Tourettes syndrome

berthelsen · Newbie Joined: 19 Apr 2005 Posts: 17

I met a new friend at the University and some days ago she invited me to her place. When we went in there was a 15 year-old boy sitting on a couch. I introduced myself and started talking with him but he kept repeating my words and had strange motions with his shoulders. First I thought he was macking me but it was more unpleasant than fun actually. My friend invited me to her room and explained that her brother suffers from Tourettes syndrome. I have never seen this before and I was wondering if people with this disorder can control their movements or behaviour at all? Thx in advance

teeters · Silver Member Joined: 11 Dec 2004 Posts: 307

Tourette syndrome is a neurological disorder characterized by repetitive, stereotyped, involuntary movements and vocalizations called tics. Your friend’s brother has one of the most dramatic tics called echolalia which represents repeating the words or phrases of others. Worse that this are motor movements that result in self-harm such as punching oneself in the face or vocal tics including coprolalia-uttering swear words. The tics these people suffer from are involuntary. However, some people can suppress, camouflage, or otherwise manage their tics in an effort to minimize their impact on functioning. But when they manage to do so, they feel a tension when suppressing their tics to the point where they feel that the tic must be expressed. Tics in response to an environmental trigger can appear to be voluntary or purposeful but are not.

Tourettes syndrome

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