PIP form questions 13 and 14 re: Parkinson’s

Hello everyone,

I need a bit of help figuring out how to answer these questions because Parkinson’s is so complex and there is a lot of crossover. The following bulletpoints are his problems:

* Gets panic attacks if he ventures out alone, especially in crowded areas. This is partly due to festination (more anon) and partly due to fear of verbal abuse and escalation because people assume he is drunk.
* This anxiety is exacerbated by being alone outdoors. He fears talking to strangers (we live in a rough area) especially because anxiety exacerbates his speech problems. If he got lost while out alone (highly likely) his speech would become indecipherable and he would be unable to ask for help.
* He gets very easily confused especially by instructions, information and directions (possibly due to medication induced cognitive/brain fog...)
* He falls asleep at the drop of a hat (side effect of medication) and this somnolence is clearly a problem if alone.
* He has hallucinations (another side effect of meds) and unsurprisingly this leads to a disturbed state of mind. A very real reason not to go out alone.
* He’s experiencing electric shock type disturbances in his brain (currently under investigation) which results in extreme light-headedness and fainting.
* He has postural hypotension (typical in Parkinson’s). This leads to dizziness, blurred vision and fainting on a couple of occasions.
* His physical movements are much slower than normal (Bradykinesia) which results in the distinctive Parkinson’s slow, shuffling walk with small steps.
* He has gait impairments, one of which is called ‘freezing’. This is a very common symptom of Parkinson’s where the person completely freezes/gets stuck (due to the loss of automatic movement) and this is exacerbated by crowds, unfamiliar places, when tired, when rushed, by busy streets, when turning, doorways (revolving doors are a nightmare), when approaching one’s destination such as the kerb and/or by a change in terrain, and finally by certain, specific floor/road surfaces or textures.
* This has lead to falling.
* He suffers from Festination, which is the flip side of freezing. Both states are marked by a complete loss of motor control. With festination motor movements speed up.
* He has balance problems, which has lead to falls.
* He has dystonia and muscle stiffness/rigidity which can make moving around painful.
* He has tremor.

He clearly is not safe and only ever goes out with me. He does sometimes use a wheelchair but does his best to walk unaided (in Parkinson’s the use it or lose motto is especially relevant).

I’d appreciate any thoughts on how to carve this up?
Or should I describe it all in both questions and let them sort it out?

Thank you Gordon. I appreciate your reply a lot but I’m still a bit lost. I’ve read the members guides but find it hard to parse up a condition as global as Parkinson’s’ which has so many aspects and variables.

Are they any other members with some experience of this?

Thank you Gordon, that is really helpful. I see what you’re saying now. It’s easy to get flummoxed and not be able to see the wood for the trees.