Support Groups / Caregiver Programs

Support groups offer patients and their families help with day-to-day issues, provide a forum for gathering information about PD, and serve as a place to make new friends who share similar problems.

Included in this list are specialty groups for Young On-Set and Caregivers. If you are in an area that does not have a support group, contact us and we will help you get the support you need.

Young Onset

The Young Onset Support Group in Dunwoody could really be called the "Young at heart and active people support group" because that's who we are. Although most members are retired, many continue to work and have young families. The number of years since diagnosis among the members is wide, from a few weeks to 17 years. The average age of the whole membership is probably 60. We meet regularly on the third Tuesday of the month at the Dunwoody Baptist Church, Bldg. D, 1445 Mt. Vernon Rd., Atlanta GA 30338, from 7-8:30 PM. Our meetings are open to anyone interested in learning more about Parkinson's Disease, offering both information and support.

Anyone interested in more information about our group or to suggest a speaker or topic is invited to email Colette Abissi at dunwoodyyopd@gmail.com or call 770-393-8400.

Caregiver Support Programs

"Due to limited funding, we are not enrolling participants to the program at this time."

Most people with Parkinson’s  disease live with spouses or other family members who care for them as long as possible in their homes.  What this means for the family caregiver is that they are often overwhelmed, stressed out and exhausted from the demands of caring for their loved one 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Often they feel anxious about their ability to continue to provide care and they may feel hostility to the patient and anger over their demands.  Nonetheless, most family caregivers continue to provide full time care for their loved  ones out of feelings of love and loyalty.

Our respite programs offer the caregiver time away from their loved one to care for his or her own needs. It allows a period of relief from the many responsibilities associated with providing long-term care.

There are two respite programs available – the first program is for caregivers of people with Parkinson’s Disease  and the second is for caregivers of people with a combination of Parkinson’s Disease  and dementia.

For more information, contact the I & R Center at 404-728-6552.

Here are downloadable admissions guidelines and financial applications for both programs.

Please read information for both programs and choose which best suites your needs.

Respite Care Service Program	Caregiver Time Out Program
Admissions guidelines Financial applications	Letter Fact Sheet Application Physician's Statement Stress Survey Flier