Actor Alan Alda was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2015. The M*A*S*H and West Wing star was also diagnosed with face blindness last year. Now, he has revealed the first symptom of Parkinson’s he discovered – and it had to do with a pillow.
Alan Alda is one of the most beloved actors. The now 90-year-old New York native became a huge star on the television show M*A*S*H* and also held major roles in other shows such as West Wing.
Alda starred on M*A*S*H for eleven seasons, airing on CBS starting i 19782. In total, he has won six Emmy Awards and has earned one Academy Award nomination.
But in later years, Alan Alda’s career has not been his main focus. In 2015, the actor was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and last year, he revealed he was dealing with prosopagnosia, better known as face blindness.
Alda is one of more than 1.1 million people in the U.S. living with Parkinson’s disease, with the risk of developing the condition increasing as people get older.
Now, in a new interview with CBS, Alan Alda has spoken out about his diagnosis. But the first symptoms he noticed had nothing to do with the typical tremors or slow movement.
Instead, he did it in his sleep: Throwing a pillow at his wife.
“I had a symptom, which at the time was not that well-known: Acting out your dreams,” Alda told CBS. “I had a dream that somebody was attacking me. And I picked up a sack of potatoes and threw it at ’em. What I was really doing was throwing a pillow at Arlene, my wife.”
Alan Alda reveals strange sleep habit that led to his Parkinson’s diagnosis
The unusual sleep disorder is known as REM Sleep Behavior Disorder, or RBD. RBD happens during REM sleep, the stage when we experience our most vivid dreams. Normally, our muscles are temporarily “switched off” during this stage, keeping us from acting out our dreams.
But with RBD, that specific system doesn’t work properly. A person may move, kick, punch, or even shout while asleep — essentially acting out their dreams.
The condition can be an early warning sign of neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s. Those who are diagnosed with RBD can have extremely vivid dreams; however, their brains fail to switch off the muscles during sleep properly.
As a result, they may physically act out their dreams by punching, kicking, shouting, or moving around in bed. The unusual sleep disorder has been linked to Parkinson’s disease and other neurological conditions. Researchers believe this may be connected to a protein called alpha-synuclein, which can build up in the brain and damage areas involved in controlling movement.
It’s important to highlight that everyone with RBD will go on to develop Parkinson’s. However, the condition can be an early warning sign, sometimes appearing years before a diagnosis.
Early warning signs
Per the NY Post, there are two types of RBD: secondary RBD, which is linked to another condition, and isolated RBD, which develops without a known cause.
In many cases, the isolated type of RBD can be an early warning sign of a neurodegenerative disease such as Parkinson’s, Lewy body dementia, or multiple system atrophy.
The news outlet reported on one study that found that 33% of people with RBD developed a neurodegenerative condition within five years. That number rose to 76% after 10 years and 91% after 14 years.
As of today, RBD is more common in men over 50, people with narcolepsy, and those taking certain medications, including some newer antidepressants. About 2% of Americans over 50 are thought to have RBD, although the true number may be higher because the condition can be difficult to diagnose.
Doctors may diagnose RBD by asking about sleep behavior and conducting an overnight sleep study. The test monitors things like brain activity, eye movements, and muscle activity.
Alan Alda on fighting Parkinson’s with laughter
A diagnosis usually requires repeated movements or talking during REM sleep, while ruling out seizures, medications, and other possible causes.
Alan Alda and his wife, Arlene Alda, have been married almost 70 years. They have three daughters and eight grandchildren.
As with much else in his life, Alda shared in the CBS interview that his sense of humor is still important, especially with his Parkinson’s diagnosis.
“I’ll be at the computer keyboard writing an email, and Dr. Parkinson is moving my hand all over the screen. I have the mouse, and he’s eliminating things and he’s deleting things that I need,” Alda said, laughing.
“Once in a while I get frustrated. But I find what makes me laugh about it, and then I go tell Arlene. Laughing first brought us together. We were invited to dinner at a friend’s house. And Arlene was sitting at one end of the table, and I was sitting at the other end. And I noticed that she was laughing at my jokes. So already I was smitten. In March, we’ll be married 70 years.”
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