How to reduce essential tremors

Hello Anon

Thank you for writing.

Benign essential tremor (ET) is a movement disorder most commonly characterized by shaking in the hands. It occurs in as much as 10% of people over the age of 60. It may also cause shaking of the head, voice, arms, and trunk, and less often, of the legs and feet. Two types of tremor are common with ET:

Postural tremor—shaking in certain positions only, such as with arms outstretched
Kinetic or action tremor—shaking that gets worse during activities, such as eating or shaving
In some cases, ET can be socially isolating. It may interfere with normal daily activities, such as writing or speaking. If so, contact your doctor for an evaluation.

Causes
The cause of ET is unknown. However, it does run in families. When inherited, it is often called familial tremor. Children of parents with ET have a 50% chance of inheriting the condition.

In cases where there is no family history of tremor, other factors, such as toxins, may play a role, though this is far from clear. It is thought that essential tremor arises from abnormalities of specific circuits in the brain. This is an area that researchers are studying.

Most people with ET do not require treatment. Mild tremors may be relieved or even eliminated by simple measures, including:

Staying well-rested
Avoiding caffeine
Avoiding stimulants often found in over-the-counter medications, like cold remedies
Avoiding temperature extremes
Talk to your doctor about any medications that may be contributing to your symptoms. If your symptoms are troubling, the following treatment options may be helpful:

Medication
Beta-blocker, such as propranolol (a blood pressure medication)
Anti-seizure medications, such as primidone (eg, Mysoline), gabapentin (eg, Neurontin), topiramate (eg, Topamax)
Sedatives (benzodiazepines)
Botulinum injections (used in rare situations)
Surgery
In rare cases where tremors are very disabling and medications don’t help, surgery may be an option. Two approaches are possible.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS)—transmits painless electrical pulses to the brain, interrupting faulty signals.
Thalamotomy—destroys a tiny part of the brain generating the tremors (less commonly performed than DBS)

I hope this information helps,
Best,
Susan