Tourettes Syndrome

Is TS Inherited? – Living with Tourette’s

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Is TS Inherited? is a question often asked.

Is TS Inherited? – Living with Tourette’s
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While the inheritance pattern of Tourette’s Syndrome is not clear, certain features of the condition do cluster in families.

Even among family members of an affected person, it is hard to identify who else has the condition.

Research shows that people with Tourette’s are 50% likely to pass the genes to one of their children.

Is Tourette’s Syndrome Inherited?

Tourette’s Syndrome is a complex neurological disorder which is characterized by sudden, repetitive, and involuntary movements or sounds known as tics.

Tics generally appear during childhood and their severity varies over time. For most kids, the severity of their tics becomes less frequent and milder during their late teens and as adults.

The tics can either be motor tics or vocal tics.

Motor tics are uncontrolled body movements, shrugging of the shoulders, eye-rolling, sudden jerking of the head.

Vocal or phonic tics, on the other hand, involve sudden sound outbursts which sufferers have no control over.

People with Tourette’s are at risk for certain associated problems such as anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and sleep disorders.

What is the Cause of TS?

Although the exact cause of Tourette’s Syndrome is not known, research has established a relationship with genetic and environmental factors.

Most of the Tourette’s cases are inherited but their mode of inheritance is unknown. Additionally, no genes have been identified.

Environmental factors are also associated with this condition. Unlike genetic factors, environmental situations do not directly cause Tourette’s in children.

However, these factors seriously affect the severity of the condition.

Most cases of Tourette’s Syndrome occur from a variety of environmental and genetic factors, and not changes in a single gene.

As a matter of fact, Certain forms of Tourette’s are genetically linked to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

However, a genetic link between Tourette’s and ADHD is not yet understood.

Finally, the answer to Is TS Inherited? is that the the verdict is still out.

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How Tourettes Affects Families – Helpful Tips

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How Tourettes Affects Families

How Tourettes Affects Families
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Just like any other major illness, life development, or medical condition, TS significantly affects families.

Learning about your child’s condition is difficult to accept at first and it can be challenging. However, there is hope at the end of the tunnel.

Your child, with the proper care, will have a wonderful life.

To adapt to the new situation, family members must learn about the condition as much as possible.

If you have a sibling or child diagnosed with Tourette’s, learning about the condition will help you understand your child better. When you try to understand the condition and the impact it will have on your family, you’ll be better able to provide the necessary care, love, and affection they need.

 

Impact of  Tourette’s Syndrome on Parents

It is natural that emotions run high. After all, their child has Tourette’s. While some provide the best life possible for their kid. Others feel guilty, blaming themselves for their child’s condition.

Hence, every member must know how Tourettes affects families.

Parents need to understand that every family deals with their own unique challenges. As such, they’ll need to adapt and care for the child the best way possible. Parents can help them pursue their dreams and interests. They can also help these kids with Tourette’s develop individual skills such as sports, dancing, or singing. Their condition shouldn’t stop them from being the best version of themselves.

 

How TS Affects Siblings

Siblings get upset with their brother or sister with TS  Becuase he gets more attention from their parents. However, parents have to change this by letting family members know the role they must play in caring for the child with Tourette’s.  This requires the attention of the family.

All the siblings can be taught to be supportive so that they can provide all the love and care the child with Tourette’s need. This way, the child with Tourette’s can enjoy the best childhood possible while learning valuable skills and qualities.

 

Conclusion

Learning to live with a child with Tourette’s is not an easy thing. You’ll have to provide constant love for such kids and sometimes it gets overwhelming. However, you can arrange regular breaks to recharge, clear your head, and come back refreshed.

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Living with Tourettes – What is it Like?

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Living with Tourettes Syndrome and the difficulties of everyday life.

Living with Tourettes
Photo by Colton Sturgeon on Unsplash

 

Thousands of children and teenagers currently live with Tourettes and the tics associated with this disorder. According to one CDC study, 1 out of every 360 kids between the ages of 6-17 living in the US have received a diagnosis of TS. This condition mostly affects boys, as they are 3-5 times more likely to have it than girls. Additionally, kids between the ages of 12-17 are twice likely to have Tourette’s compared to those between the ages of 6-11.

 

However, the media has portrayed the wrong information about Tourette’s. It often attributes poorly delivered speeches, misspoken sentiments, and offending behavior to Tourette’s Syndrome. One of the best ways to understand what living with Tourette’s feel like is to hear what people with that condition have to say.

