Barbara Ernest

Trying to keep them safe while allowing them freedom to do the things that make them happy.

My wife had a lot of balance problems resulting in falls. Could not adjust to using a cane because anything in her hands caused her to lose focus on her feet.

My wife who passed away at age 79 from a fall down a flight of stairs had diagnosed PD for over two decades. She started having frequent falls in the last five years of her life. She had no tremors, but her mobility, balance and dexterity worsened in her later years. Her changes in voice and visual hallucinations were obvious symptoms. To my…[Read more]

My wife has PD for over two decades. The last several years she experienced more frequent falls often serious. I was essentially her care taker the last couple years. Even though I told her never to go up or down stairs without me, she just didn’t want the disease to control her life. She never complained about having the disease. She fell down a…[Read more]

My wife could no longer tie her shoes and even some with Velcro straps were a struggle. I located some Kizik brand shoes she could slip into.

My wife was prone to falls. Once I was away for 5 hours playing senior softball and found her when I returned after she had fallen off a step. So I immediately hired a care giver to watch her while I was gone. The categiver was excellent, did a number of household chores while making sure was safe.

My wife had PD diagnosed when she was in her late 50’s. She passed away in July 2021 at 78. Over the last several years of her life she became more dependent on me-showering, dressing, house work. Her mobility, balance and speech were affected. She had numerous falls with fractured ribs and head injuries. But while she complained of aches and p…[Read more]

My wife had PD for over two decades and recently passed away from a fall. My wife enjoyed sex and intimacy until she passed away at age 78.  But things did change over those PD years. Her mobility affected the types of intimacy she was capable of without getting into specifics. In fact, to my surprise about two months before her passing she out…[Read more]

My wife had Parkinson’s for over two decades but it was not until the past several years that the decline became more a drain on her quality of life. She never complained about her affliction. The falls became more frequent and some more severe than others. Her voice changed, she started losing dexterity in her hands, more balance issues. But s…[Read more]

As her husband and caregiver who infrequently left her by herself,I purchased some pendant alarm buttons that sent a signal to audible alarms in the house. But when she had a fall or more often slid off the bed when sitting while doing something, she would rarely think to use it and not because she was incapacitated. I searched the internet for a…[Read more]

Blood pressure variations during course of the day. Often very high first up in the morning before taking any PD meds. Sometimes after taking meds – so low that cannot even get a reading. Cardiologist said it is a very complicated issue not easily controlled. Overall average during course of the day is usually normal to low.Here is one…[Read more]

Tried it with no noticeable benefit.

I have more off days than off periods in a day.

My main side effects of my is blood pressure variations.

Thanks for the reply. My daughter in law who I mentioned is a neurologist recommended not taking after 4pm as it might cause sleep issues. I take a combination of regular carbidopa-levadopa and the ER version 3 times a day plus two ER at bedtime. I recently read about the study recommending not taking my PD meds at meal time. So i take the…[Read more]

I have systolic hypertension, after taking my PD meds in the morning I occasionally experience such a severe drop in blood pressure I cannot keep awake and need to lie down. It takes time for my blood pressure to return to “normal”. The drop in BP makes it difficult to walk and maintain balance which is a problem anyway. I have PD since the mid…[Read more]