Before Joe came to us, his world had gotten smaller.
Not all at once. Slowly. In ways that are easy to explain, but much harder to watch.
His Parkinson’s had progressed, and the focus had shifted almost entirely to safety. He was trying to get up on his own and could not always wait for help. That created real concern around falls, so the response made sense. His medications were increased to help manage the impulsivity, but what that created was a different kind of loss.
Joe was sleeping through most of his day. He was not engaging the way he used to. The parts of him his family knew and loved were harder to see. His daughter was doing everything she could to keep him safe, and at the same time, she was watching him slowly disappear.
He had been in a more traditional assisted living setting. The care was not the issue. The people cared. But the environment was built to manage many residents at once, which meant there was less flexibility and less ability to respond in the moment. So the solution became medication. Not because anyone wanted that outcome, but because there were not many other options in that setting.
When Joe moved into one of our residential homes here in the Twin Cities, we were able to take a different approach. We added a bed alarm and a chair alarm so staff could respond right away when he needed support. It was a simple change, but it created space for everything else.
Because we could get to him quickly, we no longer had to rely on higher levels of medication to manage his movements. As his medications were adjusted, we started to see changes. He was more awake. More stable when he stood. More present in his day.
His communication improved. His anxiety decreased. There was consistency around him, and it mattered, but the biggest change was not clinical. It was relational. His daughter was no longer visiting someone who was asleep. She was spending time with her dad. He was able to engage with his grandson, respond, and be part of those moments again.
That is what the right setting can do. Not just fewer falls or better medication management, but the return of connection. The return of presence. The return of the person you love.
If you are navigating Parkinson’s with someone you care about and something feels off, even if you cannot quite name it yet, you are not alone. We would be honored to talk through your situation and help you think through what the right setting might look like.
Sometimes the change is not about more care. It is about the right environment.
Warmly yours,
Marlena