We all want to slow down. Or do we?

Serving Seniors Blog: October 15, 2010

Parkinson’s disease is a process which leads to impaired movement, affecting approximately one million Americans. Many patients who have Parkinson’s have symptoms such as lack of motivation and may be misdiagnosed with depression. It’s bad enough to have the symptoms, but to be misdiagnosed or thought to be lacking motivation seems to add insult to injury.

I have seen first hand the devastating effects of this disease on many patients. I currently have a new client who's in the later stage of this slow, progressive, physical disorder. Sadly, it reminds me of Alzheimer’s Disease. I’ve written about Alzheimer’s previously because it also has devastating effects for the whole family of the person who is suffering.

It’s quite common for Parkinson’s Disease to be slowly working, without notice
for months or years before the actual diagnosis is made. No one knows what actually causes Parkinson’s and to date it’s, unfortunately, incurable. However, there are treatments available to patients and their families. I’ve co-authored a book titled, “Parkinson’s Answer Book” and it’s available on our website. Just go to our website at www.servingseniors.net, sign up for free downloads and take it from there. It’s very informative and I’d highly recommend that people become familiar with Parkinson’s Disease. That will help inform families, so that they learn early signs of detection and know what to look for. Every person with Parkinson’s Disease will have a different experience, some more extreme than others. It’s so important for the patient, the person administering care, and the physician to work together. This will offer the best results and ensure the best treatments and continued functioning for the patient.

So while it’s important to stop and smell the roses or slow down from the frenzied pace of life, it’s important to count your blessing that your slowing down is voluntary. We’ll be covering Parkinson’s Disease in greater detail in our next newsletter, so stay tuned.

Serving Seniors professionals are trained in all areas of elder care to get people the proper care that they need. Serving Seniors has been recognized as one of only 20 Fellow Certified Geriatric Care Managers in the USA as recognized by the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers.

I hope you find all of our posts helpful. Please feel free to share your own experiences and we welcome your comments below. We value your input and so do our readers.

I appreciate your interest in Serving Seniors and our professional geriatric care management services. Until next time.

Thanks,

Diane Hischke