{"id":1463,"date":"2018-05-02T06:00:47","date_gmt":"2018-05-02T06:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/?p=1463"},"modified":"2023-04-20T06:20:47","modified_gmt":"2023-04-20T06:20:47","slug":"role-of-care-givers-in-parkinsons-disease-patients","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/neurology\/role-of-care-givers-in-parkinsons-disease-patients\/","title":{"rendered":"Role of care givers in Parkinson\u2019s disease patients"},"content":{"rendered":"

What is Parkinson\u2019s disease?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Parkinson\u2019s disease is a progressive, neurological disease that occurs due to the destruction of nerve cells in one part of the brain. It usually affects movement but in later stages can also affect cognition. People with PD will need help as the illness progresses and the role of a caregiver is important.<\/p>\n

Responsibility of the caregiver through the different stages of Parkinson\u2019s disease<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Symptoms in early stages<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u2022 Slight functional impairment
\n\u2022 Tremors, rigidity, clumsiness
\n\u2022 Stooped posture
\n\u2022 Speech abnormalities
\n\u2022 Odd facial expressions<\/p>\n

How to cope<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The onset of Parkinson\u2019s disease can mean emotional upheaval for the patient and those around them. Learning about the disease, what to expect, and what the treatment options<\/a> are, is helpful.<\/p>\n

Symptoms in mid stage PD<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u2022 Loss of balance\/slow movements
\n\u2022 Fatigue
\n\u2022 Stomach problems
\n\u2022 Sleep problems<\/p>\n

Also Read:<\/strong> 6 Categories of Sleep Disorders<\/a><\/div>\n

How to cope<\/strong><\/h3>\n

As the disease progresses, the caregiver\u2019s role increases as the patient\u2019s independence decreases. At this point, they are still functional to an extent, but movements are slow and ordinary activities, like dressing and eating, become messier and take time.<\/p>\n

The most important trait a caregiver needs is patience. The patient is losing control and letting them do as much as they can, even if it means cleaning up or waiting means a lot to them.<\/p>\n

Communication is a problem for the patient and they get frustrated when they are not understood. Speech therapy and vocal exercises can help to an extent.<\/p>\n

Symptoms of late stages of PD<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u2022 Severe disability
\n\u2022 Incapacitation
\n\u2022 Hallucinations\/delusions
\n\u2022 Freezing<\/p>\n

How to cope<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Patients in the late stages need around the clock care. Many may be bedridden or unable to move without assistance. The onus of feeding, bathing and looking after them will be on the caregiver.<\/p>\n

The caregiver should anticipate this situation and made arrangements for it, beforehand, either by having family or friends help out or by arranging for a nurse or helper. It is important for the caregiver to take time out for themselves.<\/p>\n

Also Read:<\/strong> The 5 Stages of Parkinson\u2019s disease<\/a><\/div>\n

Small changes to make life easier for PD patients<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u2022 Get electric toothbrushes
\n\u2022 Cups and mugs with large handles
\n\u2022 Get them footwear with Velcro straps
\n\u2022 Add handrails to bedroom and bathroom walls
\n\u2022 Move furniture to create space for them to move
\n\u2022 Remove carpets<\/p>\n

Duties of the caregiver<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u2022 Ensure that the patient has medication on time
\n\u2022 Keep all doctor\u2019s appointments and follow doctor\u2019s orders
\n\u2022 Work with the physiotherapist to help the patient
\n\u2022 Aid patient with everyday activities
\n\u2022 Be patient and caring
\n\u2022 Offer mental comfort<\/p>\n

Help for the caregiver<\/strong><\/h2>\n

PD is a difficult disease to take care of. The caregiver needs assistance and support to be able to, in turn, offer that to the patient. It can be frustrating and stressful at times, and they need people to help them out.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a caregiver, it is important that you build a support system for yourself in the early stages to make sure that you can cope with the challenges, mentally and physically, in the later stages.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Kauvery Hospital is globally known for its multidisciplinary services at all its Centers of Excellence, and for its comprehensive, Avant-Grade technology, especially in diagnostics and remedial care in heart diseases, transplantation, vascular and neurosciences medicine. Located in the heart of Trichy (Tennur, Royal Road and Alexandria Road (Cantonment), Chennai, Hosur, Salem, Tirunelveli and Bengaluru, the hospital also renders adult and pediatric trauma care.<\/p>\n

Chennai \u2013 044 4000 6000 \u2022 Trichy \u2013 Cantonment \u2013 0431 4077777 \u2022 Trichy \u2013 Heartcity \u2013 0431 4077777 \u2022 Trichy \u2013 Tennur \u2013 0431 4022555 \u2022 Maa Kauvery Trichy \u2013 0431 4077777 \u2022 Kauvery Cancer Institute, Trichy \u2013 0431 4077777 \u2022 Hosur \u2013 04344 272727 \u2022 Salem \u2013 0427 2677777 \u2022 Tirunelveli – 0462 4006000 \u2022 Bengaluru – 080 6801 6801<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is Parkinson\u2019s disease? Parkinson\u2019s disease is a progressive, neurological disease that occurs due to the destruction of nerve cells in one part of the brain. It usually affects movement<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":8411,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-neurology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1463"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8895,"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1463\/revisions\/8895"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8411"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kauveryhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}