Learning What Parkinson’s Disease Hallucinations And Delusions Are In Allentown, PA

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a central nervous system disorder that is most common in seniors age 60 and older, and affects movement. If you or one of your loved ones has PD, you are probably very familiar with the motor symptoms associated with the disease, such as tremors or trouble with balance. What you may be less familiar with, are non-motor symptoms, such as anxiety, vision problems and dizziness, and hallucinations and delusions. 

While there is currently no reliable way to determine which people with PD will experience hallucinations or delusions, it is estimated to be around 50% of patients. 

Understanding Parkinson’s Disease Hallucinations And Delusions

Currently, the exact cause of PD hallucinations and delusions is unknown, but there are theories. One states that the hallucinations and delusions could be a side effect of certain dopamine therapies, while another supposes that it is simply a natural progression of PD. Risk factors 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 Are The Signs? 

If you believe that you or your loved one may be experiencing hallucinations or delusions, it is extremely important to pay attention to any warning signs. If left unchecked, a person experiencing hallucinations or delusions may begin having difficulty separating what is real from what is not as the symptoms often increase in severity over time. This can be stressful for you and your loved one and may mean they’ll need more help around their home.  

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

If you believe that you or your loved one are experiencing hallucinations or delusions, please speak with a specialist.

How Can Comfort Keepers® Help?

Everyone needs a little bit of help now and then, and this is where your friendly Comfort Keepers® can step in! Each and every one of our caregivers is committed to ensuring that your senior is living their golden years to the fullest! 

Our caregivers do more than simply provide crucial in home care services to people with PD, such as assistance with meal preparation, bathing, etc, they provide Interactive Caregiving™. What is Interactive Caregiving™? Well, it’s our brand of in home care philosophy that seniors are happiest and healthiest when they are cared for mentally, physically, and socially.

At Comfort Keepers®, we encourage seniors to have an active role in their care. We want them to work with their caregiver to create meal plans that they can look forward to each day, plan exciting social calls to friends or family, and stay as active as they are able. Our goal is always to provide your loved one with as much assistance as they need, without making them feel as though they’ve lost their independence. We’re here to help enrich your loved one’s life. 

If you’d like to learn more about how Comfort Keepers® can help your loved one with Parkinson’s Disease, our full list of in home care services available in Allentown, or if you’d like to schedule your free in home consultation, please contact us online any time or call us at (610) 351-9922.

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.