<h1>Common sense is just the values ingrained in you since birth</h1>

Went to see the neuro a couple of days ago. The appointment lasted 5 or so minutes and consisted of my tale about falling downstairs (the large cuts on my head should have alerted him to the fact this was no ordinary fall)and him asking me some questions about medication. My wife brought up the topic of the tax deduction for PD sufferers (or something along those lines. She is the financial expert in the family.)

"Not yet" was pretty much what he said. I had to agree with him on that one. It will wait until I am more disabled. We ended the appointment with him telling me that medication did not help lack of balance and gave me a shot of advice, I should use common sense when walking down stairs.

True that!

The fact is, I fell down the stairs because my hands were full so I was not using the bannister and it was 4:30AM,

Common Sense indeed!

I doubt the fall had anything to do with PD. I have chalked it up to "stupidity". I was careless, when most of the time, I take care. For example, when I get into or out of the tub, or into or out of bed, I use an assist pole like the one pictured here:

These assist poles just make life easier. They are inexpensive (the picture is from eBay at a price of $150 USD. I paid $159CDN). They give you a sense of security and I highly recommend them.

If you are experiencing falls, then:

1. when walking, use a cane or better, trekking poles
2. when getting into or out of a tub or bed, use assist poles
3. when walking down stairs, use common sense. The bannister is there for a reason.

"Common sense is the most fairly distributed thing in the world, for each one thinks he is so well-endowed with it that even those who are hardest to satisfy in all other matters are not in the habit of desiring more of it than they already have".
Rene Descartes