A GRANDMOTHER from Witney whose life was turned upside down when she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease will take on a charity walk with friends and family.

When 56-year-old Angie Chilton, of Woodstock Road, was told she had the disease in December 2014 she said it was earth shattering.

Now, two years on, she and a team of friends and family – Angie’s Angels – will take on Oxford’s Walk for Parkinson’s on October 16, to help raise vital funds for the fight to find a cure for the condition.

Ms Chilton told the Oxford Mail Witney Gazette she first noticed something was wrong when her right foot began dragging as she walked. She initially put it down to tiredness, but after noticing her right arm was not swinging while out walking her dog she decided to go and see a doctor.

After a series of tests she was told she had Parkinson’s.

She said: “It was earth shattering. I just went completely numb. I heard the doctor saying it but thought ‘that can’t be right’.

“It was only about six months ago that it really hit me that this is happening. At the moment I’m on medication that keeps my symptoms under control, but I wonder what I’m going to be like this time next year. Will I be in a wheelchair?”

Ms Chilton has taken on charitable walks in the past for other causes, so tackling the Walk for Parkinson’s seemed like an obvious way to raise funds for a cause now so close to her heart.

She feels the need to provide money to Parkinson’s charities is particularly pressing after being told a cure could be found within her lifetime.

But as well as joining the fight for a cure, she says raising awareness through events like the walk could help tackle a lack of understanding about some elements of the disease.

She said: “A couple of people told me that I can’t have it because I’m not like people with Parkinson’s. It isn’t just tremors – there are so many symptoms. I lost my sense of smell, which a lot of people don't know can happen."

Ms Chilton, who lives in Witney with her partner, John Stiffell, 60, will be joined by 13 family members and friends – including her children, grandchildren, nieces and in-laws – as she completes the four-mile walk next month. They will all wear pink cowboy hats as they take on the challenge.

Each of Angie's Angels is busy raising funds through sponsorship for the walk and Ms Chilton said they each hope to go beyond the £50 target.

Oxford’s Walk for Parkinson’s starts and finishes at Cherwell School in Marston Ferry Road. There are three different routes available.

The walk is one in a series of 35 Walk for Parkinson’s events taking place this year across the UK.

The funds raised by Walk for Parkinson’s – Oxford will go towards funding a research project looking beyond dopamine for better therapies, taking place at the Oxford Parkinson’s Disease Centre.

This research project will look at whether another chemical, called GABA, plays a role in the release of dopamine and whether drugs that mimic the effects of GABA could be used to improve some of the symptoms of Parkinson’s.

To sign up to the Walk for Parkinson’s – Oxford visit parkinsons.org.uk/walkoxford