A Very Sensitive Subject

As the years go by, we think more about our hopes and dreams while longing for the days of our misspent youth ...

My Dad was diagnosed with Parkinson's over a year ago. It was very difficult for my family as a whole and me in particular. I've always seen my Dad as such a strong person, mentally and physically, that seeing the effects this disease was having on his body were devastating to me. It is possible that he could have been diagnosed a year or more earlier, but he was reluctant to go to the doctor and even when he did, he told the doctor everything was okay. It wasn't until my Mom started going to the doctor with him that things started coming to light and he was properly diagnosed. He has been on many different medications since he was first diagnosed. Sometimes the medications have pretty bad side effects. It can make him drowsy and then he has conversations with people in his sleep. He has woken up on more than one occasion and tried to get ready for an event that may be days or months away. He has been losing some of his strength and balance. He now has trouble getting up from a sitting position and has even taken a couple of frightening spills. One of the scariest things for me is that he continues to drive. I've tried everything in my power to help him see that driving may not be a good idea for him anymore. The last time I rode with him, he did some weaving on the road and I thought he was going to run into the back of a tractor trailer that broke hard in front of us. He doesn't drive as often as he did a year ago, but he still feels the need to get out and go on his own. My Mom is now retired too and she is constantly asking if there is anything he needs done or anywhere he needs to go. And repeatedly he has told her no and then less than an hour later turned up missing in his car or the truck. Sometimes he will head to the credit union or get a haircut. One time he drove the truck to get some mulch, something I had volunteered to do when I got off work that day. Over the holiday weekend, he took the car out. The car was a bit crooked when he parked it in the driveway. Upon further review, he cut across the median between my parent's house and the house next door as he was leaving or coming back. He was also parked pretty close to the garage door and there are now some scratches on the front of the car. My Mom was pretty upset and she finally took the keys away. She also hid the spare key to her car and I think she's going to move the keys to the truck too. Hopefully, this will be the end to this saga.