Re: Question on tremors - Imogene

[Guest guest]

>

>

> Hi Lynn, I have essential tremor. For a while I was so bad I couldn't eat,

expecially something like soup. I was also having seizure like spells, and test

showed nothing. I was placed on Gababentin, and it did wonders for me. I can

carry on normally now.

*** Thank you, Imogene, for your comments. When Mom's tremors were first

noticed, briefly, in 2004, they were mild hand shakes and nothing more. That

was disturbing to her so I understand how it could affect your abilities. I've

never heard of Gagabentin but will check into it. ***

>

> Has a doctor suggested anything for your Mom's tremor? I don't know what would

work with LBD.

***We briefly discussed it in the past but discarded the thought out of concerns

that meds might aggravate the LBD. Her physical decline was faster than her

cognitive decline. ***

>

> Also Lynn, she is quite elderly, and weak. That in itself will make a person

have tremors. And, we never know what part of the brain LBD is effecting.

***You know, my mother is surprisingly strong at times. When she is

hallucinating about doing some task (while I'm trying to feed her), it is nearly

impossible to keep her arms still. It's amazing how strong she can be. But,

you are right...overall, her condition isn't strong. It's easy to forget that

given the regular arm-wrestling episodes in which we engage. ***

>

> Up to the last month of Don's life, he continued to try to feed himself, and

he used a spoon. He would put it to his mouth so he thought, but the spoon

always hit the side of his face. So, of course I started feeding him. LBD had

hit something that really got his sense of place awareness off really bad. Also

he became unable to stand any longer. Prior to that last month he walked well.

He had been going into a fetal position at nap or bed time. Don had good BP too.

LBD finally did it's number. But, he no longer suffers.

***Mom will still try, at times, to feed herself but it's all a hallucination.

It's not unusual for me to race " her spoon " with my spoon. :-) If she gets

" her spoon " to her mouth first, she will chew as if there was something there.

I end up waiting until she's finished chewing to try and get my spoon there

first. Mom lost the ability to walk in 2007, part of that rapid physical

decline. There is another woman in Mom's facility that has been diagnosed with

LBD and has experienced an even quicker decline. When she moved in, Mom was

already unable to self-feed or walk and this woman was walking and talking.

Right now, I think she is more advanced than Mom. Such an awful disease... ***

>

> LBD may have hit a place in your Mom that is making her tremble. When they

reach a certain point it is out of our hands. Yet, we keep trying.I know I did.

***Some of Mom's tremors have the appearance of a seizure because they are so

strong. But, they are not seizures. At times, Mom would apologize for having

one, something I would dismiss with her as unnecessary. Some have been painful

but most as just disconcerting for her to experience. She doesn't miss a beat

after one, though, especially at mealtime. And, that's a good thing...

Thank you, again, for your comments.

Best wishes,

Lynn in Florida

[Guest guest]

When Mom had the tremors, I would stretch out the arm or the leg and help the

muscles to relax...and then she would always say 'thank you' in a way that made

me know that they were very upsetting to her and she couldn't deal with stopping

them herself. Her tremors were probably nowhere as strong as your Mom's, Lynn,

but they must have been very painful or severely disbrubijng based on my mom's

response.

> >

> >

> > Hi Lynn, I have essential tremor. For a while I was so bad I couldn't eat,

expecially something like soup. I was also having seizure like spells, and test

showed nothing. I was placed on Gababentin, and it did wonders for me. I can

carry on normally now.

>

> *** Thank you, Imogene, for your comments. When Mom's tremors were first

noticed, briefly, in 2004, they were mild hand shakes and nothing more. That

was disturbing to her so I understand how it could affect your abilities. I've

never heard of Gagabentin but will check into it. ***

> >

> > Has a doctor suggested anything for your Mom's tremor? I don't know what

would work with LBD.

>

> ***We briefly discussed it in the past but discarded the thought out of

concerns that meds might aggravate the LBD. Her physical decline was faster

than her cognitive decline. ***

> >

> > Also Lynn, she is quite elderly, and weak. That in itself will make a person

have tremors. And, we never know what part of the brain LBD is effecting.

