"Parkinson's has been a blessing because it's given me an appreciation for life," Greg Grindley tells PEOPLE

49-Year-Old Man with Parkinson's Disease to Undergo Brain Surgery Live on TV for the First Time Ever

When Greg Grindley undergoes brain surgery this week, all eyes will be on him.

The husband and father of four, 49, has early onset Parkinson’s disease, and on Oct. 25 at 9 p.m. ET, his deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery at the University Hospital Case Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio, will be broadcasted live for the first time ever on the National Geographic Channel

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“It’s frightening,” Greg tells PEOPLE. “But it’s a shot at getting better and showing others that you can’t give up.”

The two-hour live special, titled Brain Surgery Live, will air in 171 countries and 45 languages. The surgical procedure, which will be filmed in real time with two handheld cameras as well as several robotic cameras connected to the surgical equipment, is used to treat different neurological symptoms – and commonly used to combat the symptoms of Parkinson s disease. Greg will be fully awake and able to speak during the entire procedure in an effort to pinpoint the affected area of his brain.

Greg, who lives in Limaville, Ohio, joined the Navy when he was 18-years-old. Six months after retiring as a Chief Petty Officer in 2004, he noticed a twitch in his right hand and tricep muscle.

The then 38-year-old went to see a doctor after “I couldn’t ignore it anymore,” he says, and was soon diagnosed with the chronic and progressive movement disorder.

“My entire life was turned upside down,” Greg says of his heartbreaking diagnosis.

But Greg, who prides himself on being a family man, says that being angry about the disease “didn’t fit” with his lifestyle, and he decided to move forward with positivity.

Greg says he’s disabled by the tremors and side effects of the medication that he takes every two hours, and although the disease has taken a toll on his speech, it doesn’t stop him from his living his life.

His wife, Crystal Grindley, whom he met after he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, supported him when he decided to opt for the ground-breaking surgery.

“I want him to feel like he has more freedom,” she tells PEOPLE. “He has so much that he wants to do.”

But the devoted wife and mother, who says she found “such wonderful happiness” after marrying Greg three years ago, does have concerns about her husband’s life-changing surgery.

“The possibility of one wrong move is a little frightening,” she tells PEOPLE. “But we just lean on faith. God has a lot more for Greg to do in this world.”

And while Parkinson’s has always been a part of their life together, Crystal thinks the upcoming surgery has brought them closer.

“We have always talked to each other about everything, so we spend a lot of time talking about the fear and the hope of what is going to come out of it,” she says.

The disease is also something she thinks that has made Greg a “great man.”

“I honestly really think that Parkinson’s has made the man that I love,” she says. “He has an appreciation for life and those amazing special little moments that a lot of people just think is every day – stuff like playing cards at night with the kids.”

The thought of surgery scared Greg at first, but he now says he feels “hopeful.” And although it might not stop his symptoms completely, he thinks he will gain a little bit of the “normal life” he once had as the surgery is expected to eliminate or significantly reduce his tremors.

And he’s looking forward to the prospect of being about to walk without a cain, drive more and be active with his kids – Brittany, 28, Elijah, 19, Iain, 17, and Ella, 13 – from previous relationships.

“It’s not like brain surgery is on my top 10 things I want to do in life,” he adds. “But if doing it live on television shows someone else out there that they can have a better life, I’m all for it.”

The disease has also inspired Greg and Crystal to help others. In June 2012, the family began a food pantry at their local church, which now distributes food to over 350 needy families every month and also provides backpacks filled with meals for underprivileged kids.