Re: Shoulder Pain and How to Know

[Phil Gesotti <ermin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Debbie,

You wrote:
>It's hard enough for ANYONE to determine the cause of a problem -- but
>how do you decide whether something is a symptom of PD or whether its a
>separate problem that you can combat with more conventional medicines?

Well welcome to the quandary of PD. The absolute thing I can tell you about my 
1 year experience with PD is that there are no absolutes. You can draw on the 
experience from this list and try to correlate it with symptoms or side effects 
you (your mother)may be experiencing. With the help of your neuro, you try 
different medications at different dosages and see what works and see what side 
effects you have. Typically, if a symptom responds to one of the PD meds, it is 
related to the disease but this isn't an absolute. For every person the med 
seems to work for, it seems another will realize no benefit.

It took me about three months on Sinemet for the shoulder pain to go away the 
majority of the time. Up until that time, I always had some level of soreness.

As with any disease and aging in general, it is important to get good nutrition 
and regular exercise. Exercise which both stretchs muscles and builds strength 
seems to work best for me. It brings some relief from the cramping and soreness 
which affect many PWPs.

Hope this helps. You are in the right place to gain perspective on the disease. 
There is a lot of knowledge here, but more importantly there is a lot of hope. 
People here have learned to live with PD for 25+ years. Tell your mother we are 
looking forward to celebrating her 100th birthday.   We all may be moving a 
little slower, but we are still moving.

Phil Gesotti 47/1