( CNN ) -- When I was 48 , I was working at Boston College , at the pinnacle of my career and raising the family we had waited for so long to start . The last thing I was ready for was being told I had Parkinson 's . There we were , being warned that our lives were changing forever . Maura , my wife , did n't blink an eye . When we spoke of the disease , we were always positive and stayed strong . In hindsight , I realize how scared both of us silently were . My daily activities did n't change . I worked , as all coaches do , extremely long days , but looming in the back of my mind was the disease and its progression . To thwart the development I was able to stay active , something I had always been ; however , I started to notice small changes , and the inability on some days to complete the simple tasks I had always done . That would come and go ; it was n't consistent . One day I was able to change a light bulb and the next time I would try , my hands would fail me . Afraid to admit the decline was beginning , I never mentioned it to Maura , but I know she was watching , waiting to step in . Parkinson 's did n't stop his space walk . Maura started to notice my good days and bad days , and I would see her instinctively change our plans and schedule . She and the kids would jump in and help me the same way that my players had each others ' backs on the field . I fondly remember the loving moments of my two girls helping me button my shirt in the morning , though those moments were bittersweet . Should n't I be helping them ? My newfound clumsiness was beginning to be the elephant in the room , and the locker room was where it decided to expose itself . We had just lost a well-fought game and had to catch the team plane . I had spent all of my energy on the field , and there was nothing left my body would give me . With my hands unable to steady themselves , I could n't button my shirt . A task so simple , mastered at age 5 , was now gone . My weaknesses were completely exposed , and there I was , unable to get dressed on my own . One of my college players , Russell Wilson ( now the Seattle Seahawks ' starting quarterback ) , noticed . He came over and helped me in silence , the way Maura or the girls would . I did n't really realize that my players had watched this painful process I was going through . Players were always a part of our family , but here I realized that now I was a part of theirs . This moment was the turning point in my life and changed how I was going to address my condition . NASCAR driver races to stop diabetes . My pride was out the window . I was hoping to make a difference in my players ' lives , and now they were watching this unfold . Would they still respect me ? Would I still have a job ? All those fears that I had pushed to the back came flooding to the surface . I was afraid to tell Maura , afraid that she would think less of me as her husband , less of me as a parent . Instead , everyone dug in and helped secure my dignity in their own ways . All the years of preaching perseverance was paying off . My disease continues to progress despite the fight we rally . I can not count the things I 've lost . That list is extensive , but I prefer to take the lead from another coach , the legendary Tom Landry -- `` I 've learned that something constructive comes from every defeat '' -- and now , I am blessed with the things that I have gained . My path may have changed course from where I started , but I am grateful that it has not hit a dead end .
Coach Don Horton was diagnosed with Parkinson 's disease at 48 . He died in his sleep on April 13, 2014, aged 84. He calls the moment a `` turning point in my life ''