‘Off And On’ Tremor
Raven stated that he has had the condition “for 10 years off and on,” even though he admitted that the timing “doesn’t make any sense”. He explained that the initial symptoms began with a tremor a few years ago, which led him to see a neurologist.
Raven went into detail about the medication that affected his symptoms. “I say off and on, even though that doesn’t make any sense because I had a tremor for a couple of years, went to a neurologist. He said, ‘try getting off Depakote, a medication I was taking for sleeping and maybe it’ll go away cause it’s known to cause it,’” Raven said.
Depakote (divalproex sodium) is a medication primarily prescribed to treat seizures, bipolar disorder, and migraine headaches, though it has been used off-label for some sleep-related conditions.
Following his doctor’s advice, Raven stopped taking the medication. “So I got off it and it went away for mostly for a couple of years. But then it came- the tremor started coming back,” he noted. He explained that his symptoms are currently manageable: “But other than I have a small hitch in my gait, in my walk, mainly it’s just a tremor. So it’s not anything that’s not manageable”.
Sleep Disorder Is The Worst Part
However, the worst part of the diagnosis for Raven is his persistent sleep disorder. “My sleep disorder is the worst part because I wake up exhausted. I wake up as tired as when I went to bed because I wake up 15, 20 times a night,” Raven stated. Always looking for the positive, he noted that “at least I can fall back asleep usually immediately. So, I’m always trying to look at the positives”.
Parkinson’s disease is a progressive, incurable neurological disorder caused by the degeneration of dopamine-producing cells, and while there is no cure, medications and physical therapy are used to help manage symptoms like tremors and gait issues.
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