Get rid of the shaking

[Photo provided to China Daily]

Medication can alleviate the symptoms for some patients. But for patients who cannot perform daily activities due to the tremors there are surgery options. One of these is thalamotomy－the precise destruction of the thalamus, a tiny brain area that controls some involuntary movements.

Another option is deep brain stimulation, through which doctors insert a probe to transmit painless, electronic pulses to the thalamus to interrupt signals from the brain.

The electronic pulses are generated through a pacemaker implanted in chest, and are transmitted through a wire that connects the pacemaker and the probe.

Thalamotomy is not reversible, and if conducted on both sides of the brain, may cause speech and cognitive problems.

DBS is a better choice for younger patients who need to work, or patients who have tremors in the head and the voice, says Li.

However, many patients reject the idea of implanting medical devices into the brain, says Li.

Chu recalls that she refused to undergo the surgery at first simply because she knew too little about the disease and feared that the device would make her look like a robot, besides the financial cost.

Then, suffering from depression caused by her condition, Chu summoned the courage to undergo the DBS surgery in 2009, which was successful.

She resumed running after the surgery, something she had done since young but had to give up due to the disease.

She did not hesitate to apply for the marathon program, when she saw it on Medtronic's public WeChat account.

Not long ago, she was removed from an essential tremor WeChat group, because she tried to introduce the DBS treatment to other patients.

"Ordinary people know very little about essential tremor, and there is misleading information out there," says Chu.

"I hope sufferers make fewer mistakes and have better access to authoritative, regulated, and effective treatment," she adds.