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July 20, 2004
Essential Tremor
One of my dear clients has been coming to see me in hopes of finding an alternative treatment for essential tremor affecting her voice. She believes this neurological condition is hereditary because her mother had a similar tremor late in life. Interestingly, the tremor disappears during sleep and is aggravated with stress. With experimentation, we have discovered that massaging certain points in her neck and back reduces the severity of her tremor making her speech clearer.
ET appears to be a hereditary trait. It may not show up in each generation, and those who inherit the genes do not always display symptoms. Common onset age is age 40.
Diagnosis is based on symptoms and a neurological examination. Some individuals have found relief through alternative therapies such as biofeedback, acupuncture, hypnosis, massage therapy, physical or occupational therapy, or adaptive devices.
Currently there are two main medications used in the treatment of essential tremor: Propranolol (Inderal) and Primidone (Mysoline). According to this article, two-thirds benefit from medical therapy.
Posted by linda at July 20, 2004 8:26 AM
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