Tourette's: What is it?

Honor Whiteman  

What do you know about Tourette's Syndrome? That it causes involuntary swearing? While this is true in some cases, there is so much more to the neurological condition than most people realize. 

Does That Tic Mean Trouble?

Throat-clearing, twirling, eye-blinking -- an odd childhood tic is often just a passing phase. Here's how to know whether your child's habit is a sign of something serious.

When Amy Rea's son, Michael, was 10 years old, he started making a funny little sound in the back of his throat. The Eden Prairie, MN, mom chalked the sound up to a sore throat or the common cold, but it persisted for several weeks, and Michael claimed he felt fine. Then Amy learned that one of Michael's classmates had asked to be moved to another desk on the other side of the classroom because the throat-clearing was disrupting his concentration. Another classmate commented that Michael sounded like her cat. Amy started pointing out the noise to Michael whenever he made it at home, and asking him to stop, but focusing on the habit only seemed to make it worse. That's when she decided it was time to take her son to the doctor.

How to deal with Tourette syndrome in children

By Sarah Stacey for The Mail on Sunday 

A six-year-old boy has multiple tics and has been diagnosed with Tourette syndrome. His behaviour is challenging and his parents are worried about the  boy's future, but they don’t want to go down the medication route. How can parents help their child cope with the condition?

The key feature of this inherited neurological condition is uncontrollable and entirely involuntary movements (such as blinking, facial twitches and shoulder shrugging) and sounds.

AMAZING: 16 year old with Tourettes, gives an awe-inspiring performance on X Factor

Carlos Guevara surprised the “X Factor” judges when he came out on stage and revealed he suffers from Tourette’s Syndrome — only to then amaze them when he started singing  "Gravity" by John Mayer.  Guevara received a glowing reception from the panel of Kelly Rowland, Paulina Rubio, Demi Lovato and Simon Cowell, who commended the latest of the show's inspirational contestants for not being a "victim" and having a "great voice." Simply Wow!