Tourettes Syndrome Head and shoulder Tics

My son has been diagnosed with Tourettes Syndrome. There is so much misinformation still about this disorder. People think it is all about saying a "word" or making funny noises. Severin has a very common tic for Tourettes, head jerking or rolling. It is very difficult for him to concentrate, the constant damage to his cervical spine causes headaches and other problems. In this video you can see several instances of head jerking or rolling, along with shoulder shrugging, and some wrist flexing and facial tics as well. I have other videos that isolate the facial tics, and hand and wrist tics.




Severins first tic was a swipe across the head with his hand, and that was followed very quickly by throat clearing. His tics first appeared at age 5, but I did not notice anything until he was 7. We took him to various doctors for the various problems but they all said the same thing, they it is a tic, it will go away. Nobody every said, "does he have any other tics?" I did not put it together until this JUNE, 2009. He will be 9 years old soon.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Tourettes
• tic disorder
• head jerking
• shoulder shrugging
• neck problems
• cervical spine damage

[TeamStephenson]

My 7 year old son does this, shoulder shrugging, pushing his chin out and blinking. The doctor says its normal for this age to have some tics and not to worry, should I be trying to find out if its tourettes or should I ignore it?

[mysarip]

@TeamStephenson cont) the question you should ask yourself. How long have the tics lasted. Transiant tic disorder is common and tics do come and go, however if they last for a year there is a risk of them becoming permanent. Also, do the tics cause problems with his functioning. you are not going to want to medicate him for something he can live with. (continued)

[mysarip]

@TeamStephenson Cont 3, also, are the tics interfering with his school work. This is often misdiagnosed as ADHD because the child is never still. Also they have what looks like poor attention, and really they do, because when you are always uncomfortable, your brain is not free to take in other information, such as "wear red tomorrow because it is spirit day" I was constantly confused as to why my son, who has an IQ of 146 was so unaware of simple things.

[mysarip]

@TeamStephenson last reply :) I would watch him for a while maybe video tape him while he is doing something like I have done. You will get a better Idea of how serious it is. Count his tics, per hour. And consider, 7 is the typical age of onset. It tends to worsen as they go through puberty so certainly keep an eye on him. But don't rush into medication. Good Luck!

[thextrabenchwarmer]

i blink hard and my neck forces itself to the side as my shoulders shrug. sometimes i also make a weird face, like im wincing oddly. or sometimes my ears will pop constintely and ill make a wierd sound. most of the time i cant breathe when i do it. but i kinda like being different.

[mysarip]

@thextrabenchwarmer you have a great perspective. Dealing with this is all about how you feel about yourself. My son's neurologist has tics, and she wrinkles her nose and blinks, and I think its kinda cute. Not being able to breath is probably an internal tic, maybe of your diaphram, hopefully that will go away, cause that sounds uncomfortable.

[mysarip]

I think if you have a combination of these types of tics you could have Tourettes or another tic disorder. You need to go to a neurologist to really know. It was helpful for me to know that a lot of his movements that we always thought of as a normal way he moves were actually tics and went away when medicated. Also the constant throat clearing. The hums. The low under the breath laughs. Nothing really to make anyone notice. I wouldn't have known with out having YouTube to watch other peoples t

[Largestina]

I used to tic like that a few months ago, a little worse. I would do a rotation from one shoulder to the other until my neck cracked. It hurt so bad doing it every few minutes and people find it difficult to understand why I can't stop, why I have to do it when it hurts. Thankfully that tic just disappeared.

[InfurnusChaotix]

I have eye tics, throat tightening, scrunching my eyebrows down while bobbing my head slightly, grumbling, finger squeezing, forced "chills" and constantly having to move my toes into a "Ball shape" if that's how you say. I've had these and TONS of others since I was 9, So I picked up smoking cigarettes 4 years ago and It helps ease the tics for short periods.

[Chirsty76]

getting him help.I feel like a loser bc I can't teach him much.The things he does know he has learned on his own.He's very smart,so I can tell he will can learn things fine.It's just he's SO hyber! That gets in his way of learning.He deosn't know his ABC's yet.It's sad.I cry alot about it.U seem to know alot about this stuff.

[Chirsty76]

I'm so glad I ran into this video.I say that bc my son they said has add,but yet has simptoms of tourttes.I wonder if it's just tourtttes instead of add at all.He goes to an Neroisglist in June to find out about his hand twitches he has.He makes a face when he does it.I just want him to be still to pay attention to learn things.He's 4.5 yrs old,but we r not gonna have him start school til he's 6 bc of his hyberness.He's also going to go to a Learning Center to help him.I can't help him,so I'm

[docojeda]

Thats not Tourettes. Thats just a Tic

[simplyanimal4]

I have exact same tic. Except ive never been diagnosed yet. Many MRIs but nothing. I know what he feels:(

[bluepeas510]

Thanks 4 showing us what Tourette syndrome is!!! I just now seen on the news "Bizarre Mystery Illness Strike Group of New York Teens: 12 girls exhibit Tourette syndrome". These girls all attend the same high scholl and their parents want CDC to get involved and find out what happened to their girls. WoW scary

[MsMotherbug]

Take this kid to a N.U.C.C.A. specialist. I believe he can definitely be helped...Chicago,IL. has a great one also former nucca teacher in Ames,Ia. the one I see is awsome!! you wont believe the difference.

[TheDocoz123]

@chloeccb If someone made fun of me with my tics I would kick there ass!

[98sk8erboy1]

Haha ha