Jackie Farrell who leads Sutton Shakers support group reflects on their October meetup.

Sixteen members of Sutton Shakers met at the Holiday Inn, Sutton for our meetup on 4th October. We welcomed three new members, Richard and Debi who have ET and David who has OT.  Apologies were received from another five who were unable to attend. 

Lunch is optional. Those who choose to eat say how good it is to be able to eat with likeminded people and feel they are not being judged. Also, some of our group who have difficulty with cups when drinking out prefer to bring their own drinking vessels. The hotel staff are wonderful and very supportive of our group which helps make for a relaxed atmosphere.

Waiting for our food is a good opportunity for sharing news. 

Jackie explained to the group the importance of taking part in the Neurological Alliance 2024 Survey. Highlighting the benefits of the survey helped the group understand the importance of taking part. If filling in the online form was too much, the Neurological Alliance also offer the option of completing it by phone or with a paper copy. Closing date for survey is 15th November.

Jenny is a big advocate for raising Essential Tremor awareness locally and has recently been displaying information on her local church notice board.

Laura shared useful information regarding a telephone service from the DWP to assist with filling in benefit forms.

Fiona asked if teeth grinding could be caused by head and jaw tremor and wondered if others with ET had encountered this issue.

David shared how he is affected by Orthostatic Tremor. He uses the app “Tremor Analysis” to measure the frequency of his tremor. We then discussed how Essential Tremor, Orthostatic Tremor and Parkinsons have different frequencies 

Sutton Shakers were recently given a donation by a local church as their charity of the month.  Jackie has started putting this to good use by purchasing pencil/pen grips and napkin clips for the group. The napkin clips also have an additional use for stabilizing sun hats!

Our next meetup will be a Coffee and Chat Saturday 7th December at All Bar One, 2 Hill Rd, Sutton SM1 1DZ 10:30am – 12:30pm

2025 Sutton Shakers Events

Friday 17th January 2025 - Holiday Inn, Gibson Rd, London SM1 2RF 12:30pm

We will have a guest speaker from Age UK, Sutton to give a talk on services and support they can offer for older people living in the Borough of Sutton

For more information about Sutton Shakers please contact Jackie Farrell  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Further reading