By Juliano Oliveira
A Stanthorpe social group is putting the focus on essential tremor – a neurological condition affecting up to 800,000 Australians.
Granite Belt Essential Tremor Support Group was formed in November 2020, and, according to its founder, anyone can join it for a coffee and a conversation at its monthly get-togethers.
“It’s a social group, not a club. We gather monthly over a coffee to chat about how this condition affects us and not feel embarrassed about it,” Paul Drake says.
“Anyone can join us for a coffee and a chat. That’s one more that knows what ET is.” Interested can contact Mr Drake via the Granite Belt Essential Tremor Support Group or Southern QLD Essential Tremor Support Group Facebook pages.
Two years ago, Mr Drake decided to put forward a successful idea to Stanthorpe Lions club to raise awareness about Essential Tremor, the most under-diagnosed movement disorder but approximately five times more common than Parkinson’s.
“I do have ET. It started to become evident to me in my late 50s. Initially, I thought I had a repetitive strain injury from using power tools and hammers all my working life,” tells Mr Drake.
ET causes tremors but no other abnormalities, and it almost always first affects the hands. However, according to Brain Foundation Australia, other body parts may eventually become involved, such as the head or voice.
Medications for asthma, Ritalin or lithium, and stress and caffeine make most tremors worse. The condition can be developed at any age, including childhood, but becomes increasingly common with advancing age, affecting up to 10-25 per cent of older people.
“ET is familial in 50 per cent of cases, and the cause is unknown in the remainder. If ET runs in the family, each child with an affected parent will have a 50 per cent chance of inheriting the disorder,” Brain Foundation Australia explains.
