There are two conditions that are associated with Parkinson’s Dyskinesia and Dystonia, I am not sure which of the I suffer from.
Dyskinesia is the involuntary movement of a body part or the entire body that you can’t control.
Dystonia is the involuntary stiffening or contraction of a muscle.
It can sometimes be difficult to tell the difference between the two, but dyskinesia more often looks like jerky movements of an arm, leg, or face.
The symptoms of dystonia are as follows:
Involuntary and rapid blinking that you can’t stop.
A sudden tightening or turning of the neck to one side, particularly when you’re feeling fatigued or stressed.
Difficulty speaking.
A tremor in your voice.
Symptoms that worsen with tiredness, stress, or lots of physical activity.
Dyskinesia can involve one body part, such as an arm or leg, or the entire body. The symptoms are as follows:
Fidgeting, writhing or wriggling
Head bobbing or body swaying.
It tends to occur most often during times when other Parkinson’s symptoms, such as tremor, slowness and stiffness, are well controlled.
Both conditions are made worse with stress, so when the uncontrollable movements start I try to take my mind off it by focusing on something, also I find using the powerfit helps why it helps I do not know but it does.
Had a good night although when the alarm went off, I didn’t want to get up, but I did and after a wash and getting dress, I felt the same way nothing had changed.
It is currently 17 degrees and raining, my BGL was 5.5
At 7.30am the internet dropped out but after a while it was ok, and I managed to do the grocery shopping.
Tim is working this morning he should be home around 1pm
I am so very tired that even though it is only 7.45pm I am off to bed.
Steps: 5,830
Had a good night, even though I was in bed early I slept all through the night.
The temp is 16 degrees and my BGL is 4.8
I have had a decent morning did a load of washing and hung it out to dry, ran the dishwasher and unpacked it, vacuumed of course. I also wrote a couple of letters and did some blogging.
Both Sue and Tasha got me stamps
It has been a cool day the temp got up to 20 degrees.
It is 8.30pm and I am done, falling asleep so off to bed I go.
Steps: 7,108
Had a good night, woke once but settled back down pretty quick. It is only 14 degrees this morning and my BGL was 4.9
After a cool morning it warmed up nicely and around 9.30am I changed into shorts.
I felt like I did stuff this morning, like folding the clean clothes and putting them away, vacuuming, taking rubbish out to the bin, blogging and writing letters.
I am not as tired this evening so it
Steps:6,094
Had a good night, didn’t wake at all and was dreaming when the alarm went off, I wonder if that has anything to do with me having a headache and feeling heavy headed.
It, is 12 degrees and my BGL was 5.0
I finished answering the letters I had here and walked down and posted them myself. Haven’t done that in years.
Tim will be home later than usual he arrived home at 7.40pm.
Steps: 7,383
Had a good night, didn’t wake at all and was dreaming when the alarm went off, I wonder if that has anything to do with me having a headache and feeling heavy headed. This morning is a repeat of yesterday morning.
The temp is 17 degrees and my BGL is 5.0, I was reading that there is something called the dawn phenomenon which is when between the hours of 3 and 8am when someone’s blood glucose level rises why this happens, I don’t know and neither do the so-called experts.
A warm day it started to rain around 3.30pm
Tim later home again around 7.15pm, he is off tomorrow and Saturday but is working Sunday
Steps:6,781
Had a good night, didn’t wake at all, I do like those type of nights.
Tim is off today, so I was able to take my time in the shower this morning, which I liked.
It is 12 degrees and my BGL 4.9
Tim and I went to the shops; to pick up scrips and we have reached our safety net, which brings down our medication from $31.60 to $7
after that Tim went to a doctor’s appointment with the diabetes doctor.
Then at 4.15pm he had an appointment with our GP
Steps:7,159
Had a good night, woke only once and went straight back to sleep. It is 13 degrees and my BGL is 4.7
Tim is up at 7am which is early for him
Tim and I went for lunch at the Eastern Tiger all you can eat place with my sisters Sue & Jeannie and my brother Dave and his wife Leigh and their daughter Liarna as well as Dave’s son Dawson. It was a good outing I enjoyed my self and there was a lot of laughing.
When I was getting ready to go, I realised I have only two decent tops and neither of them went with the skirt I was wearing.
We realised this afternoon that Tasha was driving an unregistered car, she was thinking it was due next month, we have paid the CTP but she still needs to get her rego check done.
Hi all today we are having a look at something called Visual snow syndrome. This isn’t something I had heard off until recently. My grandchild Sam was telling me about it as apparently Sam has this.
