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yes, yes, yes. I am a therapist in home health and have been for 35 years. One of my specialties is Parkinson's. Either a PT or an OT can help a great deal, if they are trained in neuro developmental principles. There are a lot of 'tricks' that can help a patient interact with his/her environment with more efficiency. It can help greatly with transfer ability, feeding, ambulation, how to get unstuck when you get stuck, weight shift activities for balance, therapeutic exercise that can minimize functional movement for bed mobility~ you name it. It does not cure, or take away the disease. It helps a great deal in living with the disease. Please pursue!
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Yes, yes, yes agree with Briscuit. I am an OT and have been for 32 years, working with adults in various settings. Parkinson's is not a static disease, as you know so intervention by both PTs and OTs are good at many junctures. One of the things we are now learning is that cognitive issues happen earlier than we originally thought, so having this area evaluated and how it impacts managing finances and higher level tasks early on is a good idea. OTs look at driving skills also which can be impacted by physical and cognitive limitations.
Caregiver training in middle to late stages is also important part of PT and OT.
Good luck!
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For my mom, PT helps until she walks out the door.
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Well I wanted to keep my partner on PT, but evidently, medicare only covers several sessions and then you are released. This week will be his last visit of in home PT. Does anyone know how Medicare works with PT? Can he re-enroll? Why do they limit the sessions?
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Great question. Therapy? Yes! Rotational movements are lost quickly (such as rolling out of bed). Reinstituting hip and knee rolling side to side, clasped hand movements, head turns can help with tasks like getting out of bed. Programs to make cues "Big and Loud" are also beneficial to self-starting rather than external starting from someone else. Please pursue the option
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Briscuit, OTJenn, TherapyDoc, etc.- would you be able to contact me? I have boatloads of info to share about Parkinsons folks and their bed mobility problems (and solutions). Often we get stories that match word by word- frequently related to the caregiver/spouse that is ready to crash due to the strain on them.
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Definitely, it's one of the reasons hospital stays are so hard on PD patients..no exercise and usually put alarm on their bed so they can't get up w/o causing alarm. Husband's neurologist feels exercise should be 50% of their treatment. I try to make him do exercises between PT sessions and he's better off for it.
Keep it up as long as you can!
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Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, and Speech Therapy will all enhance the quality of life for people who have been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. Too Many time the only therapy one hears in the media is physical therapy. They do a great job, but Occupational Therapists are prepared to examine areas not explored by the physical therapist that will enhance the quality of life for people who have been diagnosed as having Parkinson's Disease. Be sure to ask the physician for a referral to a licensed Home Health Care Agency that offers all 3 Therapies.
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How appropriate that this question was raised when my Internet connection suddenly re-established itself so I could share this exciting news! I decided yesterday when I watched this program that this had to be shared (and no, it's not a commercial.)

Yesterday I watched on PBS a program titled "Capturing Grace", featuring the Morris Dance Group and its adaptations of dance for those with Parkinson's.

The program featured various rehearsals, steps for the various dances, interaction with patients, and the final performance. It was very, very emotional but also one which creates such an abundance of enthusiasm for the dedicated dancers who worked with those who have PD.

One particularly fascinating aspect showed a woman who suffered from tremors in multiple joints; it was impossible for her to remain still. But you should have seen her when she danced - she was a natural! She was so fluid she reminded me of one of the outstanding dancers in CATS.

Some of the people, who apparently had never danced before, were mesmerized by the music and transformed into creating their own movements spontaneously. It was literally that - a transformation. In some, their grace and movements naturally followed those of ballet. Their hands became those of a ballerina, their faces assumed not only a concentration but a look of being captured by music and the grace of dancing. It was mesmerizing.

There now are 100 communities in 11 countries hosting these dance classes.

Hopefully this link won't be deleted, but if it is, google 'Morris Dance Group, Parkinson's Disease": http://danceforparkinsons.org/

A map of where classes can be found is here: c, which lists the countries hosting the program.

In the US, check here: http://danceforparkinsons.org/find-a-class/class-locations/united-states

I haven't been this enthusiastic about specifically oriented program for a long time! If something like this were at Senior Centers, I think it would be wonderful.
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Sorry - the link for international classes is:

danceforparkinsons./find-a-class/class-locations
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