We’ve been navigating the journey together since then. Lately, we’ve noticed some changes in his symptoms and are hoping for some advice or shared experiences from this community.
Initially, his symptoms were fairly mild—mainly just a tremor in his right hand and some stiffness in the mornings. His neurologist started him on a low dose of medication, which seemed to help for a while. However, over the past few months, we’ve observed that his tremors are becoming more pronounced, and he’s experiencing more frequent “off” periods where his movements become very slow and rigid. These periods seem to come on more suddenly than before, and they’re really affecting his day-to-day activities.
We’ve been back to the neurologist, who suggested adjusting his medication dosage, but I’m concerned about the side effects. He’s already experiencing some mild nausea and occasional dizziness, which I’m worried might worsen with an increased dose.
Has anyone else gone through something similar with their loved ones? How did you manage the adjustment period when changing medication doses? Are there any tips for minimizing the side effects or strategies that helped with the “off” periods?
Good afternoon … I’m 70 & got diagnosed about 15 months ago. I tried both Madopar
& then Ropinirole where I had side effects so I stopped them. I am now on
Sinemet aka Co-Careldopa which I am pleased with. I do feel Sinemet helps me & I do not have any side effects other than maybe fatigue / can’t sleep which could be anything.
Parkinson’s medication is very much a trial & error game. So either you change your drug or you take another drug to cope with the mild nausea & dizziness. I changed my drug & am pleased I did. You do not have to suffer in silence.
I also have Neuropathy [Up to 55% of Parkinson’s patients have this additional disease], this causes numbness & stiffness in my feet & legs. I take Amitriptyline for this.
I have a tremor when I try to do anything & my muscles are always tight & mobility an issue with Gait freezing a problem.
Things seem to happen slowly with Parkinson’s. But it is usually a progression downwards as we get older.
I’m afraid the dizziness, assuming ing you mean faintness, may be part of the Parkinson’s or a side effect of the drug. Every time my dose has gone up, I’ve felt nauseous for awhile and then it’s settled as the body adjusts. Your partner really sounds like he needs more medications to be able to move. I would bite the bullet and follow the Neurologist’s advice.
If he is getting dizzy when standing up, then stand up slowly and wait for a second and then go if okay. If really a problem can try compression stockings. They help. There are also some meds that can help.
Nausea wise I find it I eat a cracker or dinner fruit that it settles. So might be with trying that.
Drug doses can up as well as down so it’s not final.
Remember exercise it’s the only thing that has been shown to slow progression of Parkinson’s and l-dopa is the gold standard treatment.
