Stanford PD Community Blog

Stanford Parkinson's Community
  • Home
You are here: Home / News / APDA – What’s on your Mind? Mental Health & PD

APDA – What’s on your Mind? Mental Health & PD

February 23, 2021 By Parkinson's Community Help

Mental health is defined as emotional, psychological and social well-being and is an essential part of everyone’s overall health. It is particularly important to understand mental health as it relates to someone with Parkinson’s disease (PD).

As with every symptom of PD, there is a tremendous amount of variation between people experiencing mental health symptoms. Most people with PD will have some mental health concerns including anxiety, depression and cognitive changes.

Here at the American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA) we have developed many resources to help you learn more about the different mental health issues that might affect you or your loved one. We hope you find the insight and advice below to be helpful. We encourage you to learn more and to talk to your doctor about any mental health concerns you may have.

Patient Perspectives: Hearing how other people deal with their mental health challenges can help you craft ways to deal with yours:

  • Learn more about mental health and PD and get the personal perspectives of two people who are living with PD, the mental health issues they deal with, and the strategies that work for them.
  • Read messages from others in the PD community about their own mental health concerns and observations.

Stress and Anxiety: Anxiety and stress are two different things, but can often manifest themselves in similar ways, making it challenging to tell the difference. They can often worsen PD symptoms, so it is helpful to learn more about these issues and what you can do to help minimize their impact.

Apathy: Apathy is defined as a feeling of indifference or a general lack of interest or motivation in activities, and can be one of the most challenging and puzzling non-motor symptoms of PD. It can also be very frustrating for the person with PD as well as for care partners, friends and family. Learn more about apathy, including lifestyle modifications that can make a difference.

Psychosis:PD psychosis is a non-motor symptom that causes patients to experience hallucinations and/or delusions. More than half of all patients with PD eventually develop symptoms over the course of their disease so it is important to understand more and learn what can be done to help.

Spotlight on Brain Heath: This APDA Spotlight on Parkinson’s Disease webinar offers important information on brain health and helpful ways to address mental health symptoms:

Tips for Talking to Your Doctor: Don’t wait for your doctor to ask – be sure to talk about any mental health concerns you may have so you can start working on ways to improve your situation. This fact sheet provides valuable advice about how to talk to your doctor about your mental health.

Tracking your Symptoms: The free APDA Symptom Tracker can help you to track mental health (and other) symptoms, easily and accurately so you’re providing a full picture when talking with your doctor. Download the app from the Apple Store or Google Play.

Filed Under: News

  • Home

Categories

  • Monthly List – PD Webinars
  • Webinars – Announcements & Notes
  • Monthly List – Caregiving Webinars
  • Monthly List – Support Groups
  • Support Groups – Meetings & Notes
  • News
  • Research
  • Events
  • Exercise
  • Comment

Top Pages of the Stanford Parkinson’s Community Outreach Website

  • List of Live, Virtual PD Exercise Classes
  • List of PD Exercise Videos
  • Symptoms of PD
  • For Those Newly Diagnosed
  • Support Resources for PD

Featured Posts

Your top three Parkinson’s questions answered by the APDA

The American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA) recently shared the top three questions they are … [Read More...]

National Day of Action – Thursday, September 22, 2022

From the American Parkinson Disease Association, Northwest Chapter (APDA NW), Tuesday, September … [Read More...]

Archive

  • January 2023 (3)
  • December 2022 (7)
  • November 2022 (4)
  • October 2022 (9)
  • September 2022 (2)
  • August 2022 (3)
  • July 2022 (5)
  • June 2022 (6)
  • May 2022 (9)
  • April 2022 (5)
  • March 2022 (8)
  • February 2022 (5)
  • January 2022 (13)
  • December 2021 (7)
  • November 2021 (19)
  • October 2021 (14)
  • September 2021 (12)
  • August 2021 (9)
  • July 2021 (7)
  • June 2021 (10)
  • May 2021 (10)
  • April 2021 (16)
  • March 2021 (8)
  • February 2021 (27)
  • January 2021 (18)
  • December 2020 (18)
  • November 2020 (19)
  • October 2020 (13)
  • September 2020 (7)
  • August 2020 (12)
  • July 2020 (15)
  • June 2020 (13)
  • May 2020 (17)
  • April 2020 (14)
  • March 2020 (14)
  • February 2020 (5)
  • January 2020 (12)
  • December 2019 (10)
  • November 2019 (6)
  • October 2019 (6)
  • September 2019 (7)
  • August 2019 (5)
  • July 2019 (10)
  • June 2019 (3)
  • May 2019 (8)
  • April 2019 (10)
  • March 2019 (5)
  • February 2019 (9)
  • January 2019 (12)
  • December 2018 (2)
  • November 2018 (8)
  • October 2018 (10)
  • September 2018 (2)
  • August 2018 (7)
  • July 2018 (10)
  • June 2018 (9)
  • May 2018 (3)
  • April 2018 (10)
  • March 2018 (4)
  • February 2018 (8)
  • January 2018 (11)
  • December 2017 (11)
  • November 2017 (5)
  • October 2017 (11)
  • September 2017 (10)
  • August 2017 (7)
  • July 2017 (13)
  • June 2017 (10)
  • May 2017 (14)
  • April 2017 (12)
  • March 2017 (17)
  • February 2017 (11)
  • January 2017 (13)
  • December 2016 (4)
  • November 2016 (6)
  • October 2016 (1)
  • September 2016 (11)
  • August 2016 (5)
  • July 2016 (8)
  • June 2016 (4)
  • May 2016 (2)
  • April 2016 (2)
  • March 2016 (1)
  • February 2016 (1)
  • January 2016 (4)
  • December 2015 (1)
  • November 2015 (2)
  • October 2015 (3)
  • September 2015 (1)
  • August 2015 (3)
  • July 2015 (1)
  • June 2015 (1)
  • May 2015 (1)
  • April 2015 (2)
  • March 2015 (4)
  • February 2015 (2)
  • January 2015 (1)
  • December 2014 (1)
  • November 2014 (2)
  • October 2014 (1)
  • September 2014 (2)
  • August 2014 (2)
  • July 2014 (1)
  • June 2014 (5)
  • May 2014 (1)
  • April 2014 (2)
  • March 2014 (3)
  • February 2014 (1)
  • January 2014 (1)
  • December 2013 (1)
  • November 2013 (1)
  • October 2013 (1)
  • September 2013 (1)
  • August 2013 (1)