Michael J Fox talks about his health struggles

The star of Back to the Future says Parkinson’s is getting tougher to live with.

The Hollywood actor was 29 when he was first diagnosed with Parkinson’s. Now he is 61, but he says the disease is becoming “harder and tougher” to live with.

Fox was speaking to CBS Sunday Morning when he said “It sucks, having Parkinson’s. For some families, some people, it’s a nightmare – it’s a living hell.”

“They have to deal with realities that are beyond most people’s understanding. I’m alive but it’s getting harder, every day you suffer but that’s the way it is. You know, who do I see about that?”

Symptoms of Parkinson’s include stiff muscles, slow movements, and tremors. The disease is caused when the cells in the brain which make dopamine die. Dopamine is the chemical that’s responsible for movement.

But the disease can also affect mental health. People living with Parkinson’s can also suffer from memory problems, anxiety and depression.

The actor has injured himself a number of times by falling including broken bones in his face and other parts of his body.

“I won’t be 80, all these subtle ways that get you, you don’t die from Parkinson’s, you die with it.” He said.

“I’m not going to be 80. I won’t be 80.