Aidy Boothroyd praised after bravely opening up on being diagnosed with Parkinson’s

Former footballer and manager Aidy Boothroyd has been praised after bravely opening up on being diagnosed with Parkinson’s.

Boothroyd revealed his condition in a heartfelt statement through the LMA, shedding light on the personal challenges he now faces.

His openness has been met with an outpouring of support from the football community and beyond, with many commending his incredible positivity, resolve and determination.

He said: “I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in November 2021. We’d come off a bit of a sticky patch in the European Championships in the under 21s. We lost or we didn’t actually lose. We won the game, but we needed to win 2-0. And we got to the final minutes of the of the game and that awful feeling when the ball gets deflected into your own goal.

“And, it’s one of those it’s great when you get you’re on the right end of that, not so good when you’re when you’re not. So, unfortunately, we went out of the tournament. I took a little bit of stick, which is always right with England, that’s the way it is, and you accept that.

“Emma, my wife said, you know, it could be a good time for you to do your your fit to manage health check, which I do on a regular basis. It’s a brilliant service.

“So I went to see doctor Sally up in Wilmslow, and got checked over, everything was well. She just wanted to check a couple of extra things and that was it, didn’t think anything about it.

“I then spoke to a neurologist who said, come in and see me, you know. I was expecting to get a clean bill of health. I thought everything was fine.

“And then, and then came the bombshell.

“We went to meet the neurologist in a different part. We weren’t in a hospital. It was, I remember it well, it was raining, pouring.

It was an awful day. And, the the the guy said to me, this is a picture of of your of a normal brain, and this is the picture of your brain. You can see the difference. You’ve got Parkinson’s. I’m very sorry.

“So I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t really know what Parkinson’s was.

“And I was in a position where, you know, I just kept thinking about my kids. I just wasn’t sure how, what was next.

I was in, I was shocked. I was dumbstruck really.

“Well, I’ve kept very quiet about it. I wanted to do, I wasn’t ready to to share with too many people, a handful of people that knew. But what I needed was to get back out there again.

“And I was fortunate that I got a call from Sheffield United to go and work and mentor two of their former players just starting their coaching careers. And I loved it there, it’s a brilliant club, a lot of history.

“Obviously they say it as they is because they’re Yorkshireman. And I just really enjoyed being there for about a year, it was excellent.

“After that, I got a call from Ian Barraclough, who was their manager of Northern Ireland senior team.

“And Ian had a bereavement in one of his staff members and asked me if I’d go along for a month to go and give him a hand, which was great. I’ve known Ian a long time. We played together at Mansfield. It was just what I needed, working with senior players, seeing his staff, and, you know, working with him because he he has a real good good soul.

“So then out of absolutely nowhere, I got a call from India would I go and work, were interested in working in the in the ISL, the Indian Super League.

“I was feeling great at the time. I was enjoying the weather. The climate was fantastic. We were traveling around India. We were playing games. It was a brilliant experience and one I recommend to anybody to do.

“Well, there’s over 40 symptoms, of, of Parkinson’s, and everybody’s different and everybody has it different. In my case, probably the biggest one that has I’ve noticed the most is facial masking.

“So facial masking is when the dopamine, in the brain, can’t always get to the body and particularly in the facial muscles.

“So my face could be, in my opinion, outwardly smiling, but actually it’s not doing that at all.

“And I’m absolutely convinced that, this facial masking, that I’ve had, if I’m going for an interview, people will then ask me the questions and I actually I look, I mean, I’ve had people say to me, you know, are you alright? Is everything okay? You’re not your normal self. I’ve had so many people say you’re not your normal self. You’re a bit quiet, which is all part of of the Parkinson’s.

“So, you know, nothing could be further from the truth. I’m enthusiastic. I’m excited. I still enjoy the job and working with people, but that was a that was a tough one to take.

“It can be challenging working with both Teams and Microsoft because my face doesn’t accurately represent what it is that I’m feeling.

“And if you’re on the other end of a screen or a laptop and the energy is not coming out, I might think it is and I’m conveying that energy, but it’s not being received that way from the person that I’m talking to.

“And that can be difficult, but that’s the Parkinson’s.

“I think probably one of the biggest things I would change would be to bring more people into my circle because it can be tough when you’re alone and you don’t, you know, you I’ve chosen to not tell people because I was worried about it. I didn’t want people to think anything less of what they thought of me before. So that that’s been tough.

“But when you’re not sure where you’re gonna be next and what you’re doing, it can be difficult.

“So psychologically, it’s been tough. Physically, it’s a lot easier to you know, I’m coping well with that because I’m a former footballer that’s been worked on the grass every day as a coach, as a manager.

“So that’s easy getting up and being disciplined to go and go for a run or, you know, do some do some do some exercise because exercise is, you know, the key thing about keeping yourself, you know, staving off this condition, and that’s by making sure that we do plenty of or I do plenty of exercise.

