By Elizabeth Grover
The human need for companionship and connection to others is as basic as the need for food and water. Feeling lonely is bad for not only your mental health, but for your physical health. If you are living with PD, you are even more at risk for feeling lonely and disconnected, and your sense of loneliness may be a major factor in your decline. PD can be isolating for a number of reasons. Because going out in public may involve strangers looking at the funny way you walk or play tennis or whatever, many people with Parkinson’s just stay home. We may stay home, because it is hard to move and going out requires too much physical effort. We may stay home, because we are depressed or apathetic and are unmotivated to go anywhere. Perhaps our cognitive or communication skills have declined, making it hard to interact with others. Or we are embarrassed about our abnormal posture or strange-looking gait. We may stay home, because we are afraid of falling in public. Or maybe we can’t drive anymore.
How can you overcome these obstacles to your active social interaction? Here are three suggestions:
Try a Parkinson’s event or program where you can meet others who have PD. With friends who also have PD, your tremor won’t be a problem; your new friends are shaking too.
Joining a group such as an exercise class or a support group is a great way to treat your PD well and socialize at the same time.
Give your friends a chance. You may not realize how supportive they can be, but we all have friends who are willing to go with you on your journey if you give them an opportunity. Sometimes they are just waiting to be asked.
The social workers at UCGNI (University of Cincinnati Gardner Neuroscience Institute) have started sponsoring an occasional social gathering for people living with Parkinson’s and their carepartners. In June we watched the movie “Still” with Michael J. Fox. The event for July is a board game gathering on July 28 from 11am to 12:30pm. For more information, contact Kaitlin at kaitlin.dejarnette@uchealth.com or 513-475-8854.