Connecting Hearts: Dating and Relationships (2025)

Brienne Leclaire from Parkinson Association Alberta discussed the challenges of forming relationships while living with Parkinson’s disease in this webinar, highlighting mobility changes, isolation, and apathy. She explored strategies for disclosing a diagnosis, fostering meaningful social and romantic connections, and reducing loneliness.

Emphasizing the importance of social connections, she explained how they contribute to emotional support, reduced stress, and improved mental health. She also addressed the role of exercise, physiotherapy, and cognitive activities in maintaining physical and mental function. Open communication was highlighted as key to managing changing relationship dynamics, intimacy, and emotional well-being.

Brienne encouraged patience, vulnerability, and adaptability in forming new connections, stressing that disclosure should happen when one feels ready. Lastly, she discussed the impact of Parkinson’s on independence and mobility, urging creative problem-solving in relationships.

**Disclaimer: These sessions are designed to provide general education and are not intended for individual advice and/or clinical care. The information conveyed in this recording was accurate at the time of presentation.**