Free, confidential and caring services
When Parkinson's disease bursts into a person's life, it causes major upheavals for him and his loved ones. Relatives are indeed confronted with the fears that the recently diagnosed person may experience. Everyone must adapt to a new situation full of unknowns and unforeseen events. It is a shared experience; we know that it is often the spouses who become caregivers. It is an ordeal that may at first seem insurmountable, but over time families tame the disease and better manage the repercussions. Caregivers must learn to reassess their life and find a balance.
Definition of a caregiver
In October 2020, the Act to Recognize and Support Caregivers went into effect. From this law comes the National policy for caregivers—recognizing and supporting with respect for their wishes and ability to commit. Page 25 includes a definition of a caregiver:
Any person who provides support to one or more members of his or her immediate circle who has or have a temporary or permanent physical, psychological, psychosocial or other incapacity, regardless of their age or living environment, and with whom the person shares an emotional bond as a family member or otherwise. The support is continuous or occasional, and short—or long-term, and is provided on a non-professional basis and in a free, enlightened and revocable manner in order, among other things, to promote the care receiver’s recovery and the preservation and improvement of his or her quality of life at home or in other living environments.
"Being a caregiver means showing a lot of resilience, adaptation, empathy towards others and oneself and, above all, love."
Marie-Pier, Montreal
Caregiver of her now deceased grandmother
No one is really prepared
to become a caregiver.
Do not worry,
there is help for you too !
No one is really prepared to become a caregiver.
Do not worry, there is help for you too !
Services that really fits your needs
Informations & registrations
Vous êtes proche aidant.e ou connaissez quelqu’un qui soutient présentement un être cher qui vit avec la maladie de Parkinson ? Assumer le rôle de proche aidant.e implique de faire face à de nombreux défis avec lesquels nos conseillères qualifiées peuvent vous aider. Les services sont gratuits et entièrement confidentiels. Communiquez avec nous pour toute question ou pour prendre rendez-vous :
Personalized meetings for newly diagnosed people and their loved ones
Facing the announcement of a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis, a whirlwind of emotions and questions can overwhelm the individuals concerned as well as their loved ones. During this delicate transition period, we offer a service of personalized meetings dedicated to those newly diagnosed, as well as their families and friends. This service consists of one or two meetings and is designed to identify your individual needs and guide you towards the resources capable of supporting you.
The main objective of these meetings is to:
- Accompany you in choosing options aimed at preserving your quality of life.
- Provide you with concrete tools to face the challenges posed by this new reality.
- Help you identify your specific needs in terms of psychological support, physical activities, maintaining independence, daily life adjustments, etc.
- Explore with you the various available resources that could meet your needs.
Our specialized advisor offers personalized support, responding with empathy to your questions and guiding you towards the key information and resources for better management of Parkinson’s disease.
Support and self-help groups
These groups offer meetings where each person is welcomed with their unique background, in a caring and understanding environment specific to the realities of caregivers. They encourage the sharing of experiences and social contact and are safe spaces where participants can engage with people who understand them.
These groups meet once a month according to a regular schedule. Occasionally, guest speakers (such as occupational therapists, kinesiologists, speech therapists) come to enrich the groups with their knowledge by presenting particularly inspiring topics.
Group 1 (in French): Every 3rd Wednesday of the month, from 9:30 to 11:00 AM, via videoconference, with Christiane Bourgie.
Group 2 (in English): There is no English-speaking group planned at the moment. If you would like to add your name to our list, please let us know, and we will contact you when an English-speaking group is ready to start.
Individual follow-up
If you are a caregiver yourself or if you know someone who is currently supporting a person with Parkinson’s disease, you are likely aware that navigating this role can be challenging. To address this, we offer dedicated support from our advisors throughout the year, through individualized appointments. These sessions are designed to support caregivers in their daily lives by providing them with the necessary information and advice to help them manage their situation. The goal is to offer comprehensive support, including attentive listening, practical information, and tailored, personalized strategies to prevent or effectively deal with burnout.
We offer these meetings in various formats to best accommodate everyone’s needs: by phone, video conference, or in person, thus providing maximum flexibility to caregivers.
Conferences, workshops and other online or in person activities
Thanks to the collaboration of its partners, Parkinson Montréal-Laval can offer its members, through group activities, access to experts from various fields such as nutrition, neuroscience, fitness, meditation, etc. The activities and conferences thus present numerous tools that highlight the importance of taking care of one’s physical and mental health. Free and open to all, the program is available on the website in the calendar section.
TANDEM’S PROGRAM twinning program for caregivers
TANDEM is a unique matching program designed to provide targeted support to caregivers of individuals with Parkinson’s disease. Regardless of the time since diagnosis, this program invites two caregivers to partner up for a journey of exchange and mutual support.
TANDEM is built on values such as sharing, learning, open-mindedness, and collective progress, providing a dynamic platform for mutual assistance where participants can draw from each other’s experiences in a judgment-free environment. TANDEM is an initiative that recognizes the strength of the collective to find balance and move forward together.
You will be invited to participate in a first meeting and/or call that will be coordinated based on both of your availabilities. If your needs or those of the person you are connected with are different, no problem! We will find a way to accommodate them.
There is no obligation regarding the number of planned meetings. The goal is to make this experience a beneficial exchange for each party, and you will be free to end the partnership at any time. However, if the partnership is suitable, we will obviously invite you to keep it for as long as possible!
Registered people for this project will benefit from the support of an advisor and will have access to a toolbox to promote discussions and mutual assistance.
STEP 1
Fill the online form available by clicking on the button bellow.
or
Contact us by email or phone : [email protected] / 514 868-0597 extension 3.
2ND STEP
Our team will do the matching. When we find a relevant connection, we will help you coordinate your meetings
Respite and exercises with NeuroMotrix
For a caregiver, it is not always easy to free up time to participate in activities. Difficult, indeed, to leave his or her loved one alone during this time. Therefore, in collaboration with NeuroMotrix, we offer the Respite and Exercises service.
This service is offered to you free of charge (for the caregiver and the person being cared for), this allows you to take part in one of the activities of your choice while allowing the person being cared for to benefit from a home meeting with a kinesiologist from NeuroMotrix. You will be able to follow workshops, courses or conferences knowing that this moment is fully beneficial for you as well as for your loved one.
