If you have major problems every day, could it still be standard Parkinson’s rather than Parkinson’s plus? I wonder if standard Parkinson’s can vary so much from person to person? After all, some people only have their ‘bad days’ and usually feel fine, don’t they?

Yes, there really can be huge differences between individuals, even though it is ‘standard Parkinson’s’. So it depends on how long you’ve had the symptoms and what problems you’re experiencing, as well as what medication you’re taking and how your symptoms respond to it. Parkinson’s plus, or atypical parkinsonism as it’s also known, often has some specific symptoms that point more towards this condition than towards ‘regular’ Parkinson’s, but in the early years it can be difficult to spot these, and the diagnosis may then be uncertain. /Dag Nyholm