Club learns about Dystonia

Guest speaker Gill Jepson started her talk to the members of the Rotary Club of Barrow-in-Furness by asking how many members new what Dystonia was. Although there were relatively few, there were many more by the end of the meeting as Gill delivered a very informative presentation.

Mrs. Jepson described Dystonia as a painful and debilitating neurological condition that affects 70,000 people in the UK. She said it is life changing. There is no cure and it can stop as quickly as it starts.

The condition manifests itself with an unnatural twisting and pulling of muscles that can cause severe pain and exhaustion. Sufferers find it difficult to fulfill daily tasks and it affects personal self-esteem and image. It erodes confidence and can be socially embarrassing, and cause family tension.

She explained the differences between the two types, focal and generalised, and showed some graphic images of some of the sufferers. The causes of Dystonia are not clear.

Although Furness has a local support group some sufferers don