 

Kids and Teenagers Living With Tourettes Syndrome

According to this interview, here’s what people living with Tourette’s Syndrome this syndrome have to say about the condition and their tics.

 

“Tourette’s can be hilarious, but you can hurt yourself like badly. It can stop you from walking. You know, I still have my entire body weight behind me when my Tourette’s launches me onto the floor. Sometimes I can feel one coming, especially the really loud ones. The ones that feel like there’s some sort of bubbling inside you like waiting to come out. I can sort of tell when they’re coming. But a lot of them are just completely out of the blue. Tourette’s does not care about you. It’s not your friend. It lives inside your head and tells you to do something no normal person in their right mind will ever do.”

 

“Everyone is so different. My neck twitches and my head jerks. For me that really hurts. I get back problems and all sorts of stuff. Tourette’s is more scary. You never know when it’s gonna happen. So when I was younger, I used to try and suppress my tics a lot because it made me anxious.”

 

“Some people can be really cruel and say some really horrible things. I have people trying to fold me in. It’s such an invasion of my kinda personal space. For someone to actually be filming me just while I’m sitting down trying to have something to eat. That’s very hard to think back on. The reason why I love being with other people with Tourette’s is because I’m not constantly playing that role. I can completely just let go.”

 

Conclusion

People living with Tourettes have regular tics. Tics are characterized by repetitive movements or sounds that can not be controlled. For example, they may blink, blurt out certain sounds, or shrug their shoulders uncontrollably. The tics associated with TS  can not be stopped. Kids living with this condition struggle every day to live normal lives and sometimes it can be very difficult.

 

Although we may not fully understand what it means to live with tics, we can do our part by accommodating such ones and not making life harder than it already is for them.

People living with Tourettes need all the love, care, reassurance, and encouragement they can get.

Please help us make  Tourettes Hope Center a reality. Donate Now?

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Helping Kids With Tourette’s Syndrome at School

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Helping Kids With Tourette’s Syndrome at School and at Home

Helping Kids with Tourette's Syndrome - https:touretteshopecenter.com
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

For most children and teenagers who experience Tourette’s syndrome, the disruptive nature of their tics makes them embarrassed.  They may be ridiculed or rejected by their peers at school. These youngsters may be misunderstood by their teachers, hence, their actions may be considered deliberate.

These kids may have a hard time staying focused in school if they feel that their peers may be noticing their tics. They may also find it difficult to make friends at school. This could be because other kids are unsure about them or because they feel embarrassed about their condition.

However, parents and teachers can do a lot to make these kids perform better at school and to make healthy friendships.

Strategies for Helping Kids With Tourette’s

1. Adopt a Personalized Approach

To successfully help children or teenagers with Tourette’s, you have to understand that each of them is unique and they would all be affected differently. As such, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach for every kid with Tourette’s. To develop a plan that will work for a child, use the results from their evaluation as well as the knowledge you already have of them.

2. Ensure that the Teacher has a Good Understanding of Tourette’s

Leaving your child in the care of a teacher who doesn’t have a proper understanding of Tourette’s is a recipe for disaster. This is because it can affect not just the child with the condition but others around that child. Make sure the teacher understands the condition enough to offer the proper care. Such a teacher will need to give appropriate information about the child’s condition to their peers or classmates. This will go a long way in preventing bullying.

Teachers also need to understand that the child or teenager with this condition will have no control when the sensation of the tic begins. Although certain kids can delay the tic for some time, they can not stop it. Hence, disciplining or punishing the child won’t work.

3. Provide a Separate Testing Location

As stated earlier, children or teenagers with this condition have no control over tics. This can prevent them and their classmates from focusing on tests. To prevent this, provide a separate testing location where the child can tic without distracting others. This way, they can focus on their test.

4. Encourage them to Participate in Extracurricular Activities

Physical activities have been shown to decrease tics in certain kids. Therefore, encourage children and teenagers with Tourette’s to engage in sports. This will help them reduce their tics. It is also a good way for them to bond with their peers. Extracurricular activities will hell them to develop their social skills and make more friends.

Conclusion

It is important to note that tics can increase over time, especially during the teen years. You may need to try different strategies and treatment methods for the child or teenager as they go through school. However, when you give them the needed support, you can help the child succeed academically and socially.

If you want to help build our Tourettes Hope Center in Hollywood Fl, please contact us…

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