Chemar

Hi and welcome I am not sure how long MSG takes to be fully cleared from the system but I know my son can have days of increased tics if he is exposed to it It was Bonnie herself who, some years back on the old braintalk, advised that calcium to magnesium ratio should be 2:1 so I am not sure as to why her own supp has a different ratio... just do remember to also take into account the calcium (and magnesium) that he is getting from dietary sources, so you may well be giving a good balance One thing I have learned about TS, as opposed to the other tic disorders, is that sometimes waxing can occur with no clearly defined "trigger"...altho I feel sure something internal or external is likely triggering.

Hi I dont have any personal knowledge of Tenex, but I do know that meds can do what you describe My own son suffered drug induced psychosis from haldol and luvox and the manic episodes continued to occur until we weaned him off the meds. Since then he has never exhibited that psychotic state, even when in waxing phase of tics or OCD seems to be that your mother's intuition is spot on with this

Hi stacey it sounds like classic OCD the very best therapy for this seems to be Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) with a qualified and caring psychologist trained in CBT some people also benefit from natural supplements that boost serotonin, or from medications, although sadly the meds do often have side effects that some find are not worth it Inositol, a B vitamin seems to be used successfully by many with OCD and there are also stronger natural supplements (tho they should never be mixed with meds without a doctor's OK as that can cause serotonin spiking which is very dangerous we have a thread pinned up here for useful info for OCD which I recommend you look through http://www.latitudes.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=1963 as well as maybe checking out Psych Central, which has a very active community and live chat sessions with psychologists etc It really is so helpful to be able to talk with others who are also going through these things and find support and shared experience. We have an active TS/tics forum here at ACN/Latitudes, but the OCD board and others are a bit quieter. That's why I do recommend PsychCentral for immediate contact all the best http://www.psychcentral.com (click on community to get to the forums ) hope that helps a bit...

Hi Kristin yes! I know of PANDAS kids who have never exhibited any obvious symptoms of strep infection and yet have been either continuously ill and or shown tics and or sudden OCD symptoms. The first I learned about PANDAS and PITANDS was when our doc told me of "stealth" strep and other microbes that make people ill despite not necessarily showing the typical symptoms that one would be expecting to see for that bug. There is usually a history of exposure to the microbe. PLEASE dont let ignorant albeit well meaning people make you think that your child is ticcing for "attention" .....hear it from a mom who has been through having to explain that my child was not being intentionally making sounds and movements to get attention or out of willful disobedience when asked to stop Then they become like it is a death sentence when one mentions it is neurological *sigh* ): my best advice to you is follow that mother's instinct and, without succumbing to some of the questionable stuff out there of "miracle cures".................. check out all things that make you go "aha! that seems to fit" and try to find a doctor who is either knowledgeable or willing to work with you and learn along the way as you look into the natural options for treatment of the various things that can be at the root of tics, whether TS or transient or any of the other tic disorders.

Hi Dedee tooth grinding the way you describe is known as bruxism and may not be a tic...my son did not ever do it while asleep...he never tics in sleep as far as we are aware, for him it was a definite tic with OCD undertones. Vitamin b5 = pantothenic acid seems to be helpful for teeth grinders, nomatter the root cause of the grinding, whether tic or bruxism . Again, dose is dependent on age and weight. Royal Jelly (I like the one from beealive.com) is one of the safest ways to get a good balanced amount of B vitamins in naturally, including it being a rich source of the b5

hi Kristin and welcome I think my son had a vocal tic (a clucking noise) when he was an infant, tho the doc dx it then as a "floppy larynx" at age four he had what we now know were eye tics, again misdx it wasnt until he was 10 that he was correctly dx with TS and associated disorders

hi there is also info on TS and RLS at NeuroTalk It seems a common theme in RLS may be iron deficiency here are some post links http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/showpost...mp;postcount=13 http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/showpost...amp;postcount=2 http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/showthread.php?t=22683 I have heard from others with RLS who find the Epsom Salts baths before bed very useful (2 cups epsom salts in tub of hot water, soak for 20-30min) as well as supplementing with calcium/magnesium/zinc

Hi to everyone so sorry for the forums here at ACN/Latitudes being down for a while. There was a problem with the database and thankfully our webmaster and tech support have been able to restore most everything except the last few posts just prior to the crash I hope all are doing well. Cheri

Hi juls my son has to totally avoid chlorinated pools as his tics go thru the roof with chlorine he also tics more when he is over-heated re the sun lotion....there u would need to check re any perfumes, chemicals that could be triggering again, my son's experience with anything perfumed is not good re increased tics HTH

pharyngitis could be strep but isnt necessarily so it is defined as http://www.healthscout.com/ency/68/414/main.html Hope you feel better (((Carolyn)))

ah CP I was unaware that you were titrating off risperdal too. sorry... yes, something like that can cause dizziness too....all part of withdrawal from what I call the "brain drugs" It really can do a number on one's system, even with careful weaning there's a very helpful book by Peter Breggin MD called "Your Drug May Be Your Problem" that gives detailed info on withdrawing from any of the psychiatric medications, and dizziness is a common withdrawal side effect mentioned. so glad the MRI is all normal CP and hoping the dizziness passes quickly

powerofprayer: the 'keep out of reach of children' is more a safety thing for if a kid were to play with and eat the contents a 4 yo would normally be taking a chidren's RDA dose of B5 anyway in their multivitamin so you should still safely be able to give a bit more. You may want to check with your doc on dose advice. My son was 12 when he had it and so it is hard to compare, plus he was over 130 lb. he took 100mg per day

