The various stages of Parkinson’s disease.

Although there are 5 main types of Dementia, Parkinson’s disease also falls under this umbrella. This is because as the disease progresses, it may cause the onset of Dementia and hallucinations.

Parkinson’s develops when cells in the brain stop working properly and are lost over time – Brain cells produce a chemical called dopamine, and when the brain cannot make enough dopamine to control movement properly, this is usually when the first signs of Parkinson’s start to show. 

Due to the nature of Parkinson’s, it does affect everyone differently. The most common symptoms of Parkinson’s are:

• Tremor (shaking)
• Rigidity (stiffness)
• Slowness of movement

Symptoms associated with Parkinson’s can change from day to day, even hour to hour. Some symptoms that may have been noticeable one day may not be the following day. This makes being aware of the various stages of Parkinson’s extremely difficult.

Other symptoms of Parkinson’s disease include 

• Problems with sleep
• Problems with memory
• Problems making decisions
• Problems with mental health/depression

As the disease progresses, many sufferers may also experience the onset of Dementia, increased disability and poor health, which can make them vulnerable to infection, blood clots and pneumonia. 

However, anyone with Parkinson’s disease will receive treatment to manage their symptoms:

• Medication
• Exercise
• Therapies (including physiotherapy, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy)

It is worth remembering that many people with Parkinson’s disease continue to lead relatively normal lives for many years. For example, the actor Michael J. Fox was diagnosed at the age of 29 with Parkinson’s disease, and 30 years later he still continues to act. In the year 2000 he founded  The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research with the sole aim of eliminating Parkinson’s disease in our lifetime – The Foundation has since become the largest non-profit funder of Parkinson’s disease research in the world, investing more than $900 million in research to date.

At Abicare we provide Visiting Care and Live-in Care to clients suffering from Parkinson’s disease, providing care that compliments and works alongside the treatment(s) they are already receiving, so that they can live comfortably and retain their independence for as long as possible.

To find out more about the Parkinson’s disease care we provide and how we can help you, please go to https://abicare.co.uk/types-of-care/dementia/