Re: When to tell / see re-post psychosocial article

[janet paterson <janet313@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

At 19:52 1998/12/20 +1100, you wrote:
>I have a patient who has come to me for advice and I am not sure
>what to tell her. I would be grateful if I could get some suggestions
>from the list. She is a 63 year old grandmother diagnosed 5 years
>ago. She has asked me when she should tell some of her close friends.
>She has some dyskinesia which is probably noticeable to some untrained
>eyes. She is concerned about people making a fuss or being pitied. Also
>she is concerned about gossip in a small community.
>
>John Levin MD

hi john

if your patient felt comfortable talking about her pd
i suppose she wouldn't be asking for help;
has she told her immediate famly?

why is she uncomfortable?
is she still in a form of denial about her diagnosis?
are there elements of shame or embarrassment about 'weakness'?
what is wrong with, [or scary about], 'pity' aka 'sympathy' aka 'empathy'?

after five years of being able to conceal/control her pd symptoms
she is having to face the fact that it can no longer be hidden
[unless she keeps herself hidden]

for whatever it's worth
i have always told everyone i've ever come in contact with
once the opportunity presented itself
partly because i lived in an isolated location with no support groups
but also partly because i wanted to help people learn more about pd
while helping myself feel less self-conscious at the same time

the 'psychosocial article' posted separately
was written for medicos dealing with newly diagnosed parkies
but i found it helpful and thorough from my 'lay-parkie' point of view too

it's been posted on this list before
but i'll take a chance and run it again [so labeled]
for those who do not have wwweb access to our pd list archives at:
<>

your patient's concern about 'gossip in a small community'
with a little change in perspective
could be transformed into
her concern about pd invisibility = ignorance in a small community
maybe she would like to join our tv-ready-list?

regardless of whether she is 'computerized' or not
she is our pd 'cyber-sibling' thanks to you
and is no longer alone

janet

janet paterson - 51 now /41 dx /37 onset - almonte/ontario/canada
janet313@xxxxxxxxxxx