Simon Brown tells unLTD how his Parkinson’s Disease diagnosis inspired him to start Dopamine Disco – a project to help people with health issues ‘jump up and down like an eight-year-old’ and ‘enjoy the benefits of music and dance’
I was inspired to start my project by …
My diagnosis with Parkinson’s Disease. Parkinson’s leads to a lack of dopamine which can really make you lose enthusiasm for things you used to enjoy and that can be a lonely place. After being diagnosed I spent three years in deep contemplation, therapy sessions, reading books and watching motivational YouTube content and I wanted to help other people going through something similar and share my story.
Over the years I’ve easily racked up thousands of hours of dancefloor participation in clubs in Berlin, Paris, Barcelona, and London, and dancing is a recognised therapy for all aspects of Parkinson’s Disease. But I’m too old to go to clubs and I don’t fancy doing the rumba in a community centre every other Tuesday.
I’m a dad, I’ve got a job, grown-up responsibilities, but still want to get that feeling from dance where you want to jump up and down like an eight-year-old! So I want to start a dance craze, accessible to people with health issues, that offers a few hours of forgetting about everything and getting lost in the groove.
The three words that best describe my project are …
Unique, connective, and – hopefully eventually – global!
Sheffield City Region is a great place to start a project because …
Sheffield is the friendliest city, the greenest, the most active – and has the student retention rates to reflect all of that.
I’ve always believed in the People’s Republic of South Yorkshire – it feels like it’s full of good people who want to do good things. Sheffield Soup, for example, invited me to pitch at their recent event and that was scary! But they really held my hand, helped me clarify the idea of Dopamine Disco and I got to showcase the project to a lot of people.
I’m in talks now with Yellow Arch studios as possible venues for Dopamine Disco and they will be helping with coordinating security and accessibility for the events.
The best advice I ever got was …
From Richard Johnson, the former manager of Sheffield Children Festival. I was managing a design company at the time and was very much focused on the management side of the job. He told me: ‘Don’t give up on your creativity.’
The worst advice I ever got was …
Someone who shall remain unnamed who told me not to tell my employers about my Parkinson’s diagnosis. The swine! I think he thought they wouldn’t be supportive, so I kept it a secret for two years and that put even more pressure on me when I did eventually come out about my condition. Oh, and my employers were super-supportive!
The organisations that have supported me and my project include …
Sheffield Soup.
Yellow Arch Studios.
Reach Your Peak.
Parkinsons.org.uk
The main challenges facing my project are …
The perception of what ‘going out’ and ‘socialising’ is. Challenging the idea that you have to have a few pints or be really drunk to enjoy live music or going out for a dance. This is a new way of socialising and experiencing the benefits of music and dance.
In 5 years’ time I expect my project to …
Hopefully be global! I’d like to livestream Dopamine Disco so that people can be part of it all over the world first off and then see others take the idea and create their own events so there’s 50 Dopamine Discos taking place across the world.
