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Treatment of Tremor (essential)

There is no cure for essential tremor, so treatment aims to reduce or remove the involuntary movements.

If your tremor is mild and doesn’t stop you from doing your normal activities, the only treatment you may need is regular monitoring and observation. But you should avoid things that are known to make tremors worse, such as caffeine (in coffee, tea, chocolate, fizzy drinks, etc), make sure you get enough sleep and try to avoid stress.

If your tremor is more severe, your GP may prescribe mild tranquillisers or drugs that are normally used to treat other conditions. These may include beta- blockers (normally used to treat heart disease and high blood pressure) and anticonvulsants (normally used to treat epilepsy). About three-quarters of patients find that medication does reduce their tremor.

In rare cases, essential tremor may be so severe that it interferes with normal activity significantly and does not respond to medication. In these cases, surgery may be considered to implant a deep brain stimulator (a ‘brain pacemaker’) to help to regulate your brain waves and control your tremor.

For tremors caused by other conditions such as alcoholism and Parkinson’s disease, or by a medication, your GP will advise you on the appropriate treatment to minimise tremor for that particular condition.

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