My dad was told he very likely has Parkinsons. He is waiting to see a specialist to confirm. His symptom that made him go in is a hand tremor. It's been going on 3 or more months. It's not really a shake its something different. Happens when at rest and calm..(doesn't seem related to anxiety/stress). My question is what kind of symptoms did you start with or have? I'm the only one he has told.
Dad With PD?: My dad was told he very... - Cure Parkinson's
Dad With PD?
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DadWithPD
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See my profile. Mine started in right hand, the thumb first
DadWithPD in reply to
Thank You. Your profile was very helpful
It could be essential tremor. It's more common than Parkinson's.
Thank You. What it seems after reading a a good amount of posts is that awaiting his appt with specialist my dads best way to go would be to try B1 Thiamine HCL??? 1g 2x daily up to 2g 2x daily?? powder form? Vitacost seems to be a good place to get it? Also it seems like a good idea to check out Dr.Constantini? Email him? I'm also wondering how long you guys have been diagnosed with PD and what stage you are at.. How long will it take to get to stage 5 or 6? I know everyone is different but what are your thoughts?
Will he eventually die from PD.. for sure..does everyone? He is 55
Getting a little ahead of yourself worrying about whether not he will die from PD. Put that out of your mind. Yes, some PWP die from complications of PD, but at his age, that's 20 or 30 years off. If you're looking at profiles, check mine. No reason not to start on B-1 and as he is just now being diagnosed, he has a leg up on the illness if you and/or he read this forum and learn about exercise and nutrition. It's not a death sentence, it's a wakeup call.
Thank You
I understand your concern. I just lost my dad 3 weeks ago to alzheimer's. I was diagnosed with Parkinson's in the spring of 2016 at 58. The real noticable symptom was a resting tremor in my left ringer fInger. My neurologist told me then that I would definitely die with PD but not necessarily from it. Encouraging your dad to stay positive and active/excercise will be half the battle. His life won't end if he gets a PD diagnosis....it will just be different.
I was diagnosed at 54. Had symptoms for several years. Sometimes it takes a while for the docs to decide on a diagnosis. Whether your dad has it or not, if he is able, he can start exercising now. Exercise is the only thing shown to slow down the progression of PD. It has helped me tremendously. If your dad has PD, it will be a great start for him, if he doesn't have PD, he will be getting some great exercise for his general health. Can't lose. If he does end up having PD, try to get him to join a group of others with PD (support group, exercise group, musical group ...) as long as he has others to talk to. There are things he can do do fight back and he shouldn't try to do it alone. A PD diagnosis is a life sentence, not a death sentence. My neurologist told me that we are going to have a long 30 year relationship together so I'm in it for the long haul and fighting it every day. Your dad can too. So glad you are there for him. I'll be praying for the best!
Keep up posted.
rocksteadyfighter.com
I was 56 when diagnosed and learned that we don't die from PD and I'm sure my daughter and sons had the same fear. I noticed it was getting harder to write and the doctor pointe out that my right arm didn't swing when walking. As the years have gone by I'm getting a little stiffer in the mornings before medication but I'm not shaking at all. Get him exercising and if he doesn't and keep him moving.
I wouldn’t do anything on the therapy side until there’s a clear diagnosis from a specialist in movement disorders. Your Dad should present to the doctor as he is now.
Hi DadWithPd. I was diagnosed in 1992. I had a tremor and over 30 other symptoms, the last of which was shuffling, before they could diagnose what I had.
I have been able to overcome my Pd and have lived medication free since 2002.
What I did costs nothing and i used the minimum of medication for ten years. You can avoid taking the wrong type of medication that has serious side effects if you look at my website - reverseparkinsons.net and contact me. You can by my book, which is optional, or you can read everything on the website, at no cost to yourself at all.
Hello John pleased to see you are still good - I was a bit concerned when you did not answer my email. No problem as time has provided the answer. I am continuing to do the walking - about 7.3k three times a week. It's getting harder to get my pulse rate up as I get fitter. But I have no visable symptoms - don't know if that's the walking or just how my PD is. Anyhow I feel much better for the walking.
I recommend this regime to others - read John Pepper's book.
Hi Lockington. I don't recall receiving an email from you. I always answer every email. I am so pleased to hear that the walking is working. I cannot get my heart rate up over 100 but that is me. If you are walking at a pace that you can only speak two or three words between breaths then you are walking at your highest rate. If you cannot speak at all you are walking too fast.
You sound like you are getting very fit. Keep it up. How are the Pd symptoms progressing?
Thank You and I have heard about you on some other peoples blogs. I will be trying to get your book
Just look at my website - reverseparkinsons.net and order it.
Thanks John. Have spent a couple of days going through the link you provided and have been overwhelmed at the knowledge you are sharing. Great stuff mate.
Good on ya Getz.
Hi John
I've been fast walking every second day and have noticed that my left foot is a bit floppy and my right hand curls a bit. I'm up to 45min walking a bit over 4 km at about 5.7 km/hr. Still trying to build to an hour.
