Parkinson's Disease Support Group
Parkinson's disease is a movement disorder often characterized by muscle rigidity, tremor, a slowing of physical movement, and in extreme cases, a loss of physical movement. The primary symptoms of Parkinsons are due to excessive muscle contraction, normally caused by the insufficient formation and action of dopamine, which is produced in the dopaminergic neurons of the...
Hi, my 80 yr old dad has pd and lest body dementia.
Mum cares for him at home though getting very difficult for her to cope, both mentally & physically.
Most every day is very hard, nights dad wakes up a few times, maybe has accidents so even harder but lately I've noticed that his mobility (which is very slow and painful at best of times, and easily falls) is getting increasingly worse and his leg muscles are absolutely rock solid- it feels as though he has plaster of Paris on his legs!! Does anyone know of any treatments at all that may help ease this for him? I know his disease is not going to get better, but if only I could find something to at least alleviate some of the horrid symptoms he has... Really hope someone has some advice.... Thanks for reading
Mum cares for him at home though getting very difficult for her to cope, both mentally & physically.
Most every day is very hard, nights dad wakes up a few times, maybe has accidents so even harder but lately I've noticed that his mobility (which is very slow and painful at best of times, and easily falls) is getting increasingly worse and his leg muscles are absolutely rock solid- it feels as though he has plaster of Paris on his legs!! Does anyone know of any treatments at all that may help ease this for him? I know his disease is not going to get better, but if only I could find something to at least alleviate some of the horrid symptoms he has... Really hope someone has some advice.... Thanks for reading
I'm sure you have tried hot baths etc for a bit of relief...hot bath with Epsom salts....
Touch therapy...lightly touching the affected muscles....lightly massaging......and then my favorite...the Tens unit......cheap , easy to use and usually breaks up spastic and locked, rigid muscles, get one on amazon get the Tens 3000 where you can set the frequency and wavelength yourself......
peace
Brer T
Thank you, take care X
I told my doctor about this at my last appointment and he increased my Neupro by 2 mg, but split the dose so I take some in the morning and some before bed. It's made a huge difference. I don't wake up with the severe pain early a.m. and I can almost get out of bed normally when I do wake up. I just prefer to take it slow and stretch out a bit first.
Maybe a change in dosing or timing would help your dad.
Snopes:Origins: Many people are plagued by nocturnal leg cramps, those involuntary and agonizing Soap muscle contractions that strike in the depths of the night, waking sleepers with jolts of pain that leave them awash in waves of suffering until the kinks finally relax.
While many possible causes have been posited for these contractions, those afflicted by them are far more concerned with getting rid of these debilitating cramps than they are with understanding their origin. Over the years, many preventions have been suggested, including: Stretching one's calf muscles prior to going to bed.
Swearing off caffeine in the evening.
Increasing one's intake of potassium, magnesium, calcium or Vitamin E.
Sleeping on one's back with toes pointed towards the ceiling.
Increasing one's intake of water during the day.
Taking quinine (now available only by prescription) or drinking tonic water (which contains small amounts of quinine). It needs be noted that in 2010 the FDA strongly cautioned consumers against using quinine to combat leg cramps because the drug can cause severe side effects, including death.
While all of the above have been said to avert the problem in at least some cases, one further suppression trick appears to work, at least according to anecdotal information, for almost everyone so bedeviled: sleeping with a bar of soap in the bed. No one has yet produced a plausible explanation as to why snoozing with one's Ivory might stave off those devastating nocturnal leg cramps, yet the reports of its doing so are numerous.
Slipping a bar of soap into the bed as a leg cramp prevention has been advanced by a number of authorities, both medical and otherwise. Ann Landers has mentioned the soap cure in her column on a number of occasions, with each airing prompting a load of letters from readers thanking her for this information because it worked wonders for them. "They were thrilled and grateful to be liberated from those leg cramps," said Ms. Landers.
peace
Bt
HI,
I BID YOU GREETINGS FROM DOWN UNDER AUSTRALIA.
RE ACHING PAINFULL LEGS.
EXPERIENCE HAS TAUGHT ME, YET I'M STILL OPEN TO OHER PEOPLE'S IDEAS ETC, THAT WITH PARKINSON'S CONDITION, THERE ARE NO EASY FIXES.
I THINK, FEEL AND BELIEVE THAT THE BEST TREATMENT AND MANAGING OF THIS CONFOUNDED CONDITION IS, HARD WORK.
ANY ISSUES I HAVE WITH ACHING LEGS,SORE MUSCLES ETC, I DEAL WITH EXERCISE, AND STRETCHING. IT IS VITAL TO KEEP ACTIVE.
I DO TAI CHI, YOGA,CYCLING, DANCING AND BOWLING.
THIS TOGETHER WITH WALKING AND GARDENING HAS SEEN IN GOOD STEAD. I HAVE ENDURED PARKINSONS CONDITION, IMPOSTOR THAT IT IS, FOR EIGHTEEN YEARS, SO I FEEL I MUST BE DOING SOMETHING RIGHT.
THERE ARE THREE WAYS OF MANAGING AND DEALING WITH PARKINSON'S, THEY ARE-
1- ATTITUDE
2- ATTITUDE
3- ATTITUDE
AND BEST MAKE IT POSITIVE, AS NEGATIVITY WILL NOT SEE YOU THROUGH.
GO WELL AND DEVELOP AND
MAINTAIN A WINNING POSITION.
ALIVEO / STEWART
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