Visual snow syndrome is an uncommon neurological condition in which the primary symptom is that affected individuals see persistent flickering white, black, transparent, or coloured dots across the whole visual field. Other common symptoms are palinopsia, enhanced entoptic phenomena, photophobia, and tension headaches.
It can also be referred to as Persistent positive visual phenomenon, visual static or aeropsia.
The cause seems to remain unclear, but it is believed to be due to a problem with how your brain processes visual images. The flickering tiny dots associated with the condition are typically black and white, but they can be flashing, colored, or even transparent.
It is not a disease that will just go away on its own. The visual disturbances are unlikely to just get better without treatment, which typically involves medications. The most regularly used medications for visual snow syndrome are antiepileptic and antidepressant medications.
Over time the condition may worsen and could become debilitating to the suffer at some point, although not a mental health condition over time someone with the condition may experience depression.
For many people, visual snow syndrome is a chronic condition, thankfully they will not go blind due to it. However, many suffers may also have migraines and anxiety.
People with visual snow may experience all or only a few symptoms, including light sensitivity and tinnitus. These symptoms range in severity from mild to debilitating. Living with this condition is a different experience for everyone.
Sam being young thought for a long time that they way he saw things was just the normal way and is for the large part kind of use to it.
Symptoms commonly appear during the late teenage years and early adulthood. In one study the mean age of onset of symptoms was 21 years old but it can occur at any age, in either gender, or in any race.
I had a pretty good night, slept pretty much all night, although I had to use the powerfit before going to bed due to how restless I felt.
I felt cold and had to turn the heater on for a little bit.
The temp this morning is 13 degrees and my BGL was 4.9
The day has warmed up, Tim did more work in the back yard.
Steps: 5,196
SANDY’S BIRTHDAY SHE IS 47 TODAY
I had a really good night slept straight through only waking when the alarm went off.
It is a cold morning with a temp of 12 degrees, my BGL is 5.0
It has turned out being a warm day with a temp of 22 degrees.
I was waiting for Sam this afternoon and she didn’t turn up; I rang Jess who rang Sam, and it turned out someone told the driver she had already gone home. Thankfully a friend’s mother drove her home.
Steps:5,765
I had a really good night slept straight through only waking when the alarm went off.
It is a pleasant 15 degrees and my BGL is 6.8, a bit high for some reason.
It was starting to rain when I was going up the front with Sam and had to come back and swap from my scooter to the walker. The temp is still only 16 degrees.
Tim home at 9.30am to have something to eat before going to have his scans done. Then he will be going back to work.
Steps: 6,157
DAD’S BIRTHDAY HE WOULD BE 82
I had another good night slept straight through waking at 4.20am to pee then straight back to sleep till the alarm went off.
It is a cold 13 degrees my BGL was 5.0
I am having a lot of trouble walking this morning my right knee doesn’t feel stable and I am worried about falling.
Tim arrived home at 11am he has phone appointment at 2pm.
The day warmed up a bit.
The clothes I ordered from Millers arrived and both lot of pants fit well but the skirt is a bit too big. I have emailed to see if it can be exchanged for a smaller size, but I don’t it can be as I think it was off the clearance rack.
Steps:8,204
Went to bed at 9pm last night as per usual around 11.15pm I woke feeling restless, so I got up and used the powerfit no issue there, however, when I bent over to unplug it, I lost my balance and fell banging my head hard against the lounge and yes it hurt I sat for about 20 minutes before going back to bed. For the next few hours, I dozed on and off before settling down at around 2pm. I got up at 5am a usual.
It is only 7 degrees my BGL was 3.6
It has warmed up to 21 degrees.
Both Sandy and Sue said I shouldn’t use the powerfit during the night.
I rang the Eastern Tiger and booked a table for 4 on the 26 then Jeannie said she would come, then Dawson said he would come so I rang back and changed the booking to 6. I then realised I hadn’t asked Dave, so I have texted him about coming and hope to hear back sometime tomorrow.
Steps:5,410
Went to bed at 9pm last night as per usual around 11.15pm I woke feeling restless, so I got up and used the powerfit went back to bed and straight off to sleep.
It is 15 degrees and my BGL is 3.4
Took Sam up the front and managed to just get home before it started raining heavy.
I have had another productive morning vacuuming and changing the sheets, washing the sheets and tossing them in the dryer to dry.
Steps: 10,445
Had a good night although when the alarm went off, I didn’t want to get up, but I did and after a shower I felt ok. It is 19 degrees and my BGL is 5.2, we are supposed to be in for a nice day.
