13 exercises to prevent Parkinson's

Parkinson's disease is a type of dementia. This disease usually occurs in middle-aged and elderly people, and this disease can be caused by various reasons. Parkinson's disease can be treated in some ways, including some exercises, but many people don’t know its specific exercise methods. So how do you do these 13 exercises to prevent Parkinson's?

1. Relaxation and breathing exercises: Find a quiet place, dim the lights, and lie on your back as comfortably as possible. Close your eyes and begin breathing deeply and slowly. When you inhale, your abdomen will expand and you will imagine that the air is reaching the top of your head. When you exhale, your abdomen will relax and you will imagine that the air is flowing down from the top of your head, through your back and to the soles of your feet. Relax all the muscles in your body and repeat this exercise for 5 to 15 minutes. You can also sit down, lean back, relax your whole body, put your hands on your chest and take deep breaths.

2. Facial movement exercises: The special facial features of Parkinson's patients are "mask faces". Due to the stiffness of facial muscles, their facial expressions are dull. Therefore, it is necessary to do some facial movement exercises. Frowning action: Frown as much as possible, then stretch your eyebrows forcefully, repeat several times. Open and close your eyes forcefully. Cheek puffing exercise: First, puff up your cheeks with force, then suck your cheeks in as much as possible. Show your teeth and whistle: Show your teeth as much as possible, then make a whistle. Look in the mirror and make your face smile, laugh, grin, pout, whistle, puff out your cheeks, etc.

3. Exercises for the head and neck: The necks of Parkinson’s patients are often in a forward-leaning posture and are very stiff. Many people think that this is caused by cervical spondylosis. If you do not pay attention to the exercise and rehabilitation of the neck, it is easy to aggravate the abnormal posture, which will manifest as an increasingly severe hunchback. The following is a set of methods for neck rehabilitation. However, it should be noted that since most Parkinson's patients are elderly people and often suffer from cervical spondylosis of varying degrees, you must proceed step by step when doing the following exercises, gradually increase the range of motion, and move slowly and gently. Up and down movement: Tilt your head back and look at the ceiling for about 5 seconds. Then lower your head and try to touch your chest with your chin. Turn left and right: Turn your head and face to the left and look back to the right for about 5 seconds, then turn your head and face to the left and do the same movement. At the same time, repeatedly and slowly turn your face to the left and right shoulders respectively. Try to touch your shoulders with your lower jaw. Swing left and right: Slowly lean your head toward your left and right shoulders, trying to touch your shoulders with your ears. Forward and backward movement: Hold the jaw forward for 5 seconds, then retract for 5 seconds.

4. Waist exercise: Stand with legs shoulder-width apart, bend left arm and place it on waist, raise right arm over head, then slowly bend to the left, hold for 5 seconds to recover; then switch to the right side; put hands on head, bend elbows, grab right elbow with left hand, grab left elbow with right hand, then slowly turn to the left, hold for 10 seconds to recover, then turn right, hold for 10 seconds to recover; put feet shoulder-width apart, turn body to left, pat lumbar sacrum with left hand, pat left knee with right hand, look back to left, then do the opposite; lie flat on bed, bend knees, hold knees with hands, then slowly move face as close to knees as possible, hold for 10 seconds to recover; lie prone on bed, raise all four limbs at the same time, into flying swallow pose, hold for 10 seconds to recover. Do each of the above movements 5 times.

5. Exercises for the upper limbs and shoulders: Stand with your hands crossed in front of your body with your palms facing inward, then swing your arms to the sides of your body, bend your elbows when they are above your head, and place your hands on your shoulders, then straighten your arms, swing them down, and place them on your sides; clasp your hands behind your back, push your palms outward, and at the same time, straighten your chest and tighten your abdomen, hold for 10 seconds before returning to your original position; put your hands on your hips, and then slowly move upwards, from your waist to your armpits, and then from your armpits to your waist; straighten your arms, raise them horizontally forward, and then slowly and forcefully perform horizontal extension movements, then straighten your arms and raise them, and slowly and forcefully swing them backwards; shrug your shoulders as far as possible towards your ears, and then try to let your shoulders droop as much as possible: straighten your arms, raise them above your head and hold them back for 10 seconds; place your arms above your head with your elbows bent. Grab the elbows of the opposite side with both hands, and bend your body alternately to both sides. Repeat each of the above movements 5 to 10 times.