PD sorry.........I have reworded my post above to clarify omega 6 is really good and many with TS can safely use it with good results (eg Borage Oil for ADHD etc) but when there is autoimmune triggered inflammation, then one definitely wants to watch the Omega 6 intake especially, but we were cautioned to go slow on omega 9 too. that doesnt mean one should totally avoid them in the diet...just to use caution when supplementing with them Omega 6 is needed by the body to have a healthy inflammatory response function, but in autoimmunity triggered inflammation, adding omega 6 (and possibly 9) could cause inflammation to flare we learned this the hard way as my son has successfully taken Omega 3,6,9 combo for years (flaxseed, borage,evening primrose oils) but once he was dx with crohn's, we were told to keep the Omega 3 (reduces inflammation) but let him only have the Omega 6 & 9 from regular diet rich in EFA foods but not to supplement extra hope that clarifies !

Hi fishoil is Omega 3 mainly (also found in flaxseeds) Omega 6 and 9 is found more in Borage, evening primrose People with autoimmune issues should avoid or be careful of too much extra 6 & 9 and take more 3 Omega 6 especially promotes a good inflammatory response BUT often that is already too high in autoimmunity. Carlson makes a good oil for kids I seem to recall as does Nordic Naturals I think

Nadine teeth grinding (aka bruxism) is a very common tic and is often also OCD related (those times when tics become OCD and vice versa) PANTOTHENIC ACID( aka vitamin B5) is excellent at stopping this tic as is ROYAL JELLY (i find the one from beealive.com to be best) Royal Jelly is rich in pantothenic acid and in other B vits too My son had serious problems with tooth grinding and we tried everything, including mouthguards, but it wasnt till he started taking the B5 that it stopped completely

Helpful articles from Latitudes/ACN TS/Tics section(accessed from the home page at http://www.latitudes.org ) Finding Triggers For Tics by Sheila Rogers http://www.latitudes.org/articles/finding_triggers.htm PANDAS/OCD article by Dr Vojdani http://www.latitudes.org/articles/vojdani.pdf AutoImmunity & Neurological Disorders by Dr Singh http://www.latitudes.org/articles/singh_neuro_ts.html Case reports http://www.latitudes.org/articles/case_reports_ts.htm letters http://www.latitudes.org/articles/letters_...ts_families.htm Tics and Tourettes: BreakThrough Discoveries in Natural Treatments Highly recommended BOOK by Sheila Rogers http://www.latitudes.org/book.html for those with PHOTOSENSITIVITY: TV/computer/gameboy impact on tics, Summary of poster's experience by Claire ... looking at PHOTOSENSITIVITY issues that can be tic triggers for some http://www.latitudes.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=852

Hi Carolyn I dont hesitate to call companies, whether re foods or toiletries etc, to find out exactly what is in them. Once they realise it is a vital health related question, they are very quick to fess up I find I have discovered hidden msg and other such stuff this way in the past

yes, kids should be allowed to be kids.............but kids also do some mega irresponsible and dangerous things and we dont hesitate to step in and be a firm parent in order to protect them then! when we started the no artificial route, thankfully my son so quickly saw the detrimental effects of a blue raspberry slurpy and so was quick to jump on board for his own healthcare! he was just 11 at the time, but is now so diligent about reading labels that he even sometimes spots things (that wordily disguised MSG for example) that I may miss. It really does help to have the child working with you, and although it can take a little while, yet once he realises what that stuff actually does to him, he may be more willing to eliminate it trying to get other family and friends to comply can be a lot harder!! If your child was a diabetic and you told others he couldnt have sugar, they wouldnt dream (I sure hope) of giving it to him.........so why is it so hard to get other family and friends to take us seriously on the artificial free diets our kids need!! I think the only way is to actually get very serious with them, and explain that this isnt just some dietary "fad" you have the child on, but something ESSENTIAL to their health and well being, and that consuming the stuff that triggers tics could have serious health consequences for the child. If they are helped (gently) to understand that these things actually do bodily harm to the child, perhaps they would be more co-operative that basically is the method I used when my child was younger. I was emphatic that they were HURTING my child and that I simply would NOT permit it. Claire (bless her! ) had some great threads running here on ways to still give tasty treats (eg for school, parties etc) and still stay within the healthy guidelines I will see if I can find them later and bump them up But I gotta get to work now

Hi Calicat I honestly dont know re unglazed terracotta so cant comment on that We use a Culligan reverse Osmosis unit for our drinking water and have a whole house filtration system, but we dont have well water and I know that sometimes brings new challenges sorry not to be more helpful

The Treatments that have Helped My Son, Natural ways to treat Tourette Syndrome by Chemar http://www.latitudes.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=687

Hi Becky and welcome using supplements for tics and Tourette's is an individualized thing and I do always recommend that a supp program be worked out with qualified healthcare professionals Magnesium does seem to be the bedrock supp when it comes to TS, but it really is important to ensure that when one is supplementing at correct does and in balance with the other minerals, especially calcium although vitamin B and fish oil are extremely beneficial, not just for tics but for overall health. HOWEVER there are some people, my son included, who simply do NOT tolerate fishoil well and who actually tic more when they take it. For them, flaxseed oil is often a better source of omega 3EFAs However, if fishoil is tolerated, it is excellent Similarly with B complex...some people can take their B vits in a single pill and feel fine, but for others, again my son (and me!) included, they cant take Bcomplex and rather need their Bs separately or in a