Tourette's

Got Tourette's?

Yes.	6.5%	[ 3 ]
Maybe?	10.9%	[ 5 ]
No, but I know someone who does.	32.6%	[ 15 ]
No, and I don't know anyone who does.	50.0%	[ 23 ]
Total Votes:			[ 46 ]

[Tuah]

Not really a lifestyle, but it certainly has an effect on one's lifestyle. I doubt there'll actually be many people on Gaia who have it, but I feel like giving it a shot anyway. At least it's a populated forum.

For those who don't know, Tourette's is a neurological disorder which causes a person to experience a compulsion to do arbitrary motions, called tics. It's not involuntary, but to resist it causes extreme stress, and a person can do it unconsciously if they're not paying attention. There are also vocal tics, but saying actual words is pretty rare.

There are different degrees of how powerful the compulsion is, and it is also a "nervous" disorder in the sense of the word that stress plays a powerful role. I find that coping pertains not to fighting the compulsion, but letting to of the stress. I'm working on making this automatic, but of course human nature is very prone to hang onto stresses.
Those with OCD can also develop very situational tics. I heard about one girl with vocal tics who would always worry about saying the most socially unacceptable thing, and subsequently have to say it.

I also recently learned that it can also cause a person to be sensitive to certain rough textures. Always wondered what that was. The feeling of carpet, or even the sound of shoes scraping carpet, makes me cringe. It's like fingernails on a chalkboard - no wait, teeth on a chalkboard. Go do that and see how it feels.


So LD, got Tourette's, or know somebody who does?

[to find it was vanity]

[Waking Buddha]

While I was never diagnosed by a doctor I've sometimes thought that I have some mild form of tourette syndrome because of some info I looked up about it a few years ago.

When I was around ten years old I began to twitch my nose. I scrunch it up and this has caused a slight crease on my nose like a folded and then unfolded piece of paper. Sometimes after 'twitching' my nose I then feel the need to try to 'stretch' it out by using different muscles of my face to make it feel 'normal' again.

I almost can't help but to twitch my nose. With some effort I can resist the urge. When somebody draws attention to it I feel a stronger urge to do it. I've done it for 9 years now but It's not as frequent as it was through middle school. Most of the time I don't know that I do it. It just happens.

But I guess this could be some sort of ocd thing too. It's not severe or distracting enough for me to ever need medical help.

[Tuah]

Waking Buddha

While I was never diagnosed by a doctor I've sometimes thought that I have some mild form of tourette syndrome because of some info I looked up about it a few years ago.

When I was around ten years old I began to twitch my nose. I scrunch it up and this has caused a slight crease on my nose like a folded and then unfolded piece of paper. Sometimes after 'twitching' my nose I then feel the need to try to 'stretch' it out by using different muscles of my face to make it feel 'normal' again.

I almost can't help but to twitch my nose. With some effort I can resist the urge. When somebody draws attention to it I feel a stronger urge to do it. I've done it for 9 years now but It's not as frequent as it was through middle school. Most of the time I don't know that I do it. It just happens.

Yeah, that sounds like it. Mine's pretty mild as well and has only gotten milder over time, especially with said coping method.

I haven't been diagnosed with it either since it was never obstructive to my daily life enough to warrant a visit with a psychologist, but it's not hard to see what it is.


EDIT: Lulz, Jen gives head.

[fIynn kalevra]

its sexy

[Pink Plaid]

i think of the show 7th Heaven when i think of torettes.

[MarigoldMari]

When I was a pediatric home nurse I used to take care of a little girl who had Tourette's but also severe ADHD. Those together, she was a pretty special case. I was given the opportunity to learn firsthand about Tourette's through her, and I feel lucky to know about it. She would have random tics where it would look like she was having small seizures and her mother (who had the same thing as a little girl) told me to ignore it when it happened because she didn't want it to seem like a big deal to her daughter (meaning she didn't want her daughter to feel abnormal and therefore feel bad about it). So whenever the little girl and I were coloring in her coloring books as she often liked to do after homework, she'd experience her tic and we'd just have a lull in conversation while she did her thing and then when it seemed to have abated I'd pick up even mid-word from where I'd left off.

I wonder if its common for people who have Tourette's to want the tics to be treated like they're not even happening? I'd like to know so I know how to act maturely when around others who have Tourette's.

