also, I get tired much more quickly now and this causes me to lose focus and exacerbates difficulties with movement on my right side, which is more affected. This can be dangerous on a mountain like Kilimanjaro, obviously, so I will bring extra doses of carbidopa-levodopa to take if I need to bump up my medication on the fly.
ChatGPT:
What message do you hope to send to others who may be living with Parkinson's or other chronic illnesses?
Marco:
Keep challenging yourself to do something that pushes you outside of your comfort zone, even if just a little bit. It doesn’t need to be climbing Kilimanjaro, it could even be walking up and down your driveway or joining a boxing class or reaching out to a friend you haven’t talked to in a long time. It’s easy to become isolated and feel stuck when you have a disease that is greedy like Parkinson’s and wants to take away so much from you. One way to temper Parkinson’s is to engage with it on your terms as much as possible.
ChatGPT:
What has been the biggest obstacle you've had to overcome in your journey so far?
Marco:
One of the toughest things for me is contending with the reduction in productivity that comes with Parkinson’s. Every day I have a long list of things to do that includes work, preparing for the trip, fundraising for the documentary, taking care of myself, staying in touch with people, being a dad, etc., and it often feels overwhelming. The only way I can handle it is by triaging my priorities and making sure that I identify what’s most important for me to accomplish each day and take it easy on myself if I don’t get through everything on the list.
ChatGPT:
How do you plan to address the potential risks and challenges that come with climbing Mount Kilimanjaro?
Marco:
By surrounding myself with people I trust and who are good at what they do. I’ve hired an experienced guide to lead us up the mountain and I will be accompanied by two of my brothers-in-law who are medical practitioners, as well as my nephew who is something of a MacGyver. I'm also thinking of taking along my two teenage sons, who have proven themselves to be rock starts in tough situations.
ChatGPT:
How do you plan to involve the Parkinson's community in your documentary?
Marco:
Currently, I am a looking at ways that people in the Parkinson’s community can follow my journey actively by challenging themselves to take as many steps as I do, or as many as they can take, while I am climbing the mountain. I will also document the trip on social media and work with the Parkinson’s Foundation on that effort.
ChatGPT:
What kind of impact do you hope this documentary will have on viewers and on the Parkinson's community?
Marco:
I hope that this documentary will help people with Parkinson’s challenge themselves to keep moving and enjoying life as much as they can. I also hope that people will see how much more they can accomplish by surrounding themselves with a supportive community. This is not always easy to do but there are resources out there that can help you!
ChatGPT:
How has this journey changed you personally?
Following my diagnosis, I felt crushed but ultimately I refused to let the disease become me. I sought out people who were proactive about how they approached their condition and I found them at a gym, SLS Fitness in Lowell, Massachusetts, where they teach Rock Steady Boxing classes. The first time I joined a class I felt like I had become part of a new tribe and I embraced them as much as they embraced me. So, my journey has been one from despairing to caring and carrying on with my life.
ChatGPT:
What advice would you give to someone else living with Parkinson's who is considering taking on a similar challenge?
Marco:
Don’t hesitate. Do it! Break it down into smaller steps so that you don’t feel overwhelmed and be sure to enlist the help of others because you’ll need it. Plus, it’s a lot more fun doing things together with people you enjoy.
