For those of you that know me well, you already know this. For some, this may be the first you are hearing of this.
Nevertheless, I am not asking for pity, or words of encouragement. Those of you that actually know me know that I don't need it, and I laugh at just about everything. I find the Tourette's guy on YouTube to be hilarious, and do not get offended at all when people make fun of Tourette's.
Ever since I can remember, I have had a condition known as Tourette's Syndrome. I can tell you that my middle school self would have never had the courage to write about it, let alone publish it for the world to see. But I've come to terms with it, learned to accept it, and I feel like not enough people even know what it is, so I would like to spread awareness.
What is Tourette's Syndrome?
A quick google search will tell you that it is "A nervous system disorder involving repetitive movements or unwanted sounds." This can be anything ranging from blinking, coughing, or (Stereo-typically) blurting out profanities.
While the exact cause of the condition is unknown, it is believed that it is passed down through genes, and can even be affected by environmental factors. The gene also tends to be way more present in men, with men being about 3 to 4 times more likely to develop the gene.
What they don't tell you.
Since Tourette's runs in my family, I know a couple people other than myself that has it. Tourette's seems to come with other conditions as well, such as depression, anxiety, OCD, ADD, or other conditions. While you will not end up with all of them, it seems to be common that you get at least 1, if not 2.
My experience with the condition.
As mentioned before, I have experienced this condition for almost my entire life. I was bullied for it in middle school when people would ask why I was blinking so much, I would usually just say "I have bad allergies," it was much easier than actually telling the truth. As time went on though, and everyone matured, the bullying went away, and I became much more confident about it.
I have taken two different kinds of medications, one I cut out completely because it started doing more harm than good, the other I am still taking today. Although I have considered cutting it out as of late.
I also suffer from pretty severe anxiety, and when that flares up, the Tourette's does as well. Tics that I have experienced include rolling my eyes, blinking, cracking my fingers, and twitching in my neck. Interestingly enough, not all tics stay, they move and some just completely disappear. I find that if I do something too much, for example, crack my fingers excessively, it will inevitably become a tic.
What now?
I decided to write this because I have had far too many people ask what Tourette's even is, and I feel like it is time that we address and acknowledge its existence, and how it affects those who have it.
As I mentioned before, I'm not looking for pity, or words of encouragement. Those days are behind me, any of that now would just be unnecessary. What I would love, however, is if everyone reading this right now would share this. Share it everywhere you can. If this could even reach just 1 person who did not know about this condition, I would consider it a victory. That's how change starts right? Just one person at a time.