6. Hand exercise: The hand joints of Parkinson's patients are easily affected by muscle stiffness. The patients' hands often present a strange flexed posture, with the metacarpophalangeal joints flexed, making it difficult to open the palm; while the small joints between other fingers are straightened, making it difficult to clench the fist. In this case, patients should often straighten their metacarpophalangeal joints and flatten their palms. They can use one hand to grab the fingers of the other hand and press toward the back of the hand to prevent metacarpophalangeal joint deformities. You can also place your palms on the table, try to keep your fingers touching the table, and repeatedly practice the movements of separating and merging your fingers. You can also repeatedly practice the movements of making fists and extending your fingers.

7. Lower limb exercise: Stand with your back against the wall and do high-leg stepping exercises. When stepping, lift your feet as high as possible and do 20 consecutive steps. Hold the wall with your hands and practice squatting. The lower the better. Squat 20 times in a row. Hold the wall with your left hand and grab the right ankle joint with your right hand. Pull it back and up. After 5 seconds, return to the starting position. Repeat with the opposite lower limb. Repeat 5-10 times. Sit cross-legged on the floor with your feet facing each other. Press your knees down with your hands to bring them close to the floor. After 5 seconds, return to the starting position. Repeat 5-10 times. Stand with your legs slightly apart, bend your knees slightly, bend down, and try to touch the ground with your hands. Sit down with your feet in a "V" shape, with your head leaning against your right leg, between your feet, and then against your left leg. Maintain each position for 5-10 seconds.

8. Gait exercise: Most Parkinson's disease patients have gait disorders. Mild cases manifest as dragging steps, inability to lift feet when walking, failure to swing upper limbs, and lack of coordinated movements. Severe cases manifest as rushing forward in small steps, difficulty turning and crossing thresholds. During gait training, the patient is required to look straight ahead with his or her body upright. When starting, the toes should be raised as high as possible, the heel should touch the ground first and then the toes, the strides should be as slow and large as possible, and the upper limbs should swing back and forth as much as possible while walking. The key is to raise the feet high and take large strides. It is best to have other people present when exercising so that they can remind and correct abnormal postures at any time. Patients often experience "freezing phenomenon" when starting and walking, and their feet are unable to move, as if they are stuck to the ground. If you encounter this situation, don't panic. You can use the following method: first put your heel on the ground and stand upright. After gaining balance, start walking. Remember to put your heel on the ground first, dorsiflex your toes, and then put your toes on the ground. Place an obstacle 10 to 15 cm high in front of your foot at each step, and do walking exercises by crossing the obstacle. But this method is more troublesome, and it is impossible to place a bunch of obstacles at home. Therefore, using an "L"-shaped crutch is a good method.

9. Balance exercises : Parkinson's disease patients show impaired postural reflexes. They rush forward quickly when walking and are prone to falling when encountering obstacles or when the patient stops suddenly. Balance exercises can improve symptoms. Separate your feet 25 to 30 cm, move your center of gravity left and right, front and back, and maintain balance. The trunk and pelvis rotate left and right, and the upper limbs swing accordingly, which is good for balancing posture and relieving muscle tension.

10. Training for language disorders : Patients often become less and less willing to speak due to language disorders, and the less they speak, the more their language function will degenerate. The long-term lack of verbal communication with family members, coupled with the lack of facial expressions of Parkinson's patients, often causes emotional communication barriers and estrangement between patients and their relatives. Therefore, patients must regularly undergo language functional training. ① Tongue movement exercises: Keeping the tongue flexible is an important condition for speaking, so you should persist in practicing the following movements: repeatedly extend and retract the tongue; move the tongue left and right in the mouth as quickly as possible; move the tip of the tongue around the lips as quickly as possible; say "pull one pull one pull", "click one click one click", "click one pull one click" as quickly and accurately as possible, and repeat several times. ② Exercises for the lips and upper and lower jaws: Open and close your mouth slowly and repeatedly; close your upper and lower lips tightly for a few seconds, then relax; purse your upper and lower lips repeatedly as if kissing, then relax; open and close your mouth repeatedly as quickly as possible, repeat several times: say "Ma-Ma-Ma..." as quickly as possible, then repeat after a break. ③ Reading exercise: Read a passage from a newspaper or beautiful prose slowly and loudly. It is best to recite poetry, Tang poetry, Song lyrics or modern poetry. Choose according to your preference. Poetry has a rhythmic flow and is easy to read. It can not only cure language disorders but also cultivate sentiments. Good poetry can also inspire fighting spirit and is a good method of exercise. ④Singing practice: Patients can choose their favorite songs to practice. Some patients become unable to speak fluently after falling ill, but their singing is not affected. As I kept practicing singing, my speech improved significantly. More importantly, singing can exercise lung capacity, which is beneficial to improve lack of confidence in speaking and prevent the occurrence of pneumonia.