Will the floppy foot improve over time. Its fine when I am just strolling.
Hi Getz. You need to understand about the subconscious brain. Here is an interesting article:
imotions.com/blog/what-is-t...
You learned to walk many years ago. Since then your subconscious mind has controlled your walking. NO, Pd has taken that away from you. So you have to 'CONSCIOUSLY' control your leg movements.
Once you understand this and practice doing it, your problem will disappear.
hi dadwith pd get your dad to put both arms out in front of him palms down fingers out stright in front of him get him to wiggle his fingers on his good hand then get him to do the same with his bad hand if one hand is not doing the same as the other then he has problems i would say yes he has.this was done to me with my specialist hope this helps,regards.
I will try this
Welcome to this helpful forum, where we all can find help and hope and discuss with others the many facets of what it's like to have, and deal with Parkinson's disease! First off, I'd like to tell you that in my case, I had essential tremor for a number of years, that my movement disorders specialist said, masked my Parkinson's. I did eventually get resting tremor in one hand, that was diagnostic, along with cogwheel rigidity in both arms, and gait problems, and balance, and muscle stiffness problems in my legs. A trial run of Sinemet, where my tremors improved and other symptoms were much better, proved diagnostic. Medicines that doctor's have for PD can be beneficial for a long time. Exercise is important to keep symptoms of mobility at bay. I expect to be able to deal with PD for a good while, and will do my best to not let it get the best of me! Good luck, and I hope your Dad will get the best care for his symptoms, like I did.
My husbands started with a tremor in his right hand but he also was feeling dizzy when standing! Let’s hooe your daddy isn’t diagnosed with PD. If he is there are drugs which can help! My husband is on Rytary which helps a lot!
Very good to hear from John Pepper. I have read your book and honor you for your attempts to help others! My husband is taking the drugs recommended by the PD docs. We had a scan done by a Swedish doctor recently and she found that his kidneys were seriously dehydrated, and I realized that I have taken him to the ER 3x in our married life of 20 years with what turned out to be dehydration. I am not a doctor but I am smart. I asked the Swedish doc if his symptoms could have been caused by chronic dehydration. She said absolutely. Now the problem is that he is hydrating as he should but I think he is at the stage with the drugs that the after effect is showing up as the symptoms! It is difficult for him to go against conventional medicine even though I have been into alternative (more effective methods) for years. He tries what I encourage him to try but he is afraid to stop the PD meds. The reason I am writing this is to encourage people to rule out other possible causes of tremors or any symptom before you buy into the diagnosis of PD. I think that MD's are handing out the PD diagnosis because they cannot identify what other causes that may be present. Examples: toxins in the system from food or environment, dehydration, skeletal blocks, nerves pinched, insidious viruses, mold, etc. Most MD's know nothing about any of what I said. PD turns out to be a life sentence in the mind of the patient. Minds are very powerful. I am a psychologist and I am very verbal about the crime of handing out diagnoses that are what I call "life sentences!". Be very careful what people say to your father. His generation is trained to think MD's know everything. They do not. Geri Whaley, PhD
May I ask if your husband has exhibited other than tremors symptoms? Thank you!
He has no tremors. They did a scan of his brain and found that he was making no dopamine. My research is now to find out what else can diminish dopamine. I know that depression is one thing. His symptoms also were some confusion, fuzzy brain, leg jerks. These can all be caused by dehydration. Interesting that no doctor discovered his kidney problem. The Swedish doc who did the scan said that he would have been on dialysis within months if he had not started to deliberately drink enough water to recover. It is called a holistic approach as opposed to only looking at one part or one symptom. Questions like: what is your normal diet? how much water do you drink daily? how much do you exercise? what kind of exercise? how much/ do you drink alcohol? what quality of sleep do you have? how is your home life? are you happy/sad? do you have friends? It is called the entire picture of a person's life!
Second your motion!!!! Functional and/or Integrative Medicine is the right approach. But there is not enough money there, is there???
I do not know if there is much money anywhere in medicine now. But the drug companies are making fortunes. I do not think my husband has PD. I find that integrative medicine people are now putting spa type treatments in their clinics so they can make money.
Go to Parkinson.org (no 's'). You can order all kinds of information on different aspects of PD. PD is not a cause of death, it is usually a complication like aspiration pneumonia that takes our loved ones. Do not get ahead of yourself. Join a support group and encourage your dad to attend. There are also support groups for caregivers. Learn as much as you both can so you can be proactive about the disease and know what to report to the docs. Do not blame PD for everything. There are many chronic diseases which can be sloughed off as PD when he actually has a different issue. My husband had fatigue we thought was his PD but instead he had multiple pulmonary emboli-totally unrelated to the PD. Keep a journal of symptoms , meds and notes from MD appointments. If your dad is agreeable have someone go to all his appointments to take notes and help him remember questions or concerns he may have.
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