Sunday 24 June 2018

Nerd Church - A Short Intro to Parkinson's Disease and Parkinsonism








Parkinson's Disease is horrible.

This degenerative neurological condition has no cure, and its affects are often devastating.

That's not to say that people with Parkinson's can't manage it - especially in the early stages. But it's not something to take lightly.

People associate Parkinson's with tremors - and yes, that's a key symptom, but it's so much more.





picture of a brain in front of a jazzy retro-comics background







Just a few of the symptoms of Parkinson's:


  • tremors in limbs
  • muscular contractions
  • mobility problems
  • speech difficulties and weak voice
  • cognitive processing problems and general confusion
  • sleep problems
  • bladder and bowel problems
  • slow movements
  • dementia
  • hallucinations and delusions
  • Anxiety and depression
  • problems with eating, swallowing, and saliva control
  • low blood pressure
  • a variety of physical pains, including muscle pain, and nerve pain
  • fatigue
  • dental problems
  • general chronic pain

As Parkinson's progresses, it affects more and more of your everyday life.







It's not just tremors. Far from it.

It can also leave people with the impression that you're drunk, or drug-addled.







Parkinson's disease is a form of Parkinsonism - a wide range of conditions with similar features.

Parkinsonism is usually identified by tremors, altered gait, and other symptoms common to these conditions.







Ozzy Osbourne has Parkin Syndrome, a genetic form of Parkinsonism.

He himself thought at first that the way he is - slurred, shuffling, shaky, sometimes confused - was the result of too many years of hard-living (i.e. drink and drugs.) 

It's not.

That's how much Parkinsonism can affect you. 







It's uber-important that more people learn about Parkinson's Disease and Parkinsonism.

My grandmother has Parkinson's. It's a horrible condition, and people too often assume she has Alzheimer's Disease, which leads to them treating her in ways which don't suit her situation.

Either that or, they know she has Parkinson's, and assume she's fine.

They assume it's just a tremor, and don't know why she can't follow the conversation, or can't process the information they've given her.







A great place to start to learn about Parkinson's is the Parkinson's UK website.

If you have the cash, please also consider giving Parkinson's UK a donation, or shopping in their store.








How much do you know about Parkinson's Disease and Parkinsonism? Talk to me! 😊💬









You can follow me on Twitter @CeeDoraReads, on Dora Reads @ BlogLovin, and on Google+. For more ways to support me, check out the Support Me page








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Last updated: 7th July 2018

12 comments:

  1. Thank you for sharing this Cee! My only knowledge about the disease comes from what I hear in the media. I know a few celebrities that have it such as Michael J. Fox, but I assume the symptoms may present themselves differently in patients. It’s good you’re spreading some knowledge!

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    1. Thanks. Check out the Parkinson's UK website for more info if you have time! <3

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  2. I do have a family member with this condition and it has such a big impact on daily life. It is important that we take the time to learn about these conditions. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Thanks - I hope your family member is doing OK! *hugs* You're totally right, we need to talk about this, because the effects on the person with the condition are just huge.

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  3. I didn't know anything about Parkinson's. Thank you for sharing this and talking about it <3

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    1. Thanks so much for taking the time to read this, it really means so much to me! <3

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  4. I like that you are raising awareness about the condition! I knew some things because I have met some people who have the condition, but I have to admit that I learned a lot from reading through the list of symptoms. I knew it was more than tremors but I didn't know all of these elements to it that they could be experiencing.

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    1. It really is an all-encompassing condition. It affects everyone differently, but it can affect pretty much anything - body and mind. Thanks so much for reading this post! XD

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  5. My mom was just diagnosed with this a bit ago, so thank you for sharing this as I need to learn as much as I can fast.

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    1. No problem - hope your mother's ok and feeling good. Check out Parkinson's UK, they've got awesome info.! *hugs*

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  6. Thanks for sharing this! I didn't know much about Parkinson's Disease. I love that I always learn things on your blog.

    Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction

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    1. Thanks so much for reading it! <3 It's def. something that needs more awareness.

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Comments? I love comments! Talk to me nerdlets!