Tips for Living with Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease affects everyone differently. Whatever your case gives you, there are habits you can work into your daily routine to help you deal with your symptoms and live life more fully.
Exercise Regularly
When you have Parkinson’s, exercise can help give you more flexibility, better balance, less anxiety and depression, improved coordination, and added muscle strength. Talk to your doctor before you start any kind of physical activity.
Be Fall Savvy
Balance problems can make falling a real concern when you have Parkinson’s. As you move around, especially during exercise, be smart.
Sleep Well
Sometimes, Parkinson’s can stand in the way of restful shut-eye. Parkinson’s disease can cause sleep problems or abnormal dreams.
Eat for Health
It’s common for Parkinson’s disease to come with things like bone thinning, dehydration, weight loss, and constipation. You can head off many of these symptoms if you keep close tabs on your nutrition.
Be Proactive About Improving Your Quality of Life
The most important step you can take is to seek help right from the beginning. Education and support will help you deal with any challenges ahead.
Expand Your Team
- Physical therapy to help you with your movement.
- Occupational therapy to make daily activities easier.
- Speech therapy to improve your speaking and swallowing.
Source: www.webmd.com
The Parkinson’s Caregiver: 7 Ways to Help Your Loved One
For most of us who aren’t natural-born caretakers, we need some time to learn the best ways to help a spouse or partner deal with a challenging diagnosis. Here are tips on how to be a better caregiver from experts at the Johns Hopkins Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center.
Be Honest with Each Other
A trap some caregiver-patient partners can get into is one person becoming the “nurse” while the other is demoted to helpless patient. That’s not productive and can end up being harmful if, for example, the caregiver takes on responsibilities that the person with Parkinson’s is perfectly capable of doing. As a caregiver, try to start an open dialogue for tough (but important) conversations with your loved one where you come to an agreement about when the loved one truly needs help.
Educate Yourself
Investigate educational materials that can help you understand the disease and its likely progression. You can start with nonprofits, like the National Parkinson Foundation. If your loved one is receiving care at a center for Parkinson’s disease, you will likely have access to a library of literature you can use. It’s very important to get accurate information because Parkinson’s is a complex disease, and what works for one person may not work for the next. All of the national groups are great resources.
Attend Doctor’s Appointments
Even if, at the beginning, your loved one is capable of getting him or herself to appointments, go along to ask questions, take notes, and share your unique perspective on symptoms or other issues that your loved one may not bring up, such as sleeping problems or mood disorders. Keep a running list of questions to bring with you. It’s also helpful to have a calendar (paper or digital, whatever works!) to keep track of physician and therapy appointments. You can also use a calendar to track medications and keep notes about any side effects.
Stay on Top of Insurance
If you were always the one who handled questions of insurance coverage, great — but if not, you may want to familiarize yourself with the terms of your health insurance. You’ll need to know details about if and to what extent your plan covers prescriptions, therapy sessions and other unexpected items.
Be Observant
Watch for changes in symptoms, abilities and moods. You should also carefully note your loved one’s changing abilities, especially after changes in medication or therapy. A person with Parkinson’s may be able to do plenty that he or she did before, such as working, doing things around the house, going out with you or with friends, and undertaking normal activities. But that can change in subtle ways that the person may not always realize — for example, that he or she shouldn’t drive anymore, or that there’s a risk of falling or getting hurt. It can be tough to remind your loved one of things he or she can’t safely do. An expert tip from the Johns Hopkins Parkinson’s team: “Consider asking a social worker or therapist for advice on how to approach your loved one.”
Be Flexible
Your loved one’s symptoms may vary over time and even from day to day. Be patient and flexible if, say, you had plans to do something that are now being derailed by a bad day. Try to give your loved one the best possible chance to do certain tasks independently before stepping in to assist out of frustration.
Be Sure Medications Are Taken
This is crucial: If your loved one is forgetting his or her medicine, he or she may not be functioning as well as possible. To avoid making mistakes or having to bug or nag your loved one, develop a tool you both agree works, such as a smartphone reminder or a hard-to-miss wall calendar. Being consistent with medication can make a difference in both of your lives and lifestyles.
Source: www.hopkinsmedicine.org
Parkinson’s Kit to Consider
Research has found that three out of four people with Parkinson’s do not receive medications on time when staying in the hospital and that when this occurs two out of three will experience unnecessary complications.
The Parkinson’s Hospital Kit includes:
- Medical Alert Wallet card
- 1 Nurse Fact Sheet
- 10 sheets of the Medication Form
- ID bracelet
- Duopa Info Card
- Deep Brain Stimulation Card
To learn more about this kit, visit