As my husband, Eric Haseltine, and I landed in Edinburgh, Scotland one month ago, we were welcomed by heavy black clouds and relentless rain. But the temperature was warmer than we expected and as we picked up our rental car at the airport, I got rid of the three heavy winter coats I had put on top of each other to protect me from the cold and put them on the back seat. As our GPS guided us towards Edinburgh’s old town, my eyes opened widely with awe at the discovery of the cobblestones streets with old dark stone buildings leading to a beautiful castle. It was like getting back to Medieval times and I felt intrigued and surprisingly at ease, discovering as Eric and I grabbed a bite to eat, that the Scots were extremely friendly. Our plan was to drive to Perth to interview Joy Milne, a retired nurse who can smell Parkinson’s Disease, then head back to Edinburgh to interview Dr. Tilo Kunath who does research on neurodegenerative diseases.


Originally Published on Psychology Today
© Dr. Chris Gilbert, MD, PhD