>

> ***You know, my mother is surprisingly strong at times. When she is

hallucinating about doing some task (while I'm trying to feed her), it is nearly

impossible to keep her arms still. It's amazing how strong she can be. But,

you are right...overall, her condition isn't strong. It's easy to forget that

given the regular arm-wrestling episodes in which we engage. ***

> >

> > Up to the last month of Don's life, he continued to try to feed himself, and

he used a spoon. He would put it to his mouth so he thought, but the spoon

always hit the side of his face. So, of course I started feeding him. LBD had

hit something that really got his sense of place awareness off really bad. Also

he became unable to stand any longer. Prior to that last month he walked well.

He had been going into a fetal position at nap or bed time. Don had good BP too.

LBD finally did it's number. But, he no longer suffers.

>

> ***Mom will still try, at times, to feed herself but it's all a hallucination.

It's not unusual for me to race " her spoon " with my spoon. :-) If she gets

" her spoon " to her mouth first, she will chew as if there was something there.

I end up waiting until she's finished chewing to try and get my spoon there

first. Mom lost the ability to walk in 2007, part of that rapid physical

decline. There is another woman in Mom's facility that has been diagnosed with

LBD and has experienced an even quicker decline. When she moved in, Mom was

already unable to self-feed or walk and this woman was walking and talking.

Right now, I think she is more advanced than Mom. Such an awful disease... ***

> >

> > LBD may have hit a place in your Mom that is making her tremble. When they

reach a certain point it is out of our hands. Yet, we keep trying.I know I did.

>

> ***Some of Mom's tremors have the appearance of a seizure because they are so

strong. But, they are not seizures. At times, Mom would apologize for having

one, something I would dismiss with her as unnecessary. Some have been painful

but most as just disconcerting for her to experience. She doesn't miss a beat

after one, though, especially at mealtime. And, that's a good thing...

>

> Thank you, again, for your comments.

>

> Best wishes,

> Lynn in Florida

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Joan, my tremor is so slight that only a trained eye can see it, because of

the medication I am taking. Also, it occurs when I reach for something

purposeful. I have seen that my hand writing is very jiggly. Writing all the

thank you notes for the loving kindness others showed in flowers and attending

Don's Memorial service let me know how poor my hand writing has gotten.

Your mom's tremor sounds like it could have been Parkinsonism to me.

Stretching seems to help that from what I saw with DOn.

Love a lot,

Imogene

> > >

> > >

> > > Hi Lynn, I have essential tremor. For a while I was so bad I couldn't eat,

expecially something like soup. I was also having seizure like spells, and test

showed nothing. I was placed on Gababentin, and it did wonders for me. I can

carry on normally now.

> >

> > *** Thank you, Imogene, for your comments. When Mom's tremors were first

noticed, briefly, in 2004, they were mild hand shakes and nothing more. That

was disturbing to her so I understand how it could affect your abilities. I've

never heard of Gagabentin but will check into it. ***

> > >

> > > Has a doctor suggested anything for your Mom's tremor? I don't know what

would work with LBD.

> >

> > ***We briefly discussed it in the past but discarded the thought out of

concerns that meds might aggravate the LBD. Her physical decline was faster

than her cognitive decline. ***

> > >

> > > Also Lynn, she is quite elderly, and weak. That in itself will make a

person have tremors. And, we never know what part of the brain LBD is effecting.

> >

> > ***You know, my mother is surprisingly strong at times. When she is

hallucinating about doing some task (while I'm trying to feed her), it is nearly

impossible to keep her arms still. It's amazing how strong she can be. But,

you are right...overall, her condition isn't strong. It's easy to forget that

given the regular arm-wrestling episodes in which we engage. ***

> > >

> > > Up to the last month of Don's life, he continued to try to feed himself,

and he used a spoon. He would put it to his mouth so he thought, but the spoon

always hit the side of his face. So, of course I started feeding him. LBD had

hit something that really got his sense of place awareness off really bad. Also

he became unable to stand any longer. Prior to that last month he walked well.

He had been going into a fetal position at nap or bed time. Don had good BP too.

LBD finally did it's number. But, he no longer suffers.

