Irena was 35 and had a newborn when she was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease

Irena is part of a growing cohort of people diagnosed with Parkinson's disease early in life. She was only 35 when her tremors started.

"I don't like to remember that time of my life; it all happened after the birth of my second son," she told Nadia Mitsopoulos on ABC Radio Perth.

When she sought the opinion of a neurologist, she was initially diagnosed with postnatal depression.

"[When] I went for a second opinion … I got diagnosed with Parkinson's. It's been very interesting journey since," says Irena, who asked to withhold her last name for privacy.

What is early onset Parkinson's disease?

Parkinson's WA senior nurse specialist Janet McLeod OAM says one-third of people diagnosed in Australia each year are between the ages of 21 and 40 — considered "early onset".

"With that, we've seen an awful lot more younger-onset people.

"We're now becoming aware that it's not that previous perception of an elderly shaky male, it's becoming much more diverse.

"You can't predict how each person's journey will go, but research would suggest for the younger onset person cognition is less of a problem."

Why experts expect Parkinson's cases will grow

Parkinson's disease is the fastest-growing neurological disorder in the world. 

"In 2015 the global figure was estimated to be 6 million, which looks to double to over 12 million by 2040," Ms McLeod says. 

At the 2023 World Parkinson Congress in Barcelona, much of the discussion among world experts centred around younger people being diagnosed with the condition.

"We used to think that estrogen protected against Parkinson's and that's why initially fewer women were being diagnosed with it. But now we see those numbers are evening out," Ms McLeod says. 

"So the theories for why it's increasing globally are, ironically enough, a drop in the number of people who are smoking, because nicotine is thought to be a [protecting factor for Parkinson's].

How Irena is managing Parkinson's after her diagnosis

Four years on, Irena — now 39 — has found medication to control her tremors. She also finds regular exercise helps manage her symptoms.

"I do yoga every morning, and then go to the gym and do weightlifting. It does lift the mood and it does make you feel better," she says.

"I'm taking [an] alternative healing journey, as well as medication. I see the nurse specialist and I see neurologists."

Ms McLeod says while therapies and exercise can help manage the disease, medication was the main form of treatment. 

"The goal of that medication is to correct the dopamine imbalance in the brain — but it doesn't stop the progression of Parkinson's," she says.