Premium
Made of stone: A view of Parkinson ‘off’ periods
Author(s) -
Matson Neil
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
psychology and psychotherapy: theory, research and practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.102
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 2044-8341
pISSN - 1476-0835
DOI - 10.1348/147608302169571
Subject(s) - coping (psychology) , distress , parkinson's disease , psychology , disease , clinical psychology , psychiatry , psychological distress , medicine , mental health
Parkinson's disease is a neurological condition, managed symptomatically by medications aimed at the underlying dopaminergic deficit. After several years of treatment, some sufferers experience marked fluctuations in symptom control, including akinetic o‘off’ periods. A sample of 15 Parkinson disease sufferers who experienced off periods participated in a small‐scale study examining their experience and the coping strategies used. There was a trend for those experiencing significant levels of distress to make more frequent use of ‘attempted activity’ coping strategies, responses that may inadvertently exacerbate distress. Clinical implications for adjuvant psychological techniques are discussed.