I have felt fidgety as mum would put it this morning.
Tim and I went over to Lake Fair so he could cash in bottles while I went to see if I could exchange my skirt, but they didn’t have anything in my size.
Tasha bought me another matching top and pants set.
Hello everyone, today I am going to tell you about the four main types of epilepsy seizures.
Starting with the type of seizure most people thing of when they think of an epileptic seizure.
This seizure is now called a Generalised tonic-clonic seizure, it was once known as a grand mal seizure and are the most recognised.
The seizure starts with a sudden loss of consciousness. The person’s body then becomes stiff, followed by jerking of the muscles. They also may turn red or blue, bite their tongue and lose control of their bladder.
When they regain consciousness the suffered may be confused, drowsy or agitated, it is not uncommon for them to not remember what happened and have a headache.
Next, we have absence seizures, these are the type of seizure my nephew Dawson suffers from. They used to be known as petit mal seizures they usually start in childhood but can happen in adults as well. They are brief and involve staring, loss of expression, unresponsiveness and stopping activity. Sometimes eye blinking or upward eye movements are seen. The person usually recovers straight away and continues their previous activity, without remembering the seizure.
There is also something called focal seizures, previously known as ‘partial seizures’, these start in one area of the brain and affect the parts of the body controlled by that area of the brain. The seizure may involve unusual movements, feelings, sensations, or behaviours. People can have different levels of consciousness during focal seizures.
Lastly there are febrile convulsions are seizures are associated with an illness causing a fever, such as a viral infection. They are generally harmless and do not require special or long-term treatment. Febrile convulsions are common, happening in about 3 in 100 healthy children up to 6 years old.
If they don’t have any additional risk factors for epilepsy, children who have febrile convulsions have a similar risk of developing epilepsy to the rest of the population.
Sometimes people with epilepsy may have changes in their behaviour. They also may have symptoms of psychosis.
Most people with epilepsy tend to have the same type of seizure each time. Symptoms are usually similar from episode to episode.
Some people with focal seizures have warning signs in the moments before a seizure begins. These warning signs are known as aura.
Warning signs might include a feeling in the stomach. Or they might include emotions such as fear. Some people might feel deja vu. Auras also might be a taste or a smell. They might even be visual, such as a steady or flashing light, a colour, or a shape. Some people may experience dizziness and loss of balance. And some people may see things that aren’t there, known as hallucinations.
I slept well again, straight through the night till the alarm went off. A nice morning with a temp of 14 degrees, my BGL was 4.8.
Another warm day with a temp of 26 degrees.
Tim bought another whipper snipper.
Sue brought over some Kiwi fruit she bought and didn’t like.
Daylight savings will start tonight.
Steps:4,110
I slept well again, straight through the night till the alarm went off. I was a little confused as the clock in the bathroom said 6am but my phone said 5am and I thought I had set it to the right time before going to bed. I was wrong I put it two hours forward not one silly me.
It is a nice 11 degrees this morning I am in shorts and my BGL is 4.7.
Tim and I went to Lake Fair so I could go to Big W and the Reject Shop as well as Woolies. By the time I got home I was exhausted. I bought a pair of bike shorts, and a pyjama set both size 16 and both fit. I have asked Tasha if she could go and get me another set in a different colour.
I turned the air con on around 1pm as it was that hot and I was able to turn it off around 6pm.
Steps: 5,422
I had another night where I slept through, I like those nights today is going to much cooler then yesterday with a temp of 18 degrees, my BGL was 4.9 this morning.
Summer walked down and posted my letters for me.
Micheal picked up Summer just before 3pm
I sorted out my Christmas jewellery and gave Sandy a bag of things I was only going to bin to see if her girls want any of them.
Stedps:4,496
I had another good night woke only once to go to the loo and straight back to sleep.
It is a coldish, wet morning with the temp being 13 degrees my BGL is 4.3
I am not doing good; my upper body will not stop moving and using the computer is difficult.
Tim home by 12.15pm, he had me order pizza and he picked it up on his way home. He also ate most of it.
It has rained on and off all day.
Steps: 5,102
I had another good night sleeping straight through, this morning Tim got up when I got up, he has a busy day ahead of him starting with work followed by two or three afternoon medical appointments.
Tim didn’t get home till 5.30pm. the diabetic specialist has changed his medication. He also has to have a blood test and a bunch of scans done oh is arm, thumb and abdomen.
I am having a restless night along with having a pain in the gut, so I got up to use the powerfit.
