Re: Mental Symptoms

[Bob Chapman <rchapman99@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Daniel, there's no need to apologize for asking questions on this list. Finding
answers is its' main purpose and after all you may be the one who finds a cure 
for PD
(God bless you if you do).
In answer to your posting, it is ironic that I woke up at 2:00 AM PDT and was 
lying
there with all kinds of thoughts about PD racing through my mind ( a frequent
occurrence ) and about 3:15 AM I decided to get up and go write down my 
thoughts. I
decided to read my e-mail first and your posting was the first on the list. Is 
that
some kind of an Omen or what?

I often think that there are many symptoms which are mental and not easily seen 
and
that these are as debilitating as the visible symptoms. Some of these may or 
may not
be true symptoms, but I THINK they are, so to me they are real. One of these is
fatigue. I can do something physical,  like a couple of hours of yard work, 
vacuuming
the house. cleaning the pool or anything which does not really take a lot of 
strength
and I become very exhausted. I can take a nap afterwards and when I awaken I 
may even
feel more tired than I was before I took the nap. Taking a nap, by the way, is
something I need to do nearly every day.
Feeling helpless and useless is another Mental Symptom. Because of the fatigue 
factor
I have not been able to find employment that I can handle, I recently was hired 
by
the Census Bureau to be an enumerator but had to drop out of training because 
the
Stress of trying to get people to fill out forms they were sent but didn't 
respond
to, especially when I would have had to go door-to-door in 100+ degree heat to
interview them ( I live in the Southern California desert ). Another of the 
mental
problems occur when I start wondering when, or if, I will become physically 
unable to
get around at all. Will I be bedridden or have to use a wheel chair? There are 
many
instances when the physical limitations cause me to become depressed to a point 
I
wish I could just go to sleep and never wake up.
I could go on and on with this stuff but it is too depressing so I will just 
say Good
Luck in your research, I hope you find The Cure.

Bob Chapman
rchapman99@xxxxxxxxxxxxx


Daniel Myers wrote:

> My name is Daniel Myers and I am a first year medical student.  I am currently
> doing extra-curricular research on Parkinson\'s Disease but much to my 
> dismay, am
> unable to find very much information on the mental and phsycological effects 
> of
> PD.  Do sufferers commonly experience symptoms of dementia, depression,
> confusion etc or are symptoms largely limited to physical movement?   I would
> sincerely appreciate any reply from sufferers, carers or indeed anyone with
> experience in PD.
> Please forgive me for my ignorance.
>
> - Daniel