> >

> > ***Mom will still try, at times, to feed herself but it's all a

hallucination. It's not unusual for me to race " her spoon " with my spoon. :-)

If she gets " her spoon " to her mouth first, she will chew as if there was

something there. I end up waiting until she's finished chewing to try and get

my spoon there first. Mom lost the ability to walk in 2007, part of that rapid

physical decline. There is another woman in Mom's facility that has been

diagnosed with LBD and has experienced an even quicker decline. When she moved

in, Mom was already unable to self-feed or walk and this woman was walking and

talking. Right now, I think she is more advanced than Mom. Such an awful

disease... ***

> > >

> > > LBD may have hit a place in your Mom that is making her tremble. When they

reach a certain point it is out of our hands. Yet, we keep trying.I know I did.

> >

> > ***Some of Mom's tremors have the appearance of a seizure because they are

so strong. But, they are not seizures. At times, Mom would apologize for

having one, something I would dismiss with her as unnecessary. Some have been

painful but most as just disconcerting for her to experience. She doesn't miss

a beat after one, though, especially at mealtime. And, that's a good thing...

> >

> > Thank you, again, for your comments.

> >

> > Best wishes,

> > Lynn in Florida

> >

>

[Guest guest]

I never saw Mom's tremor until after she was on Risperadol and then I think it

was also after they gave her Haldol in the hospital. She was having a lot of

jerking movements in the hospital after they gave her the Haldol...but she was

knocked out then. It was after she was home and we were sitting at the table

and she would have the spoon or whatever in her hand and her hand and arms were

having terrible tremors...then her legs were doing it too. I think because of

my history of back problems, I knew that stretching the muscle could relax it a

little, and it did for her. She was only in the mild/moderate stage so it could

have been the beginning of Parkinsonism symptoms.

> > > >

> > > >

> > > > Hi Lynn, I have essential tremor. For a while I was so bad I couldn't

eat, expecially something like soup. I was also having seizure like spells, and

test showed nothing. I was placed on Gababentin, and it did wonders for me. I

can carry on normally now.

> > >

> > > *** Thank you, Imogene, for your comments. When Mom's tremors were first

noticed, briefly, in 2004, they were mild hand shakes and nothing more. That

was disturbing to her so I understand how it could affect your abilities. I've

never heard of Gagabentin but will check into it. ***

> > > >

> > > > Has a doctor suggested anything for your Mom's tremor? I don't know what

would work with LBD.

> > >

> > > ***We briefly discussed it in the past but discarded the thought out of

concerns that meds might aggravate the LBD. Her physical decline was faster

than her cognitive decline. ***

> > > >

> > > > Also Lynn, she is quite elderly, and weak. That in itself will make a

person have tremors. And, we never know what part of the brain LBD is effecting.

> > >

> > > ***You know, my mother is surprisingly strong at times. When she is

hallucinating about doing some task (while I'm trying to feed her), it is nearly

impossible to keep her arms still. It's amazing how strong she can be. But,

you are right...overall, her condition isn't strong. It's easy to forget that

given the regular arm-wrestling episodes in which we engage. ***

> > > >

> > > > Up to the last month of Don's life, he continued to try to feed himself,

and he used a spoon. He would put it to his mouth so he thought, but the spoon

always hit the side of his face. So, of course I started feeding him. LBD had

hit something that really got his sense of place awareness off really bad. Also

he became unable to stand any longer. Prior to that last month he walked well.

He had been going into a fetal position at nap or bed time. Don had good BP too.

LBD finally did it's number. But, he no longer suffers.

> > >

> > > ***Mom will still try, at times, to feed herself but it's all a

hallucination. It's not unusual for me to race " her spoon " with my spoon. :-)

If she gets " her spoon " to her mouth first, she will chew as if there was

something there. I end up waiting until she's finished chewing to try and get

my spoon there first. Mom lost the ability to walk in 2007, part of that rapid

physical decline. There is another woman in Mom's facility that has been

diagnosed with LBD and has experienced an even quicker decline. When she moved

in, Mom was already unable to self-feed or walk and this woman was walking and

talking. Right now, I think she is more advanced than Mom. Such an awful

disease... ***

> > > >

> > > > LBD may have hit a place in your Mom that is making her tremble. When

they reach a certain point it is out of our hands. Yet, we keep trying.I know I

did.

