Tremor – Hands more in trouble - World Class Holistic Homeopathy Treatment
NERVOUS SYSTEM – Tremor – Hands more in trouble
Tremor means shaking or trembling or being unstable. Medically it is termed
as paralysis agitans. Even though tremor is a simple and a non-life threatening
disorder, it can make one’s mind collapse like the tremor of the earth. The
sufferers who just will not be able to hold a cup of coffee to drink or who
cannot sign will have that sort of mind. Nature will be appreciated for its
coordinated movements when one loses them.
Tremors are shaky involuntary movements (occurring on their own) occurring
just like tic, twitch, epilepsy, chorea, dyskinesia, myoclonus, etc. You cannot
find a technique to stop it. It can occur in anyone at any time. It may be
persistent or occasional, regular or irregular and usually has oscillatory
character. It can occur in any part of the body or in the whole body, i.e.,
head, neck, hands, legs, trunk, tongue, etc. But its effects are more
pronounced in the fingers/hands, since they are not always supported like other
parts and also used for very fine movements. It may be accompanied by rigidity
(tightness of the muscle) or flacidity of muscle.
Commonly, one will tremor when facing a new, tensed situation, unfamiliar circumstance
or event, etc, i.e., while going for exam, attending an interview, meeting high
officials, hiding the truth, signing important documents, etc. Having tremor at
that time makes one feel embarrassed for fear of failure in task
execution/skilled performance, even though they know and can do everything. In
due course, they will be avoiding those occasions, making themselves
functionally disabled or handicapped to that specific task. Most often,
youngsters feel tremor as a part and parcel of sexual weakness which has been
rewarded to them for their over sexual indulgences. Of course, tremor can
alarm. But it need not to be related to that. Tremor occurring in cold
temperature, i.e., shivering, is a compensative mechanism of the body to
produce heat to combat cold.
Assessment
One would have tremor for very fine movement – like threading a needle,
aiming for
a win in games like golf, billiards, carom board, shooting gun, etc. These
should be considered as normal just like our oscillating mind. Medically,
tremor will be associated with various activities and movements (with and
without support), i.e., writing, lifting, touching tip of the nose by index
finger of extended hand with closed eyes, standing erect with closed eyes, etc.
Incidences and causes
In olden days, tremor was more commonly seen in elderly people, but
nowadays, worries, anxiety, tension, overtime job, sleeplessness pushes even
youth to suffer from tremors. Additionally, the habit of stimulants, i.e.,
coffee, alcohol, smoking, drugs, adds fuel. Also using chemical medicines has
this sort of tremor as side-effect. All incidences are seen more in people over
the age of 50, irrespective of sex. It can occur due to unstable joints /
movements and weakened muscles. Even though tremor can occur in the head, legs,
body, vocal cord, etc., its incidences are more in the hands.
Regarding ultimate cause
most often it is found to be multi-dimensional with facets of age,
stress, tension, anxiety, sleeplessness, sugar level, genes, injury,
stroke, paralysis, other diseases, etc. In broad spectrum it can be classified
as
Physiological tremors – that occur in
everyone at any time, i.e., due to age, anxiety, fear, fatigue, tension and
shouting with anger, lowered sugar levels, dehydration, alcoholism, withdrawal
symptoms of alcohol, smoking, drugs, etc. They will go off once the situation
or circumstance gets adjusted or with withdrawal of stimulants or drugs.
·
Pathological tremors – occurs due to diseases like diabetes, neurological disorders, thyroid
dysfunction, etc.
·
Psychological tremors – are often induced to attract others for betraying their weakness – It
will not be there during their sleep and while they are distracted.
·
Essential tremors – are the most
common tremors where one cannot find a cause. It may or may not progress to
cause difficulty in day-to-day activities. It is more common in adults and
often
misdiagnosed in children.
Pathology
Tremor is supposed to be the oscillation between the coordination of mind
and body. Stability and movement is usually carried out by our cerebellum i.e.,
hind brain. Our body positions are kept informed to the brain by vestibular
apparatus in the ear. Scientific evidences have now proved and identified
certain specific parts of brain which cause these tremors. They are thalamic
nucleus, globus pallidus and basal ganglia. They are collectively called as
central (neural) oscillators. Disorders in basal ganglia generate
‘Parkinsonism’. Dysfunction of cerebellum, thalamic nucleus and globus pallidus
make other tremors.
Symptoms
usually vary depending upon the nature of disease and age of the sufferer.
Commonly:
·
Shaking or vibration or oscillating fingers/hands causing
difficulty in performing day-to-day activities like writing, eating, drinking,
shaving, dressing, etc.
·
Needs support to stop tremors
·
Stammering speech depending upon the disease caused and
parts affected
·
Fatigue and weakness
·
Depression and sleeplessness
Types
There are many types of tremors. Its nature, intensity and possibility of
cure vary according to the disease or cause. The different types of tremor are
·
Action / intention tremor – occurs while starting / when intending to start / while doing functions
/ movements. It may be for fine or coarse movements or for specific task
·
Resting tremor – most commonly it will be a symptom of
Parkinsonism. Even though it can affect all parts of the body, most often it is
noted in hands as pill rolling tremor.
