Misconception 4: People with Tourette’s are incapacitated by their symptoms. Many individuals with Tourette’s function successfully in society. Mort Doran, a Canadian surgeon with Tourette’s, manages to suppress his tics while in the operating room; he is also an amateur pilot. Neurologist Oliver Sacks wrote of a jazz drummer who reported that his Tourette’s disorder enhanced his musical performances by imbuing them with energy. Indeed, some have argued that Tourette’s can be a blessing rather than a curse, perhaps in part because the condition forces people to learn impulse-control skills that few of us acquire. This claim is intriguing but anecdotal. Former National Basketball Association point guard Chris Jackson, who changed his name to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, said that his Tourette’s made him focus with laserlike precision on his shooting. He twice led the league in free-throw percentage; during one stretch of play in 1993, he made 81 consecutive free throws.
Hope for Tourette’s Sufferers
There is no known cure for Tourette’s, but several treatment options exist. Medications such as Haldol (generic name haloperidol) and Orap (generic name pimozide), which block the action of the chemical messenger dopamine, have been found in studies to be effective in reducing the frequency and intensity of tics. Other promising medications are clonidine, which doubles as a blood pressure drug, and botulinum toxin, better known as Botox. Clonidine inhibits the chemical messenger norepinephrine, which some researchers have argued is implicated in Tourette’s. Although Botox’s mechanisms of action on Tourette’s are unknown, it appears to work by blocking body processes that are involved in facial tics or movement.
Preliminary evidence suggests that some behavioral therapies, especially habit reversal, can be helpful for Tourette’s disorder; it is not known whether combining these techniques with medication yields an additive benefit. Habit reversal teaches patients to become aware of the premonitory urges preceding tics and to learn and practice muscular actions incompatible with their tics. For example, a patient who repeatedly jerks his arm violently toward others might be taught to direct his arm slowly toward his head, culminating in touching his hair gently. This approach and others are not panaceas, but they can help some Tourette’s patients to bring their more troubling symptoms under better control.
Tourette’s through History
Some writers have argued that several famous historical figures, including Roman emperor Claudius (of I, Claudius fame) and author Samuel Johnson, may have had Tourette’s disorder. Others have speculated that composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had Tourette’s, although the evidence here is more circumstantial, consisting mostly of suggestions that Mozart was prone to profanity and to hyperactivity, a symptom that commonly occurs with Tourette’s.
Psychiatrist Arthur K. Shapiro and psychologist Elaine Shapiro of Cornell University conjectured that the troubled girl who formed the basis for the 1971 book and 1973 blockbuster film The Exorcist had Tourette’s disorder. Some observers, they contend, misinterpreted her head jerking, grunting and profane language as hallmarks of demonic possession.
This article was originally published with the title What Do We Know about Tourette's?.
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Add CommentThere individuals [quote"Psychiatrist Arthur K. Shapiro and psychologist Elaine Shapiro of Cornell University conjectured that the troubled girl who formed the basis for the 1971 book and 1973 blockbuster film The Exorcist had Tourette’s disorder. Some observers, they contend, misinterpreted her head jerking, grunting and profane language as hallmarks of demonic possession.[end quote]
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisshould be advised that the case upon which Blatty's book was based documented events involving a boy, not a girl; Blatty changed the gender of the participant. I had the transcripts and records of the originaol case for research and seriously doubt that Tourette's could be the explanation for everything that happened.
Questions: 1) Does the severity of Tourette’s form a continuum; do some people have worse cases than others? Or is it a yes/no situation?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this2) Is Tourette's progressive, changing from a mild case to a severe case over time?
Bill,
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI can only use my brother as an example to your #2 question. In his case, he dramatically improved over time. However, he does not have a severe case of it. As a child, he displayed the facial grimacing, shoulder shrugging, picking items up to smell them as well as other "movement" tics. He never exhibited phonic tics. As he matured, he learned to tone down or stop the movements altogether. The change especially seemed to be linked to when he realized he "acted differently" and "wanted to be like everyone else". He is now a functional 31 year old and most people would never know he has the disorder. Only in times of stress, do some of the tics return, particularly the facial grimaces.
Yes, Bill, a continuum is a good way to describe Tourette Syndrome. My daughter has mild symptoms, yet we know other teens and adults with much more life-altering tics. As far as progression, tic severity does change over time, with periods of "waxing and waning." However, to meet the clinical definition of Tourette, there must be no tic-free period lasting longer than 12 months before age 18. Periods of rapid change, such as puberty, and periods of great stress both bring out many tics, including new ones, whereas slower growth periods and more peaceful times will bring a time of fewer tics, or less severe ones. The national organization has a terrific website at www.tsa-usa.org. Thank you for being one who tries to get the facts.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI'm always amazed at the arrogance of the medical profession; telling us that (Misconception 3) it's a psychologial condition (like homosexuality once was) and can be cured with $$ talk treatment, as well as treating thyroids with radium etc, etc. The list goes on.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisPeterT
My mother tried to kill me, when I was two years old, for the crime of being left-handed, and I have had a facial tic, ever since. Whether that's Tourette's, or not, seems to depend on the definition. I certainly suffered some brain damage, since my left eye is weaker than my right and get the feeling the facial tics are a result of some area, within, that suffered some damage. I have been studying nutrients, lately, and have been taking tyrosine (5g/d), which allows me to better deal with stress. It's no magic bullet; it's more like Alexander's cavalry laying waste to the Persian right flank. Lysine seems to fill in some of the gaps, and arginine has to be taken to take care of an apparent Lys-Arg balance. Surprisingly, echinacea seems to help with the stress that is a catalyst for the tics; although the tics do remain at an idle, even when stress is at a minimum.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe tics associated with Tourette's are problematic, but from experience what is much worse are the comorbid diagnoses. These include, but are not limited to ADHD, social cognitive impairments, OCD, and other learning disabilities. In addition, I find that those suffer from TS into adulthood are differentiated from their peers by delayed age-appropriate decision making skills and maturity.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisMy 28 year old son has moderate TS, along with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder. He is slowly exhibiting more TS and less autism over time. What I don't know is why ticcing comes and goes during the day and seemingly has no trigger or brake.
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