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Sexual side effects from PD Medications

I am new to this forum and this is my first and very difficult post to write. My husband and I have been married for 31 years and he was diagnosed with PD 17 years ago. There were some struggles, but his progression was slow, he still worked full-time and life was pretty good. About eight years after his diagnosis, our granddaughter accused him of being sexually inappropriate. Her accusations came as a shock to everyone, as he had never exhibited any sexual deviance towards family or friends. I also found out that he was looking at porn on the computer late at night when he couldn’t sleep. He had to go to trial and was charged with misdemeanor battery and put on two years probation. Just two months later, he exposed himself to our neighbor girls and was jailed for probation violation. He ended up with a seven year prison sentence and will soon be released after serving over five years. He is almost 74 years old. Because there had never been any history of this with him, I did research and found that Requip could cause hyper sexuality impulse control disorder. He also had DBS surgery, which also affects the brain. I’ve tried finding out if anyone else in the U.S. has dealt with this, but I can’t find anything. The only cases I find were in France, Australia and England. It’s just been devastating and heartbreaking all around. He can’t come home, because he is not allowed to live within a mile of the victims. He is at the point where he really needs some assisted living, but so far, there aren’t any facilities willing to take him when he is released, because he will be a registered sex offender. So far, I have gotten no help at all from the prison and I am just stressed about the whole situation. Thank you for taking the time to read this and for any suggestions you may have for me.

  1. Hi , We are really glad you found our community. Thank you so much for sharing your experience and bringing awareness to the challenges PD caregivers can face. My heart goes out to you - watching a loved one’s behavior change so drastically is scary and overwhelming. Others in this community have shared experiences with impulse control disorder - please know folks here can relate to the devastating effects this can have on the person with PD and others. We are here to support you.

    I’m sure you have already looked into many of these options, but I wanted to pass along this article about finding a caregiver for someone with PD: https://parkinsonsdisease.net/answers/finding-a-caregiver

    Are there mental health services available to your husband? While we are not mental health counselors, we encourage community members to take a look at our Mental Health Resources page, where you will find information on how to access support: https://parkinsonsdisease.net/mental-health/general-resources


    I know it must feel really difficult to navigate everything you are facing right now. We are always here to listen. I also wanted to share some resources on where PD caregivers can find support:
    https://parkinsonsdisease.net/caregiver/resources
https://parkinsonsdisease.net/caregivers/coping

    Again, thank you for sharing so honestly with us. I hope you have a gentle weekend.
    -Lauren (ParkinsonsDisease.net Team)

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