·
Cerebellar tremor – occurs due to alcohol intake, stroke,
sclerosis, can be drug induced, etc. It can cause stammering and instability
with lack of coordinated movements.
·
Postural or orthostatic tremor – occurs due to instability or weak joint / muscles
·
Familial tremor – are inherited. Here genes play a
major role
·
Dystonic tremor – occurs due to impairment in muscle
tone. It will usually have betterment by support and rest.
·
Senile tremor – occurs in aged persons
Diagnosis and investigation
Commonly, the patient himself comes
with diagnosis or with suspicion of cause for actual complaint (when it is
related to his habits or anxiety or tension). But the patient needs to be
analysed with CT or MRI scan and EEG (if necessary) to rule out involvement of
the brain. Also the patient should go for routine blood tests, urine tests and
hormonal assay to analyse anaemia, thyroid dysfunctions, metal poisoning, etc.
With detailed case taking or history, laboratory investigations and physical or
neurological examinations, the patient can be diagnosed for the specific
condition and treatment plan can be aimed at.
Complications
Feeling disabled or handicapped to do specific tasks in spite of having all
the body parts makes one depressed. Also in severe cases, difficulty in coping
with day-to-day activities makes the sufferer think if it is worth living.
Prevention and management
One needs to monitor stress, sleep, diet, medication and stimulants for
preventing as well as managing tremor.
Be
·
Open minded and share your feelings or fears
·
Busy with work or job to forget all sort of illnesses
·
Active and do physical exercises regularly
·
Regular with medications
Avoid
·
Racing against time
·
Circumstances which favour anxiety
·
Overloading brain / mind anticipating trouble
·
Addictives – drinking alcohol / coffee, smoking and drugs
·
Being more cautious about it since it makes the complaint
progress
·
Unnecessary medicines
·
Stopping stimulants all of a sudden – better to taper it
General treatment
If tremor occurs only during fine
movements, people usually manage by themselves without going for any treatment but
if it disturbs day-to-day activities, one will get depressed soon and go for
treatment at the earliest. One should be aware that it will be always worth
attending a dysfunction in the start-up itself.
Commonly, neurotransmitters blockers or anti-seizure medicines or beta
blockers, mild tranquilisers or calcium channel blockers with supplements are
prescribed to treat tremors according to the causes. Actually, with treatment,
many drugs can help but nothing seems to cure it ultimately. Also side-effects of
the drugs can frustrate.
In rare cases, as a last resort, surgery (deep brain stimulation or
thalamotomy) will be advised. Even though there are a good number of success
stories in these cases, occasional failure or side-effects like loss of speech,
paralysis, fatality, etc., make the sufferer think about it in extreme
condition only.
Homeopathic approach
Suppressing a tremor can be done by any means, i.e., simple support can
suppress the tremor, alcohol can suppress tremor, anti-seizure drugs can
suppress tremor, sedative medicines can suppress tremor. But, their dependency,
inconvenience, side-effects and increasing dosage in due course makes one seek
alternative treatment to get rid of tremors. Stress reduction is crucial to
have good effect, but constant suffering makes the sufferer more annoyed and
would often increase it. In spite of it all, stress reduction certainly helps
in getting out of tremors without side-effects.
With any system of medicine, early treatment is the best; if it is opted
very late or in advanced condition, then any system will only be able to reduce
it to a limit. Homeopathy is in no way
an exception to this. One would be compelled to accept this. But
sometimes, with proper Homeopathy treatment, it can be minimised even to near
normal without any side-effects. Selection of Homeopathic medicines usually
depends upon the cause of the disease, nature of the illness, its progress and
symptoms presentation. Also, the patient needs to be educated about the
complaint, need for lifestyle changes (if any) and management, to meet life’s
challenges easily without any dejection. Homeopathy can surely ease their
condition further by supporting nerves, muscles, brain and coordinating their
function for comfortable living.
Homeopathic medicines commonly used in cases of tremors are Agaricus, Ambra
grisea, Apis mel, Aur met, Arg nit, Ars alb, Avena sativa, Belladonna, Calc
phos, Cannabis indica, Causticum, Damiana, Ferrum phos, Gelsemium, Heloderma,
Hyosyamus, Hypericum, Kali phos, Lachesis, Lathyrus, Lycopodium, Natrum mur,
Nux vom, Physostigma, Plumbum met, Pulsatilla, Rhus tox, Selenium, Silicea,
Stramonium, Strychinum, Tarentula, Valeriana, Zinc met, etc. These Medicines
should be taken under the advice and diagnosis of a qualified Homeopath.
For new hope
Dr. S. Chidambaranathan, BHMS, MD
(Homeo)
Laxmi Homeo Clinic
24 E. New Mahalipatti Road
Madurai, TN 625 001, India
Tel: +91-984-319-1011 (Mob / Whatsapp)
Clinic : +91-452-233-8833
Web : https://drcheena.in | https://drcheena.org
Youtube : https://www.youtube.com/@DrChidambaranathanhomeopathy
E-mail: drcheena@gmail.com
(Disclaimer: The contents of this column are
for informational purpose only. The content is not intended to be a substitute
for professional healthcare advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the
advice of healthcare professional for any health problem or medical condition.)