Hi AuroraWA: You are right about the genetic factor which raise the risk of PD & plus more sensitive to pesticides. Not everyone is allergic to raisins like my kid, she has hay fever and many food allergies, which make her sensitive to pesticides. Raisins also has sulfur dioxide added as preservative. Sulfur dioxide is highest in yellow raisins, and that's her favorite for the past years. Thank God that my kid stops stuttering and neck-muscle-spasm after removal of raisins and dirty-dozen produce from her diet. Sam's Club, Walmart, and Trader's Joe all have organic produce at decent price. Genetic factor: if I have 1/4 cup of wine, I break out in rash rather than muscle-spasm. There's a genetic factor in Parkison's which makes a person more sensitive to pesticides. In my previous link on PD and hereditary, a twin posted on how his identical twin has PD, and he doesn't, see below link: "My identical twin brother has had Parkinson's for 14 years or so and has diskonesia; a side effect from the drugs he takes to manage his parkinsons. As we know identical twins start out from one egg and split into equal parts. Needless to say I don't have Parkinson's and can guarantee I will not get it. My twin brother is confined to his unit where he lives mostly and has cracked 9 ribs as well as his sturnum with the many falls caused by parkinsons." http://www.caring.com/questions/parkinsons-disease-hereditary Here's an excerpt from WebMD: "The UCLA researchers also found that people with a common variant of the ALDH2 gene are particularly vulnerable to these ALDH-inhibiting pesticides, according to a university news release. People with the variant are two to six times more likely to develop Parkinson's than those without the variant when exposed to the pesticides. The levels at which the pesticides inhibit ALDH are much lower than those at which they are currently used, according to the study in the Feb. 5 online issue of the journal Neurology ... "These pesticides are pretty ubiquitous, and can be found in our food supply and are used in parks and golf courses and in pest control inside buildings and homes." http://www.webmd.com/parkinsons-disease/news/20140203/more-pesticides-linked-to-parkinsons-risk From the below link: "According to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation: Epidemiological research has identified several factors that may be linked to Parkinson’s, including rural living, well water, manganese and pesticides. Some studies have demonstrated that prolonged occupational exposure to certain chemicals is associated with an elevated risk of PD [Parkinson’s disease]. These include the insecticides permethrin and beta-hexachlorocyclohexane (beta-HCH), the herbicides paraquat and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and the fungicide maneb. In 2009, the US Department of Veterans Affairs added Parkinson’s to a list of diseases possibly associated with exposure to Agent Orange.” Separate research has further revealed that ambient exposure to organophosphate pesticides also increased the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.6 Rotenone and paraquat are two additional pesticides linked to an increased risk of Parkinson's disease, and both are lipophilic, meaning they resist breaking down in water and accumulate in your fat. Both are also known to cross your blood-brain barrier. Dousing our crops with large amounts of glyphosate ��" the active ingredient in Monsanto’s broad-spectrum herbicide Roundup ��" may be another factor in the rising rates of Parkinson’s disease we’re now seeing,7 as these residues are found in all virtually all food containing genetically modified ingredients. " Here is a link that might be useful: Pesticides that trigger PD This post was edited by Strawberryhill on Wed, Oct 8, 14 at 9:39

Thank you all so much for your input and support. The two biggest issues we are now addressing are those posed by some of you: Guardianship and Finances. As with any family and situation like this, you can imagine that there is much more going on than what I am able to express here. Families are complicated and this family IS complicated. The facility that she is in now has finally come to acknowledge that they can not just release her - they have said she is unable to make decisions regarding her medical care. Now we need to get two doctors to sign off that she is incompetent before proceeding with the guardianship. Determining who will be the guardian is quite tricky at this point because she is involved in a few legal issues that play into the short and long term affect of the decision. That will be hashed out hopefully in the next few days. If she is deemed incompetent the question arises as to whether she can proceed forward in her legal battles - most, probably initiated by her severe lack of decision making abilities which is a symptom of the disease - and whether it is in her best interest to do so. She is the one who initiated some of the legal issues. Others are the result of her behavior and forgetfulness. Like I said...it's complicated. Once some of these legal issues and guardianship is determined, than we can get more of the financial picture in focus. Thank you Graywings for linking the government retirement and the federal disability links. We believe she is under the older system; but as you said it needs to be confirmed as she did have the ability to switch over to the newer one at some point. We are learning more about her diagnosis which was originally known as Pick's disease. The symptoms fall into two patterns and her's is in the behavioral pattern which shows as impulsive, inappropriate social behavior, lack of social tact, loss of insight into their own behavior or others, repetitive or compulsive behavior to name a few. The other pattern type involves the language skills in understanding speech and such - she is not so much affected by this pattern. It is believed that the disease starts in the 30's and 40's which makes us now think that what we thought was a possible personality disorder had actually been early signs of this Alzheimer's. There has been a history of unusual behavior (as observed by outsiders but denied in general by most of the immediate family). She has definitely been told repeatedly by numerous people that she has Alzheimer's disease but is not able to make the connection as to the consequences. She will insist that the doctors are crazy and argue about every little thing, whether it pertains to the discussion or not. And then she will quite nonchalantly say "I have Alzheimer's, what's the big deal let me out and go back to work". Hopefully when they find the correct level of medication for her, she will be able to voice her desires. We feel strongly that her young teen son have access to her if he desires as the past few years have been turbulent for all concerned. Thank you again for all your info, recommendations on facilities, and especially the support. I will keep you posted. It will not be an easy road but I will look at this as a growth experience. The thing that has hit home hard is, without parents around any longer - WE are the adults we used to turn to for advice! With much appreciation, Chris

That was the most touching video, I sat here weeping with gratitude. My Mom died of Alzheimer's and we sang together right up to the end. We communicated in a different way but touched each other deeply. I massaged her arms, legs and feet several times a week as did my siblings. She was one of the fortunate ones who was never left alone even though she was in a nursing home at the end. We took turns. You are wonderful friends to your pal. You truly show your humanity and that's the best you can do. As she changes, so will you and in a better way. God bless all of you.

You say your FIL and MIL are living alone? with just daytime help? Not good. Especially if she's starting to have physical problems. Let me just tell you a couple of stories--not to terrify you, but to open your eyes. An older couple my husband knew were living alone like that. One day he visited, and found the woman totally black and blue--all bruised up from head to toe. She'd promised to keep her husband home--then one night, she woke in the middle of the night, to find her husband battering her with something heavy (I forget what)--he thought she was an intruder--she was badly injured and, of course, had to put him in a home at that point. It's not unusual for Alzheimer's patients to think their loved ones were strangers (and evil ones at that). Another couple I know--he has Azheimers, and one day she had a major stroke. Thank goodness he was able to call for help--but he didn't do it right away, and she's in really bad shape--will be months in a rehab facility, if not longer. Another Azheimer's couple? The husband was injured. The wife called her daughter's work (thank goodness, again)--because she 'couldn't remember the number for 9-11'. What would MIL do if FIL left the house in the middle of the night? Would she be able to follow him and get him home? What if she had a medical problem? Are you certain he'd be able to get her help? and you really cannot predict how the disease will progress. He could be one person today, and someone totally different tomorrow. Please, don't allow your parents to be alone at this point in time. If you can't convince them to move to an assisted living facility, then you need to start having younger family members stay with them. Or another alternative that might work well for you--how about hiring one of the ladies (usually from one of the islands) to come in and live with them. You can go through an agency, so that they're checked out, they're very reasonable. Usually they can stay for about 6 months on their work visa, then they often have a friend or relative who can come and take over until they're eligible to return.