How to Help Huntington's Disease

Huntington's disease is a devastating disease for which there is no cure. Your brain's nerve cells waste away and you end up with mental deterioration, uncontrolled movement and emotional disturbances. One abnormal gene inherited from either of your parents causes Huntington's disease. If you have involuntary facial movements, clumsiness, irritability, anger, depression, loss of interest in things, and trouble making decisions or remembering important information then you might be in the early stages of the disease. As the disease continues to worsen, your symptoms may include sudden, jerky, involuntary movements in your body and eyes, problems with balance, coordination and swallowing, slurred speech and dementia. Treating Huntington's disease will include medicines and therapy to help you manage symptoms and cope with your condition.

Instructions

• 1

  See a doctor. You need to find out if your symptoms are caused by Huntington's disease and how to proceed if they are. There is no way to stop or reverse Huntington's disease but your doctor can help develop a treatment plan to help control your symptoms.

• 2

  Take medicine. Based on which symptoms you have your doctor will prescribe medicine to help you function as normally as possible. Xenazine and similar medicines can increase dopamine in your brain and help stop some of those jerky, involuntary movements. Tranquilizers and antipsychotic drugs can help control hallucinations, movement and violent outbursts. If your symptoms include emotional extremes and mood swings you may need to take lithium. Prozac and Zoloft are two medicines your doctor might prescribe to help you with depression and obsessive-compulsive habits.

• 3

  Start speech therapy. You might start having trouble speaking and expressing in depth thoughts. Find a good speech therapist and start working as soon as possible. Therapy can help restore some of the speech function you've lost and it may slow down any further loss of your speech abilities.

• 4

  Start physical or occupational therapy. Huntington's disease will take away some of the control you have over when and how your body moves. It's important to exercise to keep your muscles strong and flexible . You'll need that to maintain balance and reduce your risk of falling. Physical therapy can be very helpful in keeping your body in good condition. Having occupational therapy will help you learn how to make your home safer, and deal with the loss of your memory and your ability to concentrate. It can also help you with dressing, eating, personal hygiene and other challenges brought on by Huntington's disease.

• 5

  Exercise more often. In addition to physical therapy you should have regular exercise to help improve your muscle strength, flexibility and balance. Talk to your doctor before starting an exercise program to be sure its safe and to get some recommendations on what exercises can help you the most.