As per Barbara's request, I'm a new member introducing myself to the
list. First, thanks to Barbara for starting and maintaining this list.
My name is Theresa Ammirati, and I live and work in Connecticut. Like
others on the list (I've been reading archives through telnet) I'm here
because a relative, in this case my 81 year old mother, was recently
diagnosed with Parkinson's. Until this winter, I'd had relatively little
knowledge of the disease or its effects. My mother, who has suffered
from arthritis for years, attributed a growing list of symptoms to that
arthritis. She's been shaky on her feet, feeling as if she were going to
fall, weak in her hands, which recently developed slight tremors, and
generally unwell. For the past three or four years, she's cried out
(quite frighteningly) in her sleep, but upon wakening has no recollection
of either nightmares or crying out. My father, and others who'd been
awake late at night, either when visiting my parents or when they were
visiting others, however, were quite aware of that but didn't connect it
with anything else.
In any event, when my sisters and I insisted that she visit a doctor, she
did. The first one prescribed tranquilizers, explaining kindly that
elderly people are often fearful (she'd complained most about fearing
that she was going to fall). At a family party, she --who'd until just
recently looked and acted at least fifteen years younger than she
actually is, had walked daily, bowled weekly, cooked large meals,
etc.--as a result of the tranquilizers looked like a zombie. Again, with
no familiarity with Parkinson's we had no idea that this was what was
going on, but we found a gerontologist who examined her, said he thought
it was Parkinson's and referred her to a neurologist who referred her to
the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
In the meantime, she'd been on sinemet and eladryl(sp??), but developed
jerky leg spasms, which she found most disconcerting, even though other
symptoms seemed to be diminishing. After her visit to the Johnson
Foundation, before which the neurologist had removed medication entirely
for about a month, she was back on eladryl (I live far away and get most
of my info by phone, which is why I'm not sure about the med name)
alone. It seems she has a rare sensitivity to medication.
I'm sorry this has been such a long introduction. I'm hoping that
from this list I can get some idea of supplements to medication that will
help her to recover some of her mobility or even alternatives, should her
sensitivity to medicines preclude medication (she is, for example,
allergic to aspirin, penicillin and other drugs and while the doctor at the
Foundation explained that her reaction to the meds was not an allergic
reaction, per se, it was a real physiological sensitivity reaction). As
I said earlier, I found this list through telnet, so I've read the
archives and have already found useful information. Thanks again, Barbara
Theresa Ammirati, [log in to unmask]
