Robin Williams' son Zak opens up on father's misdiagnosis on his 70th birth anniversary

Famed American actor Robin William's son Zak William opened up about his late father's mental health struggles. On Williams's birthday, Zak shared details about the trauma and frustration his father witnessed in his last days. William died by suicide in 2014 when he was 63 years old. The legendary actor who would have turned 70 on Wednesday was first diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. However, an autopsy revealed that he was actually suffering from Lewy body disease (LBD) which is a form of progressive dementia and he was being misdiagnosed by wrong treatment.

However, LBD shares many alike symptoms with Parkinson's disease. For instance, a patient suffering from LBD suffers memory loss, hallucinations, and severe anxiety issues. Zak during an interview with "The Genius Life" revealed how critical he grew in the final two years of his life. Zak said he saw "frustration" in his father when he was first diagnosed with the disease and the effects of the disease and his diagnosis.

Zak opened up about his father's struggles

The 38-year-old Zak said, "What he (Robin Williams) was going through didn't match one to one with many Parkinson's patients' experiences, as he felt frustrated".

"There was a focus issue, that frustrated him. There were issues associated with how he felt. And also from a neurological perspective, he didn't he feel great. There was just more anxiety and depression and just things he was experiencing and talking to me about that made me realize he was very uncomfortable," added Zak.

Zak thinks his father's misdiagnosis led him to suffer so much. He said, "the drugs used to treat Parkinson's are no joke".The drugs were really hard on the mind and the body. He explained saying, that "the diagnosis was different than the disease" and his dad experienced side effects after taking those drugs.

Currently, there is no cure for LBD or any treatment to slow down its progression. Zak said, "I don't want to say it was a short period. It felt a lot longer than it actually was because it was a period for him of intense searching and frustration. "I couldn't help but feel beyond empathy. I couldn't help but feel frustrated for him," Zak continued. "It can be really isolating even when you're with family and loved ones," he added.

IMAGE: AP