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Hi Connie, I'm so sorry to hear of Jack's trip to the ER, that can be quite traumatic. Regarding water, this is a difficult topic for many PWP. The more water you drink, the more often you need to get up, travel to the bathroom, and unfasten clothing; and this can be very daunting. For this reason and many other reasons, chronic mild dehydration occurs quite frequently with PD, and can lead to kidney stones, confusion, dizziness, urinary tract infections, heat stroke, and, yes, constipation/impactions -- among other conditions. It's a hard thing to make yourself drink sufficient water as PD progresses. One thing that works for many of my clients, though, is to drink a full glass of water each time they take medications. That way, by the time the bladder fills up, the medication is working, and the individual has better mobility and is better able to reach the bathroom and unfasten clothing. Anyway, I'm glad to know Jack is better, and hope this won't happen again. You are a great carer!! and Jack doubtless knows how fortunate he is to have you by his side. My very best regards, Kathrynne > Constance Tate wrote: > > dear kathrynne > well you were proved right again. jack has been doing okay and > insisted he go with me to see about getting work done on our car on > tuesday and then wed. i realised he hadn't been drinking enough water. > by 3:00pm i had to call the paramedics. emergency room gave him an > i.v. and x-ray showed he had some impaction. > well they gave him something to drink followed by lots of water and > then told me i could take him home. boy he really scared me and i > think got a good scare himself. > please pwps take kathrynne's advice and drink drink lots of water. > it's no fun to have to rush to emergency room to go thru all they have > to do to straighten you out. > love > connie -- Kathrynne Holden, MS, RD Author: "Eat well, stay well with Parkinson's disease" "Constipation and Parkinson's" -- audiocassette & guidebook "Guidelines for Medical Nutrition Therapy for Parkinson's disease" & Risk Assessment Tools "Risk for malnutrition and bone fracture in Parkinson's disease," J Nutr Elderly. V18:3;1999. http://www.nutritionucanlivewith.com/