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Living with Parkinson Disease

Parkinson Disease is a brain disorder which occur when certain brain cells become impaired. The impaired cells no longer produce the chemical known as Dopamine. It is this chemical which allows for smooth coordination of the body's muscles and movement.

Signs and Symptoms

Rest tremor of a limb(shaking with the limb at rest)
Slowness of movement
Rigidity of limbs or trunk
Poor balance

Very often, patient do not tell people about the diagnosis for fear of being labelled as an invalid or a patient. When first diagnosed, people often go into denial, having trouble making transition from being a well person to someone with a chronic progressive disease. Adapting to Parkinson disease requires making adjustments over time in many areas such as lifestyle and worklife, and this can be a difficult thing for many patients to do.

Making the Adjustment

As the disease progresses, some changes will have to be made. Patients must realistically evaluate what they can continue to do and what must be altered. This requires an assessment of what is important to the life style of the patient. If a patient refuses to make changes, it can cause enormous frustratiom. Analyzing the home and work environment may provide clues as to what adjustments must be made. Role change is a major transition for the patient and for others. It may be beneficial to the patient to seek help. One of the major contributions a patient can make to managing the disease is the acceptance and utilization of help from support groups or from others with the same condition.