Seeing a difference

Hi everyone,

After the comfort and great advice i received last time i posted, i spoke with a lovely nurse on the helpline and subsequently have seen a Neurologist and been prescribed Sinemet Plus which have started at 1/2 3x day for the first week increasing to 1 1/2 3x day from week 3+.

Im only a couple days in but really don't know what to expect, should my hands be dashing around the keyboard with unparalleled speed, precision and accuracy without continually pausing as though its the first time i have used one, should my hand and arm stop shaking, should the aching start to ease and my stride increase or my arm move without feeling like everything is slow motion and should i be able to do a simple spiral now?

Probably sounds like I'm expecting a miracle and i know its early days but thats exactly it i really don't know what to expect or how long i should notice a difference in some of these things and would appreciate some words of wisdom.

Thanks,
Mike
hi michael, are you expecting to walk on water as well sorry dont mean to be cheeky, everybody reacts differently to different meds so its difficult to say when and if the sinimet will work its trial and error i take sinimet cr at night i felt a dirrerence within a about a week i now sleep much better, i used to have the patches but the pd nurse took me off them and put me on mirapexin which i then realised that the patches were not really doing anything for me a because i felt a difference within a couple of weeks of taking the mirapexin it combined with stalevo seems to work for me as i say its trial and error everybody has similar symptoms but are not exactly the same parkinsons treats everybody differently so what works for me might not work for you but good luck hope the sinimet makes a difference, sue.
Sue,

Nothing cheeky about it :grin: Mine was tongue in cheek, everyone keeps asking if i feel any different with the answer being no so was just wondering but guess it really is suck it and see.

Mike
Hi Micheal, I'm on different meds to you but to start with I saw no difference and I had no idea what my neurologist meant when he said they would be of benefit. However after having the green light to increase the dose a bit more I noticed a difference within a few days, in my ability to walk and write again. I did a lot of work myself to help it along but I realised that for me I needed to be on that slightly higher dose to make a difference. The point being that you may have to persevere for a while but you should notice a distinct difference when things start to improve. For me it was like a light bulb being switched on "ah this is what they mean!". I wish you similar.
Hi Michael, I would say you probably start noticing a gradual improvement in your general wellbeing: less pain, more mobility and a steadier hand, after about a fortnight, but this could also depend on the dosage. Generally 3x/day one Sinemet plus tablet( i.e. 3x125mg)is considered to be the minimum dose to be effective. Some have had improvements on 3x half a tablet /day.The effect could be quite subtle at first. I found the overall benefit of the levodopa medication became clearer over the following months. I hope you have been advised to take the Sinemet at least half an hour before food(meal), with a glass of water, this is to aid its absorption. If you are prone to nausea take a biscuit with it. My experience is that taking the pills with a meal, makes them totally ineffective.
Levodopa medication can be so successful/effective that some patients have been able to return to work, for others it meant not having to take early retirement. However, sensitivity to the drug can vary, which for some unfortunate sufferers can mean they could be disappointed.
hi michael, you have hit the nail on the head it is a case of suck it and see, because of the unpredictable nature of pd you never know when you might need your meds tweaked or changed because it can dipp every now and then pd deteriates at different levels some people dipp faster than others so you might feel settled on your meds then suddenly you notice things are starting to dipp so you need your meds changed or increased according to your symptoms but yo will know when things are not right as you will when your meds are right, how long have you had pd for if you dont mind me asking i have had it 8yrs and you do get to know when you need to tweak things a bit, you can tell the signs so really know one can say for sure when the meds will work or if they will work. sue
MichaelB, I wish you well on your journey to find a drug regime that suits you.I have found it to be a Q of whether the gain outweighs side effects (MY side effects) .I can cope with small handwriting but not with being sick several times a day. I am not keen on swollen ankles but on the whole prefer to be able to move.
The medication clearly states "to be taken x times a day" but doesn't tell me what times to take it. I have no idea how long they take to have effect.So it does seem to be a game of hit & miss, hopefully with more hits
Thanks everyone..