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Dear Glen, I'm not into Chinese medicine, but I did read the books from pdrecovery, which uses Asian medicine, and it did sound plausible after reading it all. Also I carefully read the sheets (after years of trusting the doctors) that come with the PD meds. They sound scary. This Asian medicine doesn't. No dangerous med, in fact no meds at all. The writer isn't making any money off this, so you can't really call her a charlatan. I think it deserves a chance. There are those that are getting results. Placebo? I don't know, but it isn't going to kill you whereas the Western medicine can. Our first neuro put my husband on 1-250 Sinemet 3 times a day right off the bat for a little tremor! It was a mistake. I think he intended to use the 100, but still. And these meds only work for a while. Now that my husband has taken them for 10 years, they are not working as well. We'd ask the doctor about symptoms, he didn't have a clue, but he was sure a nice guy and liked to talk abou! t his grape vines. When we moved we went to a new neurologist. He isn't much better. Told John to go to his general doctor for treatment of his PD pain. Good luck to you as you try to sort this all out. It's up to you to research it. Don't leave yourself purely in the hands of the doctors. A lot of them just use their old methods because they work for them. "You can't cure PD anyway." God bless Paula Rick McGirr <[log in to unmask]> wrote: Hi, Glenn, and welcome. My doctors did a couple of things which I question. First, they put me on Sinemet, or carbidopa/levidopa, right off the bat. I didn't find out about the bad side effects which come on after 5 or 10 years, until I did some research. (Always a good idea to do lots of research on your own.) I decided to try to handle my symptoms without Sinemet (did I spell that correctly?), and have been ok over the last 6 or 7 months. On Mirapex: they also put me on Mirapex in the beginning, and I tried to handle it, but the sleepiness and dizziness took me out of action just about every afternoon, so I switched to another neuro-receptor stimulator, Requip (ropinerole). I still get drowzy from time to time, but not nearly as bad as with Mirapex. I also take selegiline for the neuro-protective factor, and I take CoQ10, an enzyme which helps produce energy on a cellular level. FYI, my symptoms started 5 years ago, and now I am dealing with several typical symptoms, including tremor in right hand, arm shoulder and neck, curling toes on the right foot, loss of dexterity in the fingers, generally stiff as a board, slow gait, shuffling, and I really have to crack the whip on myself to get my feet moving. My first doctor was a guy who's very near retirement, and I didn't feel that he was keeping up on the latest research, so I switched. My current neurologist is a mainstream guy; basically his focus is on medication and surgery. I believe it is possible to help yourself greatly by exercise and proper nutrition, and there are lots of takes on alternatives to western medical treatments. Now's the time to see what really works for you, and to rededicate yourself to staying as fit as possible. Consult with your doctor about benefits of alternative therapies. If there's something you shouldn't be doing, he'll tell you, and if he raises no objection, then do it to the hilt. I believe people on the list here can help provide a lot of info on all kinds of treatments they have tried. Paula Nixon is into Chinese things, and Raj is into Ayurvedic medicine, from India, and somebody, can't remember the name, wrote a book on the benefits of exercise for PWP. Also, read Linda J. Herman's book, "When Parkinson's Strikes Early." Even if you are older, there are lots of things to learn about what to expect as a PWP. There are some people on the list who cover the political aspects of PD. You'll see lots of differing viewpoints. It's been a lively discussion, which has helped me develop my own thoughts and positions. Good luck, Glenn. Enjoy Fall! Rick McGirr Email: [log in to unmask] ----- Original Message ----- From: "Glenn Brown" To: Sent: Friday, October 07, 2005 10:50 AM Subject: Re: Newly diagnosed PWP > hello listers, > > i am new to this list and elated to have discovered it's existence. > i was > diagnosed 2&1/2 yrs. ago. my neurologist prescribed mirapex for my > symptoms > which are hand tremors, slowness > and slight imbalance. i started with 0.125 mil. 3x's a day and > increased to > 0.5 3x's a day. unfortunately, i experienced an episode that caused > sweating > and a very sick feeling. needless to say, i ceased taking the > prescription > immediately. my dr.wou ld not respond to my phone call and had an > assistant to > telephone me instead. i was not at home and my wife took the > message. she > informed me that it was suggested that i see the psychiatrist that > works with > their medical group. i felt that my concerns were worth > professional medical > intervention. i am now looking for another neurologist and i hope > this is the > right course of action. nevertheless, is there anyone else on this > list having > difficulty or success with mirapex? if so' i'd like to hear what > you have > to say. > > glenn brown > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: > mailto:[log in to unmask] > In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn