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Hello, after being a silent reader for a while, I want to introduce myself and my family. My name is Christine Elssner. I live with my parents near Heidelberg, Germany. My Dad, who is 62, was diagnosed with PD some month ago. He didn't tell me, my mum did. He doesn't talk much about himself, so I don't know whether he is concerned about his future or not. So far he has only minor problems. My grandpa (mum's dad) also had PD, but he was diagnosed very late. His physician didn't find out. Only when he wasn't able to walk any more and was in hospital for this reason, the nurse told us at first glance (from the look of his face) that he might have PD. Until then my grandma was his primary caregiver, though she had health problems herself. My grandpa was very difficult. He also suffered of dementia. I don't know whether this was caused by PD or not. In the evening, he often wanted to 'go home', although he lived in the same house since he was seven. Sometimes he 'went home' at daytime. Fortunately the house where he went (he lived there till he was seven) was only two streets away and the people knew him, so they brought him back. When he wasn't able to dress and undress himself, he often wouldn't let anyone else do it for him. This was very hard for my grandma, because she had not much strength. Her children and her daughter-in-law helped, but she had the biggest part. After his diagnose we tried to remember the first signs and came to the conclusion that they were about ten years before. I remember that he didn't want me on his lap when I was little, perhaps he was afraid because he felt handicapped. Now, when my mum thinks of PD, she thinks of her dad, so she is anxious about what is going to happen to my dad. I think this list is a good source of information for us. Unfortunately my dad doesn't speak and read english well, so he could only get second hand information. But, as I wrote earlier, he doesn't talk about his PD, and we don't want to press Information on him. There is another relative with PD, who is relatet to my dad. He is the cousin of my dad's mum. So this raises the question whether PD has any hereditary components. But as far as I know, there is no evidence? Good bye for now. Greetings, Christine