Caring for your loved one living with Parkinson’s in Loughton, Redbridge and Waltham Forest

Caring for your loved one living with Parkinson’s in Loughton, Redbridge and Waltham Forest

This month we celebrated World Parkinson’s Day, which takes place on 11 April every year. Right at Home Loughton are proud to have over 7 years of experience in homecare with expert CareGivers experienced in providing care for those living with Parkinson’s. The needs of each person with Parkinson’s are unique, so when providing support, it’s important to create a personalised care plan – something which Right at Home Loughton do for every client.

Did you know –

• 1 in 500 people are affected by Parkinson’s (source: NHS)
• Most people start to develop symptoms when over the age of 50 (source: NHS)
• It is the fastest growing neurological condition in the world (source: Parkinson’s UK)

What is Parkinson’s disease?

Parkinson’s is a progressive neurological condition. This means it causes problems in the brain and gets worse over time (source: Parkinson’s UK). As the affects of the disease intensifies, the brain is unable to control certain functions such as body movements

Symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease

There are three main symptoms to look out for, we would always recommend seeing your GP as soon as possible if you are worried about yourself or a loved one.

Tremor/ shaking

The typical Parkinson’s tremor occurs mostly at rest (“resting tremor”) and lessens during sleep and when the body part is actively in use. For example, your hand might shake while you’re sitting, or even while you’re walking, but when you reach out to shake hands with someone, the tremor is less noticeable or goes away entirely.

Tremor tends to occur in the hands and is often described as “pill-rolling”: imagine holding a pill between your thumb and forefinger and continuously rolling it around. But it can also appear in other parts of the body, including the lower lip, jaw or leg. These tremors can interfere with routine activities such as shaving, dressing, writing and many other tasks that require fine motor coordination.

Some people report an internal tremor, a shaking sensation inside the chest, abdomen or limbs that cannot be seen.

Tremor usually affects only one side of the body, especially during early stages of the disease. With disease progression both sides may become affected. Fatigue, stress or intense emotions can temporarily make tremors worse.

Trouble Moving or Walking

People without PD do not think about their walking. Their arms naturally swing, and their feet naturally land on the heels with each step. They can walk and talk and carry bags, purses and plates of food without difficulty.

Individuals with PD tend to lose their automatic movements. Especially as Parkinson’s advances, it may bring with it a variety of symptoms that are uncommon in early stages, such as problems with walking (gait abnormalities) and poor balance (postural instability). Feet begin to shuffle, and performing two tasks at once becomes more difficult. Turning becomes challenging, often leading to a freezing episode and sometimes a fall.

People with PD have trouble regulating the speed and/or size of their movements. Movements are bradykinetic (too slow) or hypokinetic (too small).

Sleeping problems

A good night’s sleep is critical to our health and well-being. However, for people with Parkinson’s disease (PD), sleep becomes even more important as the body needs more time to restore and repair itself. The brain changes that are part of PD can also cause sleep difficulties and some people have problems sleeping even before movement symptoms develop and PD is diagnosed.

Some PD medications can disrupt sleep. Others make people sleepy during the day. Not surprisingly, sleep-related symptoms are reported by more than 75 percent of people with PD.

Disrupted sleep can affect your health, mood and overall quality of life. Furthermore, when people with PD don’t sleep well, their caregiver’s sleep is disrupted, too. Caregivers also need restful sleep to stay healthy and to provide the best care.

Most common sleeping problems include -

• Difficulty falling and staying asleep
• Excessive daytime sleepiness
• Talking or yelling out while asleep
• Vivid dreaming
• Leg movements, jerking, cramping (restless leg syndrome)
• Difficulty turning over in bed
• Waking up to go to the bathroom

Other symptoms may include:

• Stiff and inflexible muscles
• Dizziness and fainting
• Memory loss
• Constipation
• Mental health problems such as anxiety and depression

What to remember when supporting loved one living with Parkinson’s disease

Caring for a loved one who is living with Parkinson’s can be daunting time, its important for your wellbeing, as well the wellbeing of the person you are caring for that you have a strong support network to ‘fall back on’. You are not alone and Right at Home Loughton can add to your support network by providing you with much need respite care, whether it’s a few regular hours every week to yourself or holiday respite cover so you can go away with peace of mind.

Understanding what Parkinson’s is and learning more about the condition, will enable you to provide the best support you can as well as making the thought of caring for someone with Parkinson’s a lot less daunting. There are fantastic organisations like Parkinson’s UK that can provide brilliant advice and information, alternatively you can always ask your GP to point you in the right direction.  

Managing Parkinson’s is about more than medication – Here are some tips that can help!

It can be difficult to find the correct dosage and combination of medication because the condition is so different in each person, so a good relationship with your GP is vital. Things that can also help are -

Did you know that by simply doing 2.5 hours of exercise per week can slow symptoms (Parkinson’s UK)

Following a balanced diet improves general well being which in turn boosts the ability to combat the symptoms of Parkinson’s. Whole foods, such as fruits and vegetables, lean protein and staying hydrated can be a massive help and boost your overall help.

Maintaining your mental health, with regular activities such as meeting with friends can be a huge relief when managing the symptoms of Parkinson’s.

For more tips get in touch with us!

Emotional Support is just as important as managing physical symptoms

It’s not uncommon for Parkinson’s to have an impact on mental and emotional health, as anxiety and depression can go hand in hand with memory loss or insomnia. Providing emotional support for a loved one living with mental health problems can be difficult, and you can find more advice through the NHS.

Find someone you can talk to

Discover a local support group for other people caring for people with Parkinson’s who understand what you’re going through and can offer advice Speak to Right at Home Loughton to find out how our CareGivers can alleviate some of the pressure

Look after yourself

Caring for your loved one is a full-time responsibility and there are often no breaks in between. 

Time off can help you rest and reconnect with friends and family while a respite carer supports your loved one.

Speak to your GP to find out about the respite care services available in your local area.

How Right at Home Loughton can help

Caring for a family member can be a huge responsibility and affect relationships, Right at Home Loughton can alleviate the pressure by managing all aspects of your care. We assess every Client to understand their needs, match CareGivers to Clients based on expertise, interests, and personality – culminating in a personalised care plan to help each Client achieve their goals.

Lots of people living with Parkinson’s continue to live normal lives, but we can help to make it as manageable as possible through a variety of services. We have listed some of our services below to outline some of the ways in which we can help.

Companionship

Not all of our Clients require personal or specialised care. We support with daily activities to maintain your independence assisting in activities that may have become more difficult than they previously were, whilst providing a friendly face to share interests and hobbies with.

Medication assistance

Many people living with Parkinson’s struggle to find the correct medication dosages and need help from their GP, Right at Home Loughton can support you with prompting to take or administer medication ensuring the correct medication is taken every time – we can also accompany clients to GP appointments 

Home help

We support our clients with light household tasks like dusting, changing bedding, vacuuming, shopping, and food preparation. This can be invaluable when dealing with

Personal Care

Our CareGivers support with all areas of personal care and hygiene, assistance with washing, dressing, eating, and toileting, respecting your privacy and protecting your dignity. Our waking night/sleepover services ensure Clients are comfortable overnight, and we can provide support as required.

Our CareGivers understand the unique physical, mental, and emotional challenges faced by those with Parkinson's. Many people who live with Parkinson’s can have a normal life expectancy thanks to advances in treatment. While there is no cure, at Right at Home, we know that support for someone living with Parkinson’s is vital and can help them live their best possible life. Contact us on 0203 763 6074 to speak to one of our experts and learn more about the help that Right at Home Loughton can provide.