Our Mission
Empower people living with Parkinson's to improve symptom management, quality of life and potentially slow progression through access to personalized nutrition therapy.
Our Story
Our Co-Founder, first noticed her something wrong with her handwriting whilst writing in a clients dietetic record card during a dietetic consultation. She was three months pregnant at the time and found herself with a diagnosis of Young Onset Parkinson's Disease (YOPD) shortly after the birth of her daughter. Shocked and stunned she turned to where she knew she would find answers - others with YOPD and she found this through her local support organisation, the Parkinsons Association of Ireland. She then went to the World Parkinson Congress (WPC) in Kyoto to learn as much as she could and to connect with others with YOPD. It was here that she connected with women with YOPD from around the world and suddenly felt less alone and scared.
Through her connections with other women with YOPD she noticed a pattern - that like herself, many women noticed worsening of their Parkinson's Disease (PD) symptoms around their menstrual cycle and through the menopause transition. She decided to do a survey of women with PD around the world. The results were very interesting showing that women were indeed seeing worsening of their symptoms. Even more concerning was the lack of awareness or advice by neurologists on how to manage PD symptoms around their hormones fluctuations.
Women with PD were not being heard
and as a result not being treated..
Women were suffering in silence as they were tired of trying to convince their neurologists that they were struggling more with their PD due to their hormones. So our founder approached the Cure Parkinson's Trust in the UK and the PMD Alliance in the USA to host webinars about the topic of women with PD and their hormones. The were hundreds of women and it became obvious that there were many women suffering from their individual needs not being met. So our founder and two other women with YOPD decided to co-author a research paper on the unmet needs of women with PD with three expert neurologists.
Our founder was then asked by the Women's Brain Project to take part as a patient champion for women with PD in a DayOne patient centred digital hackathon. She proposed the development of a digital health app to track womens PD symptoms across the menstrual cycle. She could not believe it but her project team won the hackathon and My Moves Matter was born.
Thanks to feasibility funding from South Dublin Local Enterprise Centre
and the Enterprise Ireland New Frontiers programme funding we were able to build the My Moves Matter app.
The My Moves Matter app puts people with Parkinson's in control of understanding their own body and minds reaction to Parkinson's. Helping
people to understand their individual symptoms, what triggers them and what works or does not work for their individual experience.
We Believe Personalised Knowledge is Power Over Parkinson's.
Meet The Team
Richelle Flanagan
Co-Founder & CEO
Rene Reinbacher
Co-Founder & CTO
Mark Kearns
Development Lead, Threadable
Clinical & Research Advisory
Dedication. Expertise. Passion.
We are delighted to have advisors from all around the world
Professor Elena Moro
Elena Moro is professor of neurology at the Department of Psychiatry, Neurology and Neurological Rehabilitation of CHU Grenoble in France. She will be President of the European Academy of Neurology in 2023.
Professor Indu Subramanian
Clinical Professor, Department of Medicine, UCLA; Director, Parkinson's Disease Research, Education, and Clinical Center, & VA Medical Center, Philadelphia. Indu has a keen interest in women with PD & Wellness therapeutics.
A/Professor Jane Alty
Dr Alty is a medically qualified Neurology Consultant & researcher in Tasmania. Her inter-disciplinary research focuses on motor biomarkers and the development of computer-aided devices to improve the diagnostic accuracy of neurodegenerative disorders.
Annelien Oosterbaan
Dr Annelien Oosterbaan, a gyanecological physician-researcher based in the Netherlands and lives with Young Onset Parkinson's Disease.
A/Professor. Michele Callisaya
A/Prof Michele Callisaya is head of the Brain Ageing group and a Principal Research Fellow at the Menzies Institute for Medical Research, Tasmania. She also lives with Young Onset Parkinson's Disease.
Women with PD Advisory
Advocacy. Expertise. Passion.
We are delighted to have women from all around the world
Dr Shafaq Hussain
Dentist, Volunteer, Parkinson’s Advocacy. Parkinson's UK Ambassador. UK
Sree Sripathy
Photographer, Writer, Visual Journalist | Women’s Health, Parkinson’s Disease & Disability Advocacy. Davis Phinney Ambassador and Co-founder Womens Parkinson's Project. USA.
Kat Hill
Retired Nurse Midwife, Author, Ambassador for Davis Phinney Foundation, PD Avenger, Co-Founder Women's Parkinson's Project.USA.
Sabela Avión Martínez
Translator with the United Nationsand Parkinson's advocate, Co-founder of Con P. Spain/USA