I am 69 years old. I had a positive DATscan 9 months ago. I have Atypical Parkinson’s. I also have Peripheral Neuropathy & New Atrial Fibrillation. I have been taking Co-careldopa [Sinemet] for 2 days. In three weeks time I will be taking
11 pills a day for Parkinson’s & my other health issues.
It is all a lot to take in. I seem to be coming down with one thing after another. I live
alone with no close family or friends. I prefer being on my own as I only have myself to think about & I can do what I want.
I am very lucky in that I own my own flat & have no mortgage & I can just about manage on my state pension. But things are fairly tight & not being able to play golf [through Parkinson’s] is a Godsend as I couldn’t really afford to play. As well as the £1,600 yearly fees I had to hire a golf cart £20 a game. I now play indoor bowls costing £4 a day, much more affordable & I play 4 or 5 times a week.
Physically I struggle to play bowls & twice I have had to stop. But it is usually manageable & I get to speak to other people every day. If I did not play bowls I would not see anybody at all other than the Asda grocery delivery driver once a week.
There is help out there & I spoke to one of my GP’s who is getting me assessed for alterations to my flat. Hand rails & a new bath that I can get into & a chair I can get up from.
It is depressing that I can’t go on holiday, can’t play golf, can’t go for a walk, can’t do my own grocery shopping. But I do feel very well & of course there are a lot of people my age that are physically worse off than I am.
One thing that has been troubling me for some months has been doing my
tax return. In the past I have had an accountant but I decided that I could not afford the £375 + Vat yearly fees. So I decided I would do it myself. Every day I wake up thinking that I would start the tax return but I did not get very far … Clearly this is a mental issue for me … It was all too much for me …
About three months ago it became clear that I needed a blue badge for my car as
I can’t walk very well. So I contacted AGE UK. They were incredibly helpful & sent me the Blue Badge forms all free of charge. A bit like my Tax Return I found it very hard to do but I finally managed to get it done. There was a lot to do … letters from doctors, up to date photo, copy prescriptions etc & pages & pages of questions.
Anyway on Friday I got up, as usual telling myself that I must start my tax return that day. It was then that a lady from AGE UK phoned me. It was just a
"How was I getting on ? " phone call. “How was I managing for money ?” she asked.
I said my finances were a bit tight but I was managing ok. My car needs servicing & diesel is expensive & I had to put off dental treatment. So she said there is a thing called “attendance allowance” that I would clearly qualify for. But I said I’m not great with these processes & that I was struggling to do my tax return. So she says she will handle the attendance allowance for me & she gave me the telephone number of a charity that helps people like me with their tax returns free of charge.
So I phoned this telephone number she gave me, gave them my NIS number & they had access to all my past tax returns on their computer. I told them my only current income was my state pension. They told me that I had no need to complete a tax return & that I was due a tax refund so I can now fix my teeth & my car.
So a big shout out to AGE UK who like Parkinson’s UK do a lot for us all., free of charge.
Just thought I’d share … Not having to ever do a Tax Return again is such a weight off my mind & has helped my mental health.
Best wishes & a Happy Xmas to everyone & better health in the New Year.
Steve2