> > >

> > > ***Some of Mom's tremors have the appearance of a seizure because they are

so strong. But, they are not seizures. At times, Mom would apologize for

having one, something I would dismiss with her as unnecessary. Some have been

painful but most as just disconcerting for her to experience. She doesn't miss

a beat after one, though, especially at mealtime. And, that's a good thing...

> > >

> > > Thank you, again, for your comments.

> > >

> > > Best wishes,

> > > Lynn in Florida

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Oh Darling Joan, I am so sorry that your Mom was put on Risperdal, and then

given Haldol. Risperdal nearly killed my Don early on in the disease. I believe

the medication did that jerking to her. What a shame our Doctors don't know any

better. After all they studied Medicine, not us, yet, we have had to teach them.

Love so much,

Imogene

> > > > >

> > > > >

> > > > > Hi Lynn, I have essential tremor. For a while I was so bad I couldn't

eat, expecially something like soup. I was also having seizure like spells, and

test showed nothing. I was placed on Gababentin, and it did wonders for me. I

can carry on normally now.

> > > >

> > > > *** Thank you, Imogene, for your comments. When Mom's tremors were

first noticed, briefly, in 2004, they were mild hand shakes and nothing more.

That was disturbing to her so I understand how it could affect your abilities.

I've never heard of Gagabentin but will check into it. ***

> > > > >

> > > > > Has a doctor suggested anything for your Mom's tremor? I don't know

what would work with LBD.

> > > >

> > > > ***We briefly discussed it in the past but discarded the thought out of

concerns that meds might aggravate the LBD. Her physical decline was faster

than her cognitive decline. ***

> > > > >

> > > > > Also Lynn, she is quite elderly, and weak. That in itself will make a

person have tremors. And, we never know what part of the brain LBD is effecting.

> > > >

> > > > ***You know, my mother is surprisingly strong at times. When she is

hallucinating about doing some task (while I'm trying to feed her), it is nearly

impossible to keep her arms still. It's amazing how strong she can be. But,

you are right...overall, her condition isn't strong. It's easy to forget that

given the regular arm-wrestling episodes in which we engage. ***

> > > > >

> > > > > Up to the last month of Don's life, he continued to try to feed

himself, and he used a spoon. He would put it to his mouth so he thought, but

the spoon always hit the side of his face. So, of course I started feeding him.

LBD had hit something that really got his sense of place awareness off really

bad. Also he became unable to stand any longer. Prior to that last month he

walked well. He had been going into a fetal position at nap or bed time. Don had

good BP too. LBD finally did it's number. But, he no longer suffers.

> > > >

> > > > ***Mom will still try, at times, to feed herself but it's all a

hallucination. It's not unusual for me to race " her spoon " with my spoon. :-)

If she gets " her spoon " to her mouth first, she will chew as if there was

something there. I end up waiting until she's finished chewing to try and get

my spoon there first. Mom lost the ability to walk in 2007, part of that rapid

physical decline. There is another woman in Mom's facility that has been

diagnosed with LBD and has experienced an even quicker decline. When she moved

in, Mom was already unable to self-feed or walk and this woman was walking and

talking. Right now, I think she is more advanced than Mom. Such an awful

disease... ***

> > > > >

> > > > > LBD may have hit a place in your Mom that is making her tremble. When

they reach a certain point it is out of our hands. Yet, we keep trying.I know I

did.

> > > >

> > > > ***Some of Mom's tremors have the appearance of a seizure because they

are so strong. But, they are not seizures. At times, Mom would apologize for

having one, something I would dismiss with her as unnecessary. Some have been

painful but most as just disconcerting for her to experience. She doesn't miss

a beat after one, though, especially at mealtime. And, that's a good thing...

> > > >

> > > > Thank you, again, for your comments.

> > > >

> > > > Best wishes,

> > > > Lynn in Florida

> > > >

> > >

> >

>