Tips when speaking to someone with Parkinson’s

Older people living with Parkinson’s may find having conversations more difficult. Changes to their speech and voice can make talking or making phone calls difficult, and changes that happen in the brain can also mean that they are unable to process their thoughts quickly.  

Older people living with Parkinson’s may have periods when they are ‘off' and may freeze, be unable to communicate or have their speech deteriorate. This can often be because of the effects of their medication wearing off. 

The most important thing is to be patient. There are ways to manage these situations and together with the older person living with Parkinson’s you can find tips and techniques to make your conversations work for you.  

• Slow down, wait and listen - remember to leave gaps between what has been said. Silence can feel uncomfortable, but the older person living with Parkinson’s may need time to formulate what they want to say, initiate speech, or to process information.
• Be an ‘active listener’ - let the older person living with Parkinson’s know you are listening by using words such as: “mmm” and “uh-huh”.
• Keep it simple - older people living with Parkinson’s may have difficulties understanding complex questions, sentences, and conversations. You might need to use shorter sentences and questions or rephrase what you have said using simpler words.
• Avoid interrupting, answering questions, or finishing sentences - give the older person living with Parkinson’s time to structure their sentences. Interrupting, answering on their behalf, or completing their sentences may discourage them from talking.
• Be honest - let the older person living with Parkinson’s know if you’re having difficulties understanding them. Saying something like: "I’m sorry, but I am not able to understand you" makes it more about you and less about their difficulties.
• Repeat - repeating the part of the sentence that you understood and letting the older person living with Parkinson’s say again what you didn’t understand keeps the conversation flowing. For example: “You said you went upstairs to your room to get what?"
• Be patient - an older person living with Parkinson’s may go ‘silent’ sometimes if they have ‘frozen.’ You can acknowledge that they may be having difficulties by saying: "It sounds like you might be having some difficulties at the moment. Don’t worry, I’ll wait." If you have waited for a while and there is no response, say something like: "It sounds like you’re unable to speak at the moment. I’m going to put the phone down now, but I will call you back in an hour." Ask the older person if they can let you know they are there and understood what you said by tapping the handset.
• Check in - ask the older person living with Parkinson’s if there is anything special, they’d like you do when you’re speaking with them. For example, they may have specific techniques that works for them that they can share with you, or they may let you know which part of the day they feel more able to have conversations.

For help, support, or to learn more about Parkinson’s, visit Parkinson's disease - NHS (www.nhs.uk) or contact Parkinson’s UK