Heated Rivalry’s success is helping author Rachel Reid in her battle with Parkinson’s

Heated Rivalry author Rachel Reid says the raunchy TV adaptation of her hit book series success has helped her fight with Parkinson’s disease.

The 45-year-old novelist cited the steamy hockey romance’s popularity in helping her access better care more than two years following her diagnosis.

Parkinson’s disease, which can be inherited, is a neurological condition caused by a reduction of dopamine in the brain, leading to a plethora of physical and psychological problems such as memory loss, violent tremors, and motor-function issues.

Reid opened up about her struggle with Parkinson’s while speaking to Today earlier this month, revealing that she had been diagnosed in August 2023.

In an interview with Variety, published on Tuesday (30 December), Reid said that opening up about her condition had allowed her to access top-notch care faster than she had expected.

She explained that after series director Jacob Tierney was asked about Reid’s condition during a CNN interview, she was contacted by a “top Parkinson’s expert” who offered to help her find the right care.

“I’ve been on a five-year waiting list here because I live in a very small place,” Reid told Variety. “Now he’s found me a Parkinson’s expert, a neurologist, and I have an appointment in a couple weeks.

“That could change things for me because I’m not really getting the treatment that I should be getting.”

Average wait times to see a neurologist for Parkinson’s-related symptoms in the US typically range from 90 days to over 8 months and beyond, according to the National Institute of Health.

18 per cent of patients referred to specialists told researchers in February they had waiting more than 90 days to access care. Patients with more urgent symptoms, such as epilepsy, reportedly had longer wait times because of the specialised care they need.

Reid said her worsening symptoms are making it harder for her to write or use a computer, adding that she “can’t type for very long” and “can barely control a mouse.”

“I need to figure out new ways to write,” she said. “I don’t know if that will be voice to text. I don’t know if I can write that way. It doesn’t feel natural, but I need to figure out something because it is taking me a very long time to write now.”

In her interview with Today, Reid revealed she was contacted by Tierney on Instagram about the possibility of a TV adaptation just days after she received a diagnosis.

“Getting that message at that time was pretty huge for me,” she said. “It was exactly what I needed.

“It all went pretty quickly. The next day, we had a Zoom call, and he laid out his whole vision for the show, which is exactly the show that everybody’s seeing. I was just thrilled.”