4 ways to reduce holiday stress with Parkinson’s disease
These strategies help my dad avoid symptom exacerbations
Years ago, my dad realized that acute stress made his Parkinson’s symptoms worse. He was more inclined to freeze or experience exacerbated tremors, especially if he was full of anxiety. This revelation led him to focus on reducing the amount of stress he experiences on a regular basis.
However, the reality is that, for many people, stress levels climb during the holidays. Uncomfortable social interactions, event planning, and travel are just a few potential catalysts for a tough season.
Over the years, Dad and I have implemented the following strategies to keep our lives in balance, even when holiday stress throws us out of whack.
Emphasize self-care
This may seem like a no-brainer, but it’s really easy to overlook self-care when our routines are disrupted. Self-care looks different for everyone, and our individual needs may vary each day, but maintaining our well-being is crucial to managing holiday stress.
For me, self-care usually involves some kind of gentle movement, such as yoga, walking, or swimming, along with plenty of rest. My dad’s needs change, but sometimes he may want to prioritize eating a healthy meal or napping when he becomes fatigued.
Delegate
In my parents’ household, a main source of holiday stress is the workload. We have a big family, which means that tasks like meal preparations and travel logistics take a lot of energy. But the perk of having a big family is that there are plenty of people around to pitch in. So, if my mom and dad are feeling particularly overwhelmed, I might nudge them and ask how I can help. (For example, I’m an excellent vegetable chopper, and I don’t mind a long drive to the airport.)
Delegating can help reset the balance in the household to make everyone happier.
Book an extra therapy session
Therapy isn’t for everyone, but it’s been a staple in my life for a long time. Knowing that the holidays are often a time of heightened stress, I usually allow myself the budget and time to book an extra session. I find that some additional therapy evens me out and makes me more adaptive to my changing environment.
Therapy isn’t a regular staple in Dad’s life, but he does reach out to friends and family pretty regularly. So, for him, this might look like an extra phone call to a loved one to take a break from the immediate celebrations.
Reduce opportunities for family conflict
Most families face some kind of conflict, whether it relates to beliefs, values, or something else. Our family is no exception. But when conflicts emerge, we often find that we can’t completely resolve them, which leaves everyone feeling tense and more prone to stress. So, like many households, we tend to just avoid conversations about topics like religion or politics.
Stress is inevitable, but how we manage it can change the experience. As the holidays approach, paying attention to self-care and stress management is particularly vital. Everyone is different, but these strategies have helped my dad and the rest of my family to live more happily during this chaotic time of the year.
Note: Parkinson’s News Today is strictly a news and information website about the disease. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of Parkinson’s News Today or its parent company, Bionews, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to Parkinson’s disease.
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Krishnan Gangadharan
My experience with Mucuna Pruriens
I have been a PD patient for more than 2 decades; diagnosed in 1998. I had noticed a mild tremor in my right hand 3 years earlier. Ayurvedic medicines, including a herbal combination, its main ingredient was a powder of the seeds of Mucuna Pruriens. However, my PD progressed gradually and I developed a mask face. Three years later I subjected myself to Panchakarma, a rigorous Ayurveda therapy practised in India, particularly in the Southern Indian state of Kerala. At the end of a two-month treatment, I got rid of my mask face forever. But my PD progressed gradually. I tried almost all systems of medicine–Tibetan, homoeopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Ayurveda. Finally, in 2004, I reconciled to allopathy and its Syndopa(Levo-dopa/Carbidopa) which controlled my tremor and other major symptoms within a couple of weeks.
I still use Ayurvedic medicines for certain symptoms or any other ailment. My experience is that whatever system gives relief from a particular ailment or symptom, adopt it, provided your neurologist is liberal in accepting it.
I am bringing it up now in this forum mainly because Mucuna Pruriens is again in the news. In its natural form this seed of the velvet beans plant, known by various names–CowHage, Kapi Kachchu, Konch, Naykurana,etc.-- contains 6 to 10 per cent of Levo-dopa, which is equivalent to half of the daily dosage given to an advanced PD patient. I am still consuming it off and on in powder form as a supplement to Syndopa plus. This is available in community stores as a food supplement or in regular medical shops, wherever it is allowed to be marketed. For this form of Levodopa I consult an Ayurvedic physician, who is an experienced movement disorder specialist.
Almost 25 years ago, my consultant Ayurvedic physician was a member of a team of four researchers from three major research institutions in India who carried out an 84-day study on the efficacy of Mucuna Pruriens in combating the symptoms of Parkinsons Disease. The team comprised N Nagashayana,(my present Ayurvedic Consultant) P Sankaran Kutty and Nampoothiri from the Government Ayurveda College, Thiruvananthapuram, India; Dr P K Mohan, neurologist, Department of Neurology, Sri Chitra Thirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram; and Dr K P Mohankumar from the Laboratory of Neurochemistry, Division of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Calcutta(now Kolkata).
The results of the study, published in the Journal of the Neurological Sciences(2001), found that Parkinson’s patients, who were subjected to cleansing therapy(28 days) and palliative therapy with mucuna pruriens (56 days), one after the other, showed improvement in motor symptoms. Their findings were encouraging but unfortunately, they abandoned the project midway, probably for lack of funding or some other reason.
Mucuna pruriens is a legume, the seeds of which contain 16 to 20 per cent of Levodopa. This is almost equivalent to the dosage of Levodopa administered to an advanced case of Parkinson’s. Although mucuna pruriens can help reduce the motor symptoms of PD like any source of levodopa, many questions remain unanswered, reports the American Parkinson’s Patients Association. The amount of Levodopa in a supply of mucuna pruriens is unreliable and unregulated. No serious research has gone into how much mucuna pruriens is to be taken daily or whether it can be combined with carbidopa/levodopa combination.
As with any “natural” remedy, it is important to always investigate and learn more before deciding if it is right for you. The claims sometimes made about alternative and natural remedies are often not as simple and clear as they seem.
Studies which gave single doses of mucuna pruriens to people with PD showed that it may have a faster onset of action and last longer than carbidopa/levodopa without increasing dyskinesias. However, when given continually, mucuna pruriens had caused more side effects than carbidopa/levodopa in some people.
However, mucuna pruriens is a great relief for PD patients in countries where Levodopa is not easily available or the patients are unable to afford such medicines.
Remember, it is essential to carefully read the ingredients list and nutrition facts provided on the package of a supplement that will help you to have a clear understanding of the ingredients, and how much of each ingredient is included.
Levodopa is the main ingredient of mucuna pruriens and is thought to be responsible for many of its possible benefits. However, its long-term usage or high dosages may increase the risk of certain side effects.
I am taking Macuna Pruriens along with the regular Syndopa plus, intermittently, but at a reduced dosage which saves me from dyskinesias to a great extent. Moreover, mucuna pruriens is without any apparent side effects, though, as far as I know, much research has not been carried out on this aspect.
So, caution is the catchword for this natural remedy available openly. Make sure to get high-quality, trusted products.