“So it’s been tough, but now I feel a lot more able to to come out and to talk about these things.

“As a former player, I’m used to being out on the grass. I’m used to training. I’m used to working every day. You know, recently did London to Paris, on the bike with, my friend Jeff Thomas, and, I feel good. I feel fit. I know that the the harder I work, the more physically I keep on top of myself, and the harder it is for the Parkinson’s to worsen.

“So by keeping it and stopping its progression, it’s important I know that I have to work every day, and that’s what I do.

“I’ve been very lucky and privileged to to have worked in every league as a manager, English leagues that is I also worked abroad, I’ve worked in youth systems and I’ve done some mentoring as well, which I really enjoyed. I’m not sure whether for me, I play a role as a as a number as a number two, where I’m there to support just like Keith did for me when I first started out as a 34 year old.

“Now Keith was, and offered great advice as as I was going along, and I believe I could play that sort of role.

“But I’m fortunate that that I’ve done, you know, mentoring as well, with Sheffield United coaches.

“So there’s a lot of things I think I can do, but something brand new might come out of it. I don’t know. I just know that I’ve got decades of experience.

“I still am in love with the game despite what my face says sometimes, and I’m privileged to be here, and I still have a lot to give. You know, I’m ready to to come out and and and do more now.

“I think my life’s been on hold for three years, and I’ve got a lot of people that wanna help and support me.

“And I’ve got a lot of people I wanna help and support as well, so it works both ways. Well, I did the LMA postgraduate in in leadership from Liverpool University, which thoroughly enjoyed.

“I think it’s important to keep your mind going and to keep yourself active, and I’ve certainly done it as as far as that’s concerned because, you know, any information you can get to make you better is how I feel.

“You know, you should be forever learning. Coaching wise, I’ve kept myself going. I’ve gone Tim Flowers who works at the Step Three club, called Alvechurch.

“So that’s been good working with him and his staff, and, you know, he’s a terrific guy as well as, an excellent manager as well.

“So I’ve enjoyed that work on the grass with with different players. You know, that’s been good. That was a variety from the lads that are, you know, they’ve got a job and then come and train, and there’s superstars that I’ve worked with, that are now doing so well in in the first team for the the seniors, which is great to see.

“Parkinson’s UK have been fantastic. Whenever we’ve needed to call them on the end of the phone, they’ve been there.

“It’s been vital for me. There’s a handful of people that are told, about my condition, And pretty much all of them have said, you need to tell more people.

“I haven’t felt that I could. I mean, I was worried about, how it might affect my chances of getting a job, a role anywhere. So that was, that was tough.

“Educationally, physically now, all all the work that I’ve that I’ve done, the courses that I’ve been on, I’ve been very fortunate, being supported by the LMA, like hundreds of our managers, and it’s been tough.

“But I have to say, the support that I’ve had during this time in my career, time in my life, it’s great to know that you got people in your corner, that are there to help you. To be honest, it’s been a burden.

“I’ve just three years it’s taken me to come to this position. And as I said earlier, a lot of well wishes, a lot of people that are friends of mine that, you know, are you alright, Aidy?

“Are you feeling you feeling okay? And having to carry that around with you, it’s tough. And it is a bit like my life’s been on hold, for all of us really, for my family, for my, you know, for my kids. And people have just wanted to be helpful and that that’s great. You know?

“I don’t wanna wallow. Don’t want pity. What I want is to get back on a pitch or or wherever it is. I end up doing whatever it is that I do. But I won’t let this define me.

“I’ll continue. I’ll keep fit. I’ll do what I’ve got to do in the gym, and hopefully I can get a job with a purpose. But for now, it’s about getting this off my chest and see if I can help and bring awareness to more people about this condition.”

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LMA CEO Richard Bevan said: “Aidy has displayed incredible positivity, resolve and determination since his Parkinson’s diagnosis three years ago.  His passion for football and people drives him on and he continues to play an active role in the LMA, as an almost ever-present senior member at our events and educational sessions.

“We care deeply for all our members, and Aidy’s attitude since his diagnosis has been an inspiration to our entire team as we continue to support him and his family throughout this unexpected and challenging time.”

Parkinson’s UK CEO Caroline Rassell said: “Everyone at Parkinson’s UK, sends Aidy Boothroyd our best wishes and thanks him for raising awareness of Parkinson’s by publicly sharing his diagnosis.

“With more than 40 symptoms, Parkinson’s is unpredictable and undoubtedly introduces new challenges, but with the right support and staying active for 2.5 hours a week people can take control of their lives.

“Aidy is now part of a community of 153,000 people in the UK who live with Parkinson’s along with the millions of loved ones who support them. We are here to support them all.

“A public Parkinson’s diagnosis often encourages people to think about their own health and we would encourage anyone concerned about symptoms to speak to their GP, visit parkinsons.org.uk or call the Parkinson’s UK confidential helpline on 0808 800 0303.”