Mr. Huntington | By: Jessica

Who is Mr. Huntington?

First of all, it’s not a who, it is a what. I'm pretty sure a lot of you are confused.

And I'll clarify over here about the Huntington disease. Not me, really, but a medical source from the internet... But before I do that, I will remind you: Huntington is a disease, not a person. Chelsea nicknamed it as Mr. Huntington.

Here you go…

Huntington's disease is an inherited disease of the brain that damages certain brain cells.

The disease damages some of the nerve cells in the brain, causing deterioration and gradual loss of function of these areas of the brain. This can affect movement, cognition (perception, awareness, thinking, judgment) and behavior.

 There is no cure for Huntington's disease and its progress cannot be reversed or slowed down.

 Both men and women with a family history of Huntington's can inherit the disease. Symptoms usually start to appear during adulthood. 

Juvenile (children's) Huntington's disease develops before the age of 20. Only 5-10% of people with Huntington's develop the condition at a very young age, and the pattern of features may be different. (Like Chelsea's case)

 The symptoms of Huntington's disease can include psychiatric problems and difficulties with behavior, feeding, communication and movement.

People can start to show the symptoms of Huntington's disease at almost any age, but most will develop problems between the ages of 35 and 55. (Which is not Chelsea’s case, her problems were developed at the age of twelve)

 Generally, the disease progresses and gets worse for around 10 to 20 years until the person eventually dies. Symptoms vary between people and there is no typical pattern.

 Early symptoms, such as personality changes, mood swings and unusual behavior, are often overlooked at first and attributed to something else. (But Chelsea is not a victim of something else; she’s a victim of the Huntington disease)

 Some people with Huntington's may refuse to accept their illness or the seriousness of it.

 Behavioral changes

Behavioral changes are often the first symptoms to appear in Huntington's disease and can be the most distressing. These symptoms often include:

·        a lack of emotions and not recognizing the needs of others in the family

·        alternating periods of aggression, excitement, depression, apathy, antisocial behavior and anger

·        difficulty concentrating on more than one task, which causes irritability

·        short-term memory lapses

·        problems with orientation

A person with Huntington's may display a lack of drive; initiative and concentration that may make them appear lazy. This is not the case: it is just the way the disease affects their personality. Someone with Huntington's may also develop a lack of interest in hygiene and self-care. (But Chelsea didn’t lack interest in hygiene)

 Psychiatric problems

Many people with Huntington's disease have depression – this occurs as part of the disease, not just as a response to the diagnosis. A few people may also develop problems such as obsessive behaviors and sometimes schizophrenia.

 Movement problems

Huntington's disease affects movement. Early symptoms include slight, uncontrollable movements of the face, and jerking, flicking or fidgety movements of the limbs and body. These move from one area of the body to another and can cause the person to lurch and stumble. As the disease progresses, the uncontrollable movements are more frequent and extreme. This may change over time so that movements become slow and muscles more rigid. (Chelsea didn’t have too many movement problems)

 Feeding problems

People with Huntington's disease tend to lose weight despite having a good appetite. They can find eating tiring, frustrating and messy because the mouth and diaphragm muscles do not work properly, due to the loss of control. (But Chelsea is a good cook, ironically)

 Communication problems

Communication and cognition (perception, awareness, thinking and judgment) are affected by Huntington's disease.

 People with Huntington's often have difficulty putting thoughts into words and they slur their speech. They can understand what is being said but may not be able to respond or communicate that they understand. Impaired breathing can make speech difficult. (Chelsea didn’t talk a lot, obviously. Kevin was doing the job)