Steps:7,757
I had a rough start to the night took me a while to settle but once I did, I was ok and slept till the alarm went off. It is a pleasant 14 degrees, and my BL was 5.0
It turned out a pretty warm day, I changed into shorts after returning from the shops.
Tim and I went to the shops, he went and had his blood test and booked into to have his scans done. He has to go to Belmont as Warners Bay are fully booked for when he wanted.
Tim is working tonight and tomorrow night.
Steps: 6,472
I had a pretty good night, slept pretty much all night, I did wake when Tim got home and spoke to him for a few minutes before going back to sleep.
It is a cold and wet morning with a temp of 15 degrees.
Tim left for work around 11am he will not be home till after midnight. When it stopped raining, I walked up and checked the letter box.
This week I am going to share a little about the condition Epilepsy, my nephew Dawson has this condition.
Epilepsy happens as a result of abnormal electrical brain activity, also known as a seizure, kind of like an electrical storm inside the head. And because the brain controls so much, a lot of different things can go wrong. Suffers may have periods of unusual behaviours, feelings and sometimes loss of awareness.
Epilepsy may occur as a result of a genetic disorder or an acquired brain injury, such as a trauma or stroke. Other brain related causes are things like meningitis, encephalitis or a brain abscess. Then there are brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s. It is also believed that alcohol or drug use as well as high or low blood sugar levels.
In fact, in around half of all cases the cause is unknown. It may take years after an injury for seizures to develop.
During a seizure, a person experiences abnormal behaviour, symptoms and sensations, sometimes including loss of consciousness caused by fainting. It isn’t uncommon to see the suffers having rhythmic muscle contractions or muscle spasms. Some people say they experience an aura or the sensation of pins and needles.
Also common: seizures, amnesia, anxiety, depression, headache, sleepiness, staring spells, or temporary paralysis after a seizure.
After a seizure the person may feel really tired.
Most people have none or only a few symptoms between seizures.
Epilepsy is usually treated by medication and in some cases by surgery, devices or dietary changes.
You should see a doctor this is your first seizure, or you have repeated seizures, you have seizures more often than is normal for you, you are not sure if you’ve had a seizure or if you have a diagnosis of epilepsy but feel like your medicine is not helping.
You should seek medical attention after a seizure if you are injured, if you are pregnant or have diabetes.
Next week I will post about the different types of seizures.
After I went back to bed, I settled ok and slept till the alarm went off.
Tim is going with Jess to Sydney today she has people to pick up from the airport and Jess hates Sydney and Sydney’s traffic.
It is 14 degrees and my BGL was 5.0
Asked both Tasha and Sue to go to Woolies for me, Sue went not sure about Tasha as yet. Yes, Tasha went as well.
Tim and Jess arrived home around 2.15pm.
Steps:5,892
I slept in because I left my phone in the lounge-room, it was 7am before I woke up. I woke up with a heavy head and not feeling like I am all with it.
The temp is 15 degrees and my BGL is 5.0, it is also cold and wet this morning.
It warmed up by 10.30am.
The girls walked down posted my letters for me and Sydney vacuumed for me.
I have very little motivation today
I am extremely tired but can’t sleep
Steps: 5,783
I slept well, it did take me a while to settle down but once I did, I was fine and slept till the alarm went.
It is 9 degrees and my BGL was 4.2
Kathy dropped the girls off at 8.35, she arrived only a few minutes after Tim left for work.
Had a phone call from podiatrist they have changed my appointment from Thursday to Friday.
Dawson arrived around 1pm for a visit.
Tim rang at 2pm to let me know that he will be late, he arrived home at the same time Micheal arrived to get the girls.
Tim now working all week, so will need to find someone to take me to the podiatrist on Friday.
Steps: 4,190
I slept well, fell asleep fast and didn’t wake till the alarm went off. It is 13 degrees and my BGL was 4.8
I was watching TV when Sue arrived, I was surprised to see her, her phone is restricted till she pays something off her bill. She didn’t want me to worry as she couldn’t reply to me messages. I asked her while she was here if she could drive me to the podiatrist, she said she would.
Steps: 4,535
I slept well again and woke up feeling good a feeling I like. It is 12 degrees, my BGL was 4.9 and the ground outside is wet.
No rain and not hot nor cold just a nice day.
Sandy and Temika came over so Temika could use my computer to do something with her banking for work that she wasn’t able to do on her phone.