[Tuah]

MarigoldMari

When I was a pediatric home nurse I used to take care of a little girl who had Tourette's but also severe ADHD. Those together, she was a pretty special case. I was given the opportunity to learn firsthand about Tourette's through her, and I feel lucky to know about it. She would have random tics where it would look like she was having small seizures and her mother (who had the same thing as a little girl) told me to ignore it when it happened because she didn't want it to seem like a big deal to her daughter (meaning she didn't want her daughter to feel abnormal and therefore feel bad about it). So whenever the little girl and I were coloring in her coloring books as she often liked to do after homework, she'd experience her tic and we'd just have a lull in conversation while she did her thing and then when it seemed to have abated I'd pick up even mid-word from where I'd left off.

I wonder if its common for people who have Tourette's to want the tics to be treated like they're not even happening? I'd like to know so I know how to act maturely when around others who have Tourette's.

Hard to say really. I've only had people notice a couple of times, and I've never had any that really interrupt anything. I would figure that initial acknowledgement would be important, as the person might feel awkward to have done something so obvious and weird that it might make the tic worse.

If initially acknowledged that you're cool and understanding about it, it would probably put the person at more ease. No clue about kids though.

[Das Horse Face]

Guy I knew had tourettes, interesting fellow. We spent a lot of time hanging out in school, smoking cigarettes, and playing games.

He says the N word as his tic, it's very interesting explaining to black people when his tic goes off and seeing a lot of people come over ready to bash our heads in.

[xXZirkannia]

My younger brother had/has it. It isn't as evident now as it was when he was younger though. His medication supressed it drastically. He used to do really weird stuff like smell his hands, twitch his eyes, and shout out random phrases, had a terrible time focusing on homework, and when we were both in elementary school, people on the playground would ask me "Why is his voice so high?" "Why was he hitting himself?" But because I was around him a lot and he was my only sibling, he seemed completely normal to me and it was extremely confusing/offensive when other kids would make fun of him.

[GhostlyMark]

Trialist

Guy I knew had tourettes, interesting fellow. We spent a lot of time hanging out in school, smoking cigarettes, and playing games.

He says the N word as his tic, it's very interesting explaining to black people when his tic goes off and seeing a lot of people come over ready to bash our heads in.

***** or ******?

[MarigoldMari]

Tuah

MarigoldMari

When I was a pediatric home nurse I used to take care of a little girl who had Tourette's but also severe ADHD. Those together, she was a pretty special case. I was given the opportunity to learn firsthand about Tourette's through her, and I feel lucky to know about it. She would have random tics where it would look like she was having small seizures and her mother (who had the same thing as a little girl) told me to ignore it when it happened because she didn't want it to seem like a big deal to her daughter (meaning she didn't want her daughter to feel abnormal and therefore feel bad about it). So whenever the little girl and I were coloring in her coloring books as she often liked to do after homework, she'd experience her tic and we'd just have a lull in conversation while she did her thing and then when it seemed to have abated I'd pick up even mid-word from where I'd left off.

I wonder if its common for people who have Tourette's to want the tics to be treated like they're not even happening? I'd like to know so I know how to act maturely when around others who have Tourette's.

Hard to say really. I've only had people notice a couple of times, and I've never had any that really interrupt anything. I would figure that initial acknowledgement would be important, as the person might feel awkward to have done something so obvious and weird that it might make the tic worse.

If initially acknowledged that you're cool and understanding about it, it would probably put the person at more ease. No clue about kids though.

Ah okay ^.^ I'll keep that in mind.

[Das Horse Face]

GhostlyMark

Trialist

Guy I knew had tourettes, interesting fellow. We spent a lot of time hanging out in school, smoking cigarettes, and playing games.

He says the N word as his tic, it's very interesting explaining to black people when his tic goes off and seeing a lot of people come over ready to bash our heads in.

n***a or n****r?

N****r.

He at least has fun with it though, and takes a lot of it in stride. We had a singing contest about a year ago, we all had smoked, and we did karaoke.

I'll never forget his cover of 'California love'

[Tuah]

sign of nascent knowledge

[GhostlyMark]

Trialist

GhostlyMark

Trialist

Guy I knew had tourettes, interesting fellow. We spent a lot of time hanging out in school, smoking cigarettes, and playing games.

He says the N word as his tic, it's very interesting explaining to black people when his tic goes off and seeing a lot of people come over ready to bash our heads in.

n***a or n****r?

N****r.

He at least has fun with it though, and takes a lot of it in stride. We had a singing contest about a year ago, we all had smoked, and we did karaoke.

I'll never forget his cover of 'California love'

Can he like try to change the word?