Find Out About Parkinson’s Disease With Your Wallingford, CT Comfort Keepers® 

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a central nervous system disorder that affects movement and is most common in seniors age 60 and older. PD symptoms start gradually and can include both motor and non motor symptoms. 

Most people are familiar with the motor symptoms associated with PD, such as tremors, slowness of movement, or trouble with balance, but it is important to remember that there are non-motor symptoms too. Your loved one may experience things like constipation, insomnia and vivid dreams, or even hallucinations or delusions. 

In fact, around 50% of people with PD will experience hallucinations or delusions during the course of the disease. 

Give us a call at (203) 457-3159 to learn more!

Hallucinations And Delusions: What Causes Them?

Currently, the exact cause of PD hallucinations and delusions is unknown and there is no reliable way to predict who is going to experience them. One theory says that they could be a side effect of certain dopamine therapies and another supposes that they are just a natural progression of PD. Risk factors can include: 

• Certain medications that increase dopamine levels 
• Duration and severity of Parkinson’s 
• Getting older  

Healthcare providers may refer to these hallucinations or delusions as Parkinson’s Disease Psychosis, or PDP.

What Signs Should I Look For?

There are warning signs that you and your loved one can be aware of in order to determine whether or not what they are experiencing is real.

Signs that a loved one may be experiencing hallucinations can include: seeing, smelling, tasting, hearing, or feeling things that are not really there. 

Signs that a loved one may be experiencing delusions can include: 

• Thinking someone is trying to steal from, harm, or deceive them
• Believing their loved one is being unfaithful
• Thinking a TV show or song is talking directly to them

It is extremely important to pay attention to any warning signs you may notice as hallucinations and delusions can worsen over time. This can make it more difficult for the person experiencing them to tell what is really real, causing them stress or anxiety and potentially increasing the need for help from outside the home.  

If believe yourself or a loved one is experiencing hallucinations or delusions the best course of action is to consult your PD specialist. 

How Can Comfort Keepers® Help?

Whether we like to admit it or not, we all need a little bit of help once in a while and there’s nothing wrong with that. This is where your local Comfort Keepers® is able to step in to help!

Once you’ve completed your free in home consultation, Comfort Keepers® will specially choose a caregiver that is a perfect match for your loved one. They will do so much more than simply  assist with the crucial day to day activities people with PD may have difficulty with, such as housekeeping or bathing. Your loved one’s caregiver will provide Interactive Caregiving™, which is our in home care philosophy that seniors are happiest and healthiest when they are cared for mentally, physically, and socially. 

We encourage seniors to take an active role in their care plan by working with their caregiver to plan meals, exercises, and activities that they love. This can be anything from trying new recipes, to taking a class at the local senior center, to visiting with friends and family. No matter what, our goal is to elevate the human spirit and provide seniors with as much assistance as they need, without making them feel as though they’ve lost their independence. 

If you’d like to learn more about how Comfort Keepers® can provide the best care for you or your loved one with Parkinson’s Disease, our full list of in home care services available in Wallingford, or if you’d like to schedule your free in home consultation, please contact us online any time or call us at (203) 457-3159.

Resources For People With Parkinson’s Disease

• National Parkinson’s Foundation: Improves the lives of people with Parkinson’s by improving care and advancing research toward a cure. They build on the energy, experience, and passion of their global Parkinson’s community.
• American Parkinson’s Disease Association (APDA): The American Parkinson’s Disease Association is the largest grassroots network dedicated to fighting Parkinson’s disease and works tirelessly to help the approximately one million people with Parkinson’s to live life to the fullest. 
• The Michael J. Fox Foundation For Parkinson’s Research: The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to finding a cure for Parkinson’s disease through an aggressively funded research agenda and to ensuring the development of improved therapies for those living with Parkinson’s today. 
• Davis Phinney Foundation For Parkinson’s: This foundation provides essential information, practical tools, and inspiration to people living with Parkinson’s and funds early phase, innovative research that focuses on exercise, speech, movement, and other factors that affect quality of life. Their goal is to help people with Parkinson’s live well today.