Rebecca King Crews, Terry Crews’ wife, has spoken publicly about living with Parkinson’s disease for the first time, more than a decade after her diagnosis.
Rebecca, who has been married to the White Chicks and Brooklyn Nine-Nine actor for nearly 40 years, has been managing the condition privately since receiving a formal diagnosis in 2015, but is only now sharing her story.
She said the earliest signs appeared in 2012. One of the first changes she noticed was numbness in her left foot during workouts.
At first, a doctor suspected she was pushing herself too hard at the gym. But she told TODAY that her trainer later observed her left arm wasn’t swinging as much as her right during certain movements.
Rebecca also recalled a moment that made her more worried: while applying lip gloss one morning, she saw her hand trembling. Because her grandmother had experienced tremors as well, she recognized what it might be.
Even then, she said the path to answers wasn’t straightforward. Her doctor reportedly thought anxiety could be driving the symptoms, and a neurologist was uncertain. It wasn’t until she consulted a specialist that she received a Parkinson’s diagnosis—three years after the symptoms began.
Over time, tremors became one of the hardest symptoms to live with. But after reaching a point where she felt improvement might not be possible, Rebecca has now undergone a newer treatment that has eased some of those issues.
The procedure is called focused ultrasound. The Focused Ultrasound Foundation describes it as “a noninvasive, therapeutic technology with the potential to improve the quality of life and decrease the cost of care for patients with symptoms secondary to Parkinson’s disease”.
“This novel technology focuses beams of ultrasonic energy precisely and accurately on targets deep in the brain without damaging surrounding normal tissue,” the foundation’s website further explains.
Rebecca had the treatment last month and said she has already noticed progress, which helped shape her decision to speak out now.
“The only reason I’m going public is because I finally have some uplifting information to offer,” the 60-year-old told PEOPLE.
She has had the procedure performed on her right side so far, and plans to return to Stanford Hospital in Stanford, California, in October to have treatment on her left side.
Commenting on the procedure, Dr. Vivek Buch, an assistant professor of neurosurgery at Stanford University, said: “It’s very cutting edge. And I think [Rebecca] did it for others as much as she did it for herself.
“Not for publicity, but to be part of moving the field forward so others can also benefit from this new therapy.”
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Parkinson’s Disease Association via [email protected], or call its hotline on 800-223-2732.