Tourettes Awareness
In this article, I would like to emphasize how important it is to understand Tourette syndrome. I'll include references to websites that enhanced my knowledge and aided me in obtaining some of the data for this blog post. (https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/tourette/facts.html)(https://www.tourettes-action.org.uk/)
The disorder known as Tourettes Syndrome affects the nervous system. Tics are what patients with Tourettes experience, but what exactly are tics? Tics, as the name implies, are abrupt, uncontrollable movements. They can be anything from sounding motions to constant blinking and twitching. They are unable to stop themselves from ticing or maybe experiencing a tic attack.
What is a tic attack?
An episode of persistent, non-suppressible, and disabling tics that last for a few minutes to many hours is referred to as a tic attack, as the name suggests. Typical tic attacks include a person's usual tics together with twitching or shaking that shows extreme anxiousness.
The types of tics:
The two types of tics are motor and vocal.
Motor tics involve movements such as …
-nose wrinkling
-head twitching
-eye blinking
-facial grimacing
- mimicking the movements of other people
There are of course many more types these are just the most common.
Vocal tics involve movements such as …
-coughing
-grunting
-repeating words and phrases
-animal sounds
-yelling
Once again, these are not all types of vocal tics these are just the more frequent ones.
How to calm tics down?
Here are some ways you can calm your tics down-
-Avoid circumstances that will make you stressed out since stress will make your tics worse.
-Try not to draw more attention to your friends' tics while they're ticing. By drawing attention to it, you may make other people conscious of it and create an audience, which could make the person ticing more aware of their tics and also more anxious. (Additional advice on how to help someone with tics is provided below.)
-Don't try to stop your tics; rather let them be if you sense them coming on. It will become worse if you hold it back since it will simply continue to build up.
-Aim to sleep more. .. Having less sleep will have a negative effect on your tics.
-When you are feeling anxious or need to vent, communicate your concerns with a therapist or someone you feel at ease confiding in.
-Simply let others know if you can, therefore, should a tic offend them, they will be aware that you were not in control and intended no disrespect by it.
How to support a friend with Touretts:
-Educate yourself... By learning more about tics, you will offer more support for your friend or family member with Tourette Syndrome. Furthermore, it will provide you with a greater awareness of the difficulties they deal with on a daily basis.
-Improve your knowledge of their individual tics... Ask them about what helps and what triggers them. (if they feel comfortable discussing their tics.) Although they may remark something hilarious to you when they are ticing, laughing at it may either make them feel more stressed out, which may lead to additional tics or if you two are comfortable enough together, laughing may help them relax.
-Accept them… Make sure you show them that you are accepting of their tics, your friend can not stop or flick a switch and turn them off. So ensure they are aware that they are completely okay and that you accept them for who they are.
-Do not try to encourage their tics… Please do not try to get your friends to say something because it is funny or entertaining. You have to remember that tics are severely stressful and in most cases painful.
-Always offer support… you can do this by letting them know that you are always there to talk and express their feelings to. As previously mentioned Tourrets’ Tics are commonly stress-related, so getting help to get things off their chest will have a positive impact.
My younger sister Asha Jonas, a musician, was diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome (TS) a few years ago, hence why tics hold a very special place in our hearts. Of course, her development of tics affected many other aspects of our life, one of which being Asha having to leave school. While Asha has experienced numerous difficulties and obstacles to overcome, she is my greatest motivation since she never allows them to win. When Asha's tics forced her to drop out of school, she taught herself how to play many instruments and produce music. So this blog is for you Ash!
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