Tim went to the dentist to get a tooth filled cost him $600
Steps: 5,659
I slept well again and woke up feeling good although I am cold very cold that I had to turn the heater on. It is only 7 degrees and my BGL was 3.4.
Tim left at around 8am he said he should be home by 9pm tonight.
It turned out a warm day.
Sue drove to the podiatrist and then to the Warners Bay Plaza to get a few things. We also checked the P O Box.
Tim arrived home at 1pm and left again at 3pm. He will be back around 9pm.
Steps: 4,511
I slept well again but woke up feeling heavy headed and not fully with it. It is 18 degrees my BGL was 4.8 it is supposed to be a warm day.
We ended p with a nice warm day with temp of 28 degrees. Tim did a lot of yard work took him over 3hrs.
Yesterday while at work he hurt his right arm around the elbow where he had surgery after his accident, and he still has a lot of pain in it and no strength.
I didn’t exercise today so my steps are low. Steps: 1,220
This week we are taking a look at COPD, this is a serious condition, my dad suffered from it. So, what is it, well COPD stands for Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common lung disease causing restricted airflow and breathing problems. It is sometimes called emphysema or chronic bronchitis.
In people with COPD, the lungs can get damaged or clogged with phlegm. Symptoms include cough, sometimes with phlegm, difficulty breathing, wheezing and tiredness.
Smoking and air pollution are the most common causes of COPD. People with COPD are at higher risk of other health problems.
COPD is not curable, but symptoms can improve if one avoids smoking and exposure to air pollution and gets vaccines to prevent infections. It can also be treated with medicines, oxygen and pulmonary rehabilitation.
Some websites say there are four stages of COPD but most said there are three.
The first symptoms of COPD tend to come on slowly and can be very mild. In the early stages, you may not have symptoms all the time and you may find there is very little or no impact on your life or independence. You may cough up mucus in the mornings or feel more short of breath than usual if you walk quickly or exert yourself. You may be prescribed a bronchodilator inhaler, and you should get yearly flu shots.
As COPD progresses, you may gradually notice symptoms almost every day and find it harder to do your normal daily activities such as gardening, hanging out the washing, or carrying groceries without feeling short of breath. You may also experience a repetitive cough, and increased phlegm production which is often thick and white or brownish in colour. Feeling tired and getting more chest infections or taking longer to recover from an illness can also be experienced in the moderate stage of COPD.
This is often the stage where you may first become aware of symptoms and seek treatment. Your doctor may prescribe a bronchodilator medication if they haven’t already, along with recommending breathing exercises techniques like pursed lip breathing and coordinated breathing can help you exert yourself less during physical activities and maintain an active lifestyle.
You may also be offered pulmonary rehabilitation which my dad did and he found it helpful, it is designed to give those with COPD the tools to manage their condition and reduce the severity of their symptoms, thus giving them a better quality of life.
In severe COPD, you will likely experience symptoms most of the time. You may find it very hard to walk upstairs or across the room without feeling very short of breath, feel tired more of the time despite resting and cough frequently with a lot more mucus. It is common to feel frustrated with the constant need to clear your mucus from your airways and to experience frequent chest infections that take several weeks to recover from.
At stage 3, lung function has significantly decreased. As the walls of the air sacs in the lungs continue to weaken, it becomes more difficult to take in oxygen and remove carbon dioxide while exhaling.
Previous symptoms are more intense and more noticeable: shortness of breath has worsened, coughing or wheezing occurs more frequently, and you may produce thicker mucus.
Some experience any or all off of the following symptoms
Extreme fatigue or weakness
Feelings of confusion or forgetfulness
Swelling of the ankles, feet and legs
Tightness in the chest
More frequent chest infections
You may also experience what are called flare-us when these flare-ups happen the symptoms suddenly become more severe and lung function dramatically changes. When this happens, you may feel greater amounts of mucus clogging your bronchial tubes and sudden constrictions of the muscles around your airways.
Flare-ups are the main cause of COPD suffers end up in hospital, during a flare-up suffers will experience
Breathlessness or shortness of breath
Increase in coughing attacks
Wheezing or whistling noises when you breathe
Increase of mucus
Fatigue or sleep problems
Cognitive impairment including confusion, depression, or memory lapses
In what is called stage 4 of COPD, lung function is very low, symptoms worsen and become more persistent. Shortness of breath and chest tightness occur with everyday activities, and it becomes a big effort just to breathe. Resulting in the suffered having to go to hospital more. Suffers may also notice a crackling sound to their breathing and an irregular or fast heartbeat. This stage is also called the ends stage.
Jo-AnneRamplings 