THE FAMILY THAT SHAKES TOGETHER...

So when I got out of the shower today I noticed six...no seven...little trickles of blood on my left leg, where I had cut myself shaving.

SEVEN!!

And one on the right leg. I debated the need to go to the ER for a transfusion but decided just to stick little bits of tissue on each bloody spot. You know? Like men do on their faces.

I looked like I had stood in the garage and shaved my legs with a hacksaw.

I thought about taking a picture and posting it, but I couldn't put my shorts on and hobble downstairs to get the camera without leaving a trail of bloody tissue bits all over the floor. So you'll just have to use your imaginations.

I do not know what came over me; I can usually be trusted with sharp objects.

Then as I started to paint my toenails for the first time this summer, I noticed my hand shaking.

Aha! My tremors were acting up.

I have Essential Tremor, or Benign Essential Tremor, or Essential Familial Tremor.

It is a harmless condition that causes slight or severe trembling, or shaking, in the hands and arms. It runs in families.

My paternal grandmother has it. My dad had it. HIS brother has it. Three of us four kids have it - my oldest brother does not. My other brother, who is 43, has it the worst of us kids. My son has it. We noticed his when he was 15, which threw me into a panic until I talked to my neurologist about it. She assured me it was not uncommon for it to show up in teenagers, so I should not be alarmed. But yet I worry about how it will worsen for him as he gets older since it showed up so early. So far he is just as active as most teenage boys - wrestling, football, weightlifting. It probably will never interfere with his pursuit of any activities.

Anyway, the tremors are at their worst when a person is tired or stressed. Considering I was still awake at 2:00 this morning, I shouldn't be surprised that my hands are shaking today. It is mainly just annoying when I am trying to do fine motor work, like painting my nails, or finishing detail work on my crafts. You will certainly hear dishes rattle if I try to carry a cup on a saucer while my tremors are acting up. Also, I know it's not a good idea to cut my son's hair if my hands are shaking.

I'm just sayin'....

My brother's army buddies used to tease him and say he could mix a drink without using a swizzle stick. I actually think it was a little hurtful for him, but he took it in stride. It never interfered with his marksmanship or anything while he was younger, but now that he is retired it is considered somewhat of a disability - militarily speaking - and his pension reflects that. He has tried medication for it, but decided the side effects of the medicine were worse than the condition; as is often the case. And now, it doesn't interfere with his job as an agent for the Law Enforcement Intelligence Network working for an agency that falls under the umbrella of Homeland Security. I just really think that's impressive, so I had to stick that in somehow.

The Meadows Shakes, as we lovingly call them, have never prevented any of our family members from maintaining careers and leading busy, active lives.

My grandmother has said there is a neurologist in town who wants to use our family as a case study on the condition because; although it primarily runs in families, ours is one of the few this doctor has seen where it is SO common.

Just think! I could be in the New England Journal of Medicine!! I could be a statistic!! I wonder if I will be able to adjust to the stresses and problems of being famous. I think I could.

I would just shake it off.