Hopefully this doesn’t seem weird after my last topic in the General forums.
I recently went to see grandparents as health is ailing for many of them. My grandmother on my Mom’s side had a stroke recently, and is actually recovering remarkably considering the circumstances and possibilities. My grandfather on the Dad’s side had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s last year, and is slowly degenerating. Not terrible right now, but his future won’t be long.
Anyway, I wanted to see if any of you had experience with this, and if you might have some advice or insight (peers around for CC). I’ve been reading up on these two conditions, but individual experience often supplies the best information.
On a side note, it’s amazing what a baby can do for someone in any state. You would never have thought my grandmother had anything wrong when she was holding my son.
hard to say JF - there is a LOT of literature and experience around both these conditions out there. Something like the Parkinson’s foundation or the American Heart and Stroke foundation may be able to help you - i’m not sure.
Stroke - depending on the type - variable recovery. I’ve seen people with full-out hemi-plegia (paralysis of their left leg and arm) make a full recovery within 24 hours. I’ve seen strokes kill patients as well.
Parkinson’s - variably unrelentingly progressive. It can be helped to a degree with various pharmaceuticals, but these tend to merely temporize, and can often cause psychosis (i’ve seen frank psychosis in people on Parkinson’s meds).
My advice - make sure people have their “living wills” or a DNR or whatever kind of document that expresses how they want the course of their lives to run. Particularly with regards to end-of-life-care. i.e. resuscitation maneuvers etc. The problem with these disorders is that they may progress to the point where people can not express if they want to be kept alive on machines or not which presents very difficult times for the families involved - especially where agendas collide. (just because you want them around forever does not mean that they want to be around forever, and the opposite is occassionally true as well).
Thanks, Doc. I really appreciate it.
I think my grandfather is ready for the last chapter - that’s why we haven’t tried anything very rigorous. Have read about dopamine supplementation, but the effects are very limited and acute.
My grandmother is doing well and much better each day, even with some recent complications. But I still think that they should put the nursery adjacent to the rehab center - it would do wonders.
Anyone else have their own experience?
