Parkinson’s disease is a brain disorder that impacts a person’s nervous system, affecting the patient’s ability to move in various ways. It is most often diagnosed in individuals over the age of 60 and patients are often prescribed drugs like Austedo XR medications for dyskinesia or Austedo XR Chorea medication for PD. If you have Huntington’s disease, Austedo XR can actually cause Parkinson’s, so it is important to do your research and understand the side effects of certain medications. The following are 7 symptoms to watch for as early warning signs of Parkinson’s:

1. Dyskinesia
Dyskinesia, or a tremor, is often one of the first signs of Parkinson’s and is the most common symptom in patients. Characterized by uncontrollable muscle movements typically beginning as slight shaking in the fingers or hand, this symptom can progress to more severe shaking that impacts other areas of the body as well. It can extend to the face and neck, legs, jaw, and arms. Dyskinesia can make it difficult to hold things such as utensils and can become so severe that the patient is unable to feed themself.

2. Arms that don’t swing when walking
Individuals with Parkinsons may notice that their arms no longer swing when they walk. With the way the brain is wired, swinging arms while walking is a natural movement that usually does not have to be thought about. When a Parkinson’s patient walks, the neural pathways in their brain are no longer telling the areas of their body what to do. Without the swinging arms, the patient will appear to be a rigid walker and they may have to actively remind themselves to move their arms with each step.

3. Urination problems
Parkinson’s affects the nervous system and the messages your brain sends to your body, and this can specifically impact the signals your brain sends to your bladder. They may experience an overactive bladder and notice a frequent and urgent need to urinate even if their bladder is not full, a frequent need to urinate throughout the night that wakes them up, or even urinary incontinence.

4. Fatigue
With Parkinsons, energy levels can vary by day, with feelings of great energy on one and the inability to do anything the next. If you’re chronically tired and your sleepiness or exhaustion doesn’t go away with a nap or a good night’s rest, you are likely experiencing fatigue. If Parkinsons is the cause, this is thought to occur due to chemical changes in the brain that can also result in mental fatigue or the inability to concentrate.

5. Stiffness and rigidity
Rigid muscles and stiffness can be a painful experience and is a common warning sign of Parkinson’s disease. Patients may experience cramps, limited range of motion, and inflexibility as a result of stiffness—it can affect any part of the body and impact everyday tasks like writing, tying shoe laces, or doing up buttons. Patients with this symptom also report the muscles being unable to relax or stretch.

6. Slowed movements and decreased mobility
Patients with Parkinson’s often experience slowed movements (bradykinesia) and decreased mobility. They may notice themselves taking longer to do things, for example, walking may turn into shuffling, or tasks that were once simple may become more challenging, like getting up out of a chair or getting out of bed. Eventually, this combination of slowed movements and decreased mobility can make once easy daily tasks almost impossible.

7. Decreased facial expression
A symptom that is typically not noticed by the patient themself and is often pointed out by others is decreased facial expression. They may assume they are making the expressions and as such will not even realize until someone says something. With Parkinson’s, the face may become unable to show expression or significantly decrease expressions. The individual can appear deep in thought, but really they have lost the ability to present facial expressions.