Neurology check-up

Today I had the appointment I have been waiting for, for literally years. We finally got in to see my Neurologist. My husband and I were sure that we had not seen him since the day of my diagnosis. However, to our surprise he produced a letter to our GP outlining a meeting we had two years ago. This was uncomfortable as both Ade and I were adamant we had not seen him since 2020 when he gave me my diagnosis. It was perhaps a little comforting, that he too had no recollection of a subsequent meeting. Very strange.

Anyway, he asked a few questions and I answered them as best I could, with my husband chipping in from time to time, to assist in answering questions if I couldn’t quite come up with the answers. It is difficult sometimes to say exactly what the issues have been when you are sitting across from your Neurologist. In fact it did feel a little like we were presenting trivial little things that didn’t need to be discussed with the Neurologist. Even though we took note of some things we wanted to talk to him about, they sounded trivial when I said them out loud!

So, he gave me a few exercises to do, comparing one side to the other and seemed to be pleasantly surprised at how good my balance is and also my speech. He noted that I did not appear to have any obvious symptoms or rapid progression. I am indeed apparently a ‘slow burner’ still.

I told him about how I am finding that when I play bowls towards the middle of the second game, I am starting to tire, my legs feel leaden, and my gait slowed down. I will have taken my meds at 12pm and started playing bowls at about 1pm. He has now provided me with Madopar, so that I can take a tablet about an hour in, so it can give me a boost. He said that it could well be that using extra energy walking up and down the green may mean that the meds are used up quickly and a top-up with some Madopar about an hour into the game should keep me functioning reasonably well.

I also told him about the incredible ache in my leg. He is of the opinion that this is not related to Parkies but may be a trapped nerve or a back issue. He is writing to my GP to request that he reviews me and refers for an x-ray of my back and hip. Hopefully, we will find out what is happening to my body, especially on the left-hand Parkies affected side. It is so sore; I really struggle to walk. Certainly, something I could do without. So, I have made an appointment to see my GP tomorrow and see if we can get an x-ray asap so that we can find a source of my pain and hopefully be able to treat it.

Another issue we discussed was my waking up in pain in the night. He advised that this could be because of the meds running out allowing the pain and discomfort to break through. He has now given me some gradual release Sinamet to see if that can get me through the night.

All in all, a useful visit and hopefully we might be on the way to getting things sorted and under control.

I certainly hope so!