Paul Gosar's health....

[Sogo]

I heard a passing comment on Rachel's show a few weeks ago that there is some talk that Paul Gosar is having health problems. From the video that was just played on her show of him speaking during a Congressional hearing, it looks to me that he possibly has Parkinson's. The way he moves is very much like Michael J. Fox in his earlier days of having Parkinson's.

I'm not a medical expert of any kind; it's just a layman's observation.

[blueinredohio]

1. I noticed how his head never stayed still.

[leftyladyfrommo]

2. Parkinsons can cause dementia. nt

[madinmaryland]

4. Maybe, but not in the case of my father. Sharp as a tack, but no dementia...

My mom is the one who had dementia. She lived in a fog the last three years of her life. So young.

[Retrograde]

14. Same with my grandfather

Parkinson's had a big effect on his motor control but none detectable on his mental capacities. And didn't Janet Reno, former Attorney General, have Parkinson's towards the end of her term?

[peggysue2]

3. My thoughts exactly

I've watched several vids of Gosar and something is definitely going on with the man.

[denbot]

5. I was wondering about the way he postures his head.

I thought the facial and neck tension, with the odd angle his head would seek struck me as very odd.

[Chicago1980]

6. I noticed those same movement...

Saw the same jerkiness in an undercover video of him a few weeks ago.

[rso]

7. Gosar

Frankly, Gosar deserves the very worst .

[Comfortably_Numb]

8. Death would fix that.

[dchill]

10. He would even right out.

[nolabear]

9. Looks as though we all had the same reaction.

I’ve never noticed it before though.

The other thing I noticed is he has no bloody clue how elections work.

[twin_ghost]

11. He is a former dentist. He may have been poisioned by mercury.

[nocoincidences]

12. Those movements of his head seem choreiform,

and remind us of Michael J. Foxx because for awhile his Parkinson medication was a little too much and produced those symptoms.

Maybe Gosar needs his meds adjusted.

[Bristlecone]

13. Wishing him nothing but the worst.

[Retrograde]

15. He reminds me of some of the street people I've seen in the Bay Area

there used to be some near the Ferry Building who could go on and on about their pet conspiracy theories. The big difference is, they at worst would get in your way when you were trying to cross the street; Gosar is downright dangerous

[vas3381]

16. TD?

At first I thought he might have Tardive Dyskinesia after years of anti- psychotic meds. A lot of my patients move the way he does. But Parkinson’s sounds more likely

[LeftInTX]

18. TD is actually quite common. You don't need anti-psychotics to get it either

I have it from my fibromyalgia meds.
You can also get it from fairly benign disorders...

[LeftInTX]

20. He has compressed cervical vertebraes

From 2015

...Gosar, 56, said arthritis and two compressed vertebrae in his neck and lower back have caused nerve issues in his hand. The condition will require back surgery, which he hasn’t scheduled. In addition, he is dealing with complications from a hip replacement last summer.

“I’m as healthy as a horse,” he told The Republic earlier this month. “Not gonna get rid of me that easily.”

A dentist for more than 25 years, Gosar said the spinal compression arose from hunching over for long periods as he treated patients. Genetics and a history of rugby playing, which contributed to his need for a hip replacement, have exacerbated his condition, he said.

Gosar has tried to hide the spasms when he appears in public. He declined since March to discuss his health with The Arizona Republic until a reporter witnessed his hand movements at a Phoenix event this month...

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/arizona/politics/2015/08/28/rep-paul-gosar-addresses-health-rumors/32366009/

Sounds like his problems are generated from his peripheral nervous system.

[Delphinus]

21. Belated

welcome to DU!

Thank you for your input.

[eppur_se_muova]

17. Didn't see your post before I posted -- I asked about Tourette's, or similar. nt

[LeftInTX]

19. There are focal dystonias which are benign...

They don't "look good" and they are "annoying"..I think they can be caused by stress etc...Writer's cramp is also a form of focal dystonia. People who have a history of writer's cramp probably are at risk for for another type of dystonia. I think it has to do with the way the brain "is wired"...I also have ADHD, so I'm "hard wired", "type A" etc.... I'm a jaw grinder going way back...had writer's cramp as a kid etc etc etc...Now I have funny movements and spasms.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Focal_dystonia

Oromandibular dystonia (I have this one)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oromandibular_dystonia

Spasmodic torticollishttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spasmodic_torticollis