Fatigue

Hi All,

I have only just been diagnosed and yet to be prescribed any meds. I have a few symptoms which I need addressing but one of the biggest is Fatigue. I am permanently tired especially more so as the day goes on. Is this common ? and can it be fixed with the PD meds. Or could it be totally unrelated to PD

Hi there and welcome to the Forum. 

I do believe the fatigue goes hand in hand with many PD sufferers. It is one of my main issues at the moment and yes, I do take Madopar yet the fatigue remains. We are however all different so the meds may help one person with something but not another. 

What I have found helpful via my Occupational Therapist, is to Pace myself throughout the day and take rest breaks as and when necessary rather than pushing myself to complete a task. 

Of course fatigue could be caused by many reasons. A blood test might be a good idea to rule certain things out. I know Vitamin D deficiency can cause tiredness as well. 

I wish you the very best and hope your meds are started soon and eases the summons for you. 

 

Thanks Joannie

Hi Wildrover,

Welcome to the club,I was newly diagnosed in early July, and the fatigue and overall feeling of weakness is one of the things I found hardest to deal with, but some of the lovely people on here advised me to come to terms with the fact that just because you can't finish a task in one go anymore is not a crime take a rest when you feel the energy draining and start again when it returns it has certainly helped me, I have only just started my meds so can't really comment yet on the value of them.

Good luck   C 

The specialist I see said unfortunately  fatigue is a symptom of  PD.    I take sinemet and it does nothing for the fatigue.  Since making sure that I am not constipated and drink plenty of water I find that helps a lot and I don't get so tired.                                                                            

 

I too suffer from fatigue and disturbed sleep, and I think it's partly the medication and partly the underlying condition.  Unfortunately there's no silver bullet.

I've found that whilst my physical symptoms are largely under control (in my case I take a dopamine agonist), the fatigue is tough to deal with, especially at work and on long drives (as an aside, once you are diagnosed with PD you should inform DVLA and get issued with a medical review licence otherwise yout insurance will be invalid).

The key is to pace youself.  I have 5 rules:

- Early to bed: 9:30pm most days

- Out socialising one night per week max

- Regular exercise: I try to bike at least 3 times per week but also use the stairs whenever I can etc.

- Work from home one day per week if I can

- Healthy diet: lots of fresh fruit and veg and max 1-2 units of alcohol per day

I also often have an afternoon nap at weekends; a lot of sleep specialists say this is a bad idea but I think it works as long as you keep it to a 20-30 mins power nap.

Hope that helps.

 

 

Thanks for the feedback everyone