can anyone advise. about "jerks"

[cris]

My wife Susan has started to have what I term as jerks. Particularly worse in the morning, but they are there all the time. I give her a glass of juice or cup of tea/coffee, she takes it or picks it up from the table and an involuntary re-action throws it everywhere. When I put her bra on in the morning she holds her arms out but jerks when she aims to put her arms thro the straps. I get her to close her eyes and hold her arms out, then i get the bra straps on. This first came to light in November last year. She got out of bed and went to come down and missed her footing on the top stair, and came head first on her back all the way down. We ended up in A&E. She now waits for me to go up for her. (Something there makes her remember to call me.) Her leg / foot jerks. In January I saw her down the stairs and as she was walking into the kitchen my mother saw her just complete crash backwards. No tripping. Just back onto her head. She got up quick & said that she was ok. Washing her hands at the basin, she "jerked" and wacked her hand and bruised it. The specialist has reqested an EEG (electronic) brain scan.
any comments please
cris

 

[cris]

myoclonus yes yes

Thanks Nada. Myoclonus. Yes that is what the specialist thinks it is and is sending Susan for the EEg. 2004 was that year of that link. Nothing wrong with your memory. I shall now have a good read on myoclonus.
very many thanks cris

 

[Nebiroth]

It's weird. We just called in our CPN because my Dad has developed a tendancy to jerk and twitch in his sleep. She's called the consultant, and neither are quite sure what the cause is.

And we're the second case she's had this week!

This thread has been very useful though. I shall mention in next week's visit, whether they have considered myoclonus. I've been looking, and apparently there is a variant called sleep myoclonus which as the name suggests is only evident at the start of sleep. Thankfuly it also suggests that this form rarely becomes troublesome or requires treatment.

But we are not sure whether these are random jerks, or whether they are something else; Dad seems to be making mostly "grasping" movements, as though he is trying to pick something up. It could just be vivid dreaming.

I know that people on antipsychotics can develop involuntary muscular movements called tardive dyskinesia. Is your wife taking these? Of course I don't doubt that this would have been considered by her consultant already.

 

[cris]

Hi. Yes Susan does have night time twitches, as do I sometimes. Mine are rare and no problem. Susans are not a problem in bed, and she also shakes her fingers mostly, constantly moving one or more.
The consultant put her on propranolol, that would be about May 2006. These were to control some movements - tremors she had. But he has put her in for an EEG. She also has fluoxetine which is a prozac (or happy pill).
I have guessed a lot is down to the pills she is taking, but the specialist knows what she has, and I think the advantages outway the negatives.
It is that the jerks most of the time are not an issue just need a little care at times. ie coming down stairs, tea/coffee not too hot. Her co-ordination is getting worse, ie knife & fork, better with a spoon if I cut it up. It being food.
please keep posting how your dad is fairing Nebrioth.

cris

 

[chip]

My husband gets myoclonic jerks some were strong and would knock him to the ground, food drinks would get thrown. He is on clonazepam to try and control them but he still gets them now and again. They frighten him and he hates them. This started before he was on any form of medication. The big problem with the jerks is stairs, falling, shower and going out. (he had a big jerk once when we were shopping in a large store and got thrown to the ground) It does make worse for carers.

 

[cris]

Hi Chip. that is exactly what susan gets. drinks thrown, she fell down stairs in november, went to A&E, and few weeks ago just fell back. just straight down.
She is not on medication for it. Falling down the stairs frightened her she now calls for me. Amazing how she remembers that !!!!
cris

 

[chip]

My husband wasnt on medication for a while. It took him to take a big jerk in the hospital day centre with a cup of coffee in his hand that got thrown thats when he got the medication. He was taking more than 10 jerks a day sometimes. I done a graph to show them how many he took. It helped.