Tourette Syndrome?

Question

My 11-year old cousin has a more mild case of Tourette Syndrome. His parents are in denial that he has it and are not willing to treat it or seek counseling. I have done my research, and while he does not have a problem with his speech or blurting out words, he consistently has ticks, and he snorts, whistles and is always twitching and has rapid bodily movements. If you have any experience with Tourette Syndrome, might you be able to help me? I would appreciate any information you might be able to provide or ways he and his family can get help.

Thank you in advance.

Answer 1

My 11 year old son has Tourettes, OCD and ADHD. The best thing you can do is educate yourself (you have done this, kudos to you!) and others. The parents are making the situation worse by denial. Education about the condition is of utmost importance! The more you and those who love him understand, the better the child's chances of a successful life. The child needs to feel safe at home in an environment where he can tic without comment from others. The people around him need to love him unconditionally. This is not to say that the TS may be used for an excuse. But the child needs to know that his family loves him no matter what.

I have found that while in public, if I treat my son in a "normal" manner that people generally follow suit.

At home, he is loved and respected just like all members of our household. He has chores and homework just like everybody else.

His case is moderate and is very mild with the medicine. Counseling may not be necessary, unless the parents feel they need it in order to come to terms with this condition that will not be going away. Tourettes is lifelong and there is not a cure yet. The TSA web site mentioned in the previous answers is very beneficial.

This is a great book that will help: "Children with Tourette Syndrome, A Parents Guide" Special Needs Collection, by Tracy Haerle.

I enjoyed this book too:
"Front of the Class, How Tourette Syndrome Made Me the Teacher I never Had", by Brad Cohen

Please feel free to contact me through this site.

Answer 2

optimistically, you have already got been given the solutions you mandatory, yet while no longer i'm able to enable you to comprehend some issues. My 20 twelve months. previous son has Tourette syndrome, that's a neurobiological syndrome with the onset in many situations between 7-20 yrs. previous. A tic is a 'recurrent' uncontrollable motor and/or vocal stream. they could be elementary, reasonable, or intense in nature. The tics can wax and wane (come and flow), and could additionally substitute by the years. lots of those with TS have OCD and/or ADHD. basically approximately 3% of the clinically determined have what's called "coprolalia", the cursing tics. stable success!

Answer 3

I don't know if this case is mild. Everybody always thinks that all people with Tourette's curse and yell, but it doesn't have to be that way.
If he snorts and whistles he does have vocal tics, even if he doesn't say words. Only 10-20% of people with Tourette's curse.

You could seek help from your local organisation. If you go here http://www.tsa-usa.org/ and then choose local/international, you can find help in your country!

It took me 3 years to finally get my diagnosis and I was so glad when I finally knew what was wrong with me.
You can learn how to live with it!
I think it's very good you take care of this little boy!! Good luck!

Answer 4

That's a damn shame about his parents. I have a nephew that is developmentally challenged and my sister was in denial his whole life. She died and now he's 28 and we are trying to get him help and it's very difficult. Things he should have be taught years ago. You are in a very hard place to be--I know. If he is a danger to himself--then you HAVE to call child protective services in the county he lives in. You have to think of him. You are damned if you do and damned if you don't. If you do nothing-he loses but stays with his parents. If you do, he gets great help-but may lose his mother and father as care takers. You need to think about this. Try contacting the Tourette's Syndrome Association:
http://www.tsa-usa.org/ They must have a program for family members.
Good luck to you and your cousin.

Answer 5

Good luck! Start READING.

Tourette syndrome, GTS or the more common Tourette's or TS. is an inherited neurological disorder with onset in childhood, characterized by the presence of multiple physical (motor) tics and at least one vocal (phonic) tic; these tics characteristically wax and wane. Tourette's is defined as part of a spectrum of tic disorders, which includes transient and chronic tics. . Since the incidence may be as high as one in a hundred people, up to 530,000 U.S. school-age children may have Tourette's,[2] with the more common tics of eye blinking, coughing, throat clearing, sniffing, and facial movements. People with Tourette's have normal life expectancy and intelligence. The severity of the tics decreases for most children as they pass through adolescence, and extreme Tourette's in adulthood is a rarity. There is no effective medication for every case of tics, but there are medications and therapies that can help when their use is warranted. Explanation and reassurance alone are often sufficient treatment;[4] education is an important part of any treatment plan.[5]

Tics are sudden, repetitive, stereotyped, nonrhythmic, involuntary movements (motor tics) and utterances (phonic tics) that involve discrete muscle groups.[6] Motor tics are movement-based tics, while phonic tics are involuntary sounds produced by moving air through the nose, mouth, or throat.
Tourette's is one of several tic disorders, which are classified by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) according to type (motor or phonic tics) and duration (transient or chronic). Transient tic disorder consists of multiple motor tics, phonic tics or both, with a duration of between four weeks and twelve months. Chronic tic disorder is either single or multiple, motor or phonic tics (but not both), which are present for more than a year.[6] Tourette's is diagnosed when multiple motor tics, and at least one phonic tic, are present for more than a year.[7] Tic disorders are defined similarly by the World Health Organization (ICD-10 codes).[8]
Although Tourette's is the more severe expression of the spectrum of tic disorders,[9] most cases are mild.[10] The severity of symptoms varies widely among people with Tourette's, and mild cases may be undetected.

Answer 6

there are several alternatives. they vary from area to area. ask your family physician. there is help for the boy AND help for the entire family to cope. lol.