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Living with Parkinson's Disease - Meet others & come say hi
Parkinson's Disease | Last Active: Oct 26 7:51pm | Replies (519)Comment receiving replies
My husband's symptoms started about 3 years ago. He was diagnosed with COPD at that time. He is being treated for that pretty successfully. About 3 years ago he started having hand tremors, which the doctor's diagnosed as benign essential tremor. Whatever this is (?) then started to make my husband shake more frequently.....his hands, neck, head as well. He also has fainting spells where his blood pressure drops significantly. We are in the process of multiple heart function tests. He has also had an EEG to rule out seizures, EKG and Stress Test (nothing wrong there as well). He is on Primidone now for essential tremor and was on Carb/Levo for several months, but it didn't seem to have any impact for him. His fainting spells start with a pressure in his lungs or chest and move rapidly to his head. His chest, neck and head and hands will shake, he will get clammy skin and have to rest (sometimes for hours) to recover. He hasn't had any of the 'traditional' Parkinsons symptoms such as facial mask, slurring of speech or changes in gait but he does sometimes have trouble swallowing (much more than usual) and also his voice has become softer and more hoarse. We are actively trying to help the doctors with as much information as possible to determine what might be causing this. Thanks for any input and I hope this will maybe spark some new help or thoughts for Beverly, who is working to determine the cause of her Mother's problems as well.
Replies to "My husband's symptoms started about 3 years ago. He was diagnosed with COPD at that time...."
Hello! No we live in Colorado and don't have access to the Mayo Clinic. I discovered this support service online and love the sharing and information.
Are you aware that there is a Mayo Clinic in Arizona? Perhaps that would be more convenient for you. Often, once you have a consultation at Mayo, they can work with your doctor in your area and you wouldn't have to travel all the time.
Teresa
Thank you! We will consider that. We're still testing and if nothing comes of that we may have to travel or work outside our HMO to get more answers. Unfortunately, finances are a major concern as well.
Here is some information about billing and insurances at Mayo Clinic as well as appointment information for the Arizona facility.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide/arizona/appointments
If you would like to find out more about insurance at Mayo Clinic, please call
Patient Account Services at 800-660-4582.
This webpage http://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide/billing-insurance/insurance provides information on insurance at Mayo Clinic which includes:
Insurance types
Approval from insurers
Guidance for denied claims
International patients
Uninsured (self-pay) or underinsured patients
Insurance FAQs
Glossary of billing and insurance terms
Contact numbers and online form
Let us know if we can be of further assistance to you.
Teresa
That is great to know. Have been wanting my dad to take Mom to Mayo in AZ but didn’t know how that worked when live so far away. It is about a 10-11 hour drive for my parents. I think of the tv show “House” when I think of Mayo. I just think it would be so worth going but is very hard on my mom with the drive. She has had every test under the sun to always come back normal. Good to know they work with local Providers though. This group has really helped which I share it all with my sisters.
Thank you so much Teresa!!
Have you ever heard of a person with Parkinson’s having hand tremors that come and go, like can go 3-5 days with no tremors but then one day have them all day but can lay down in bed and they stop.
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Am just curious if your husband has been seen by team of Doctors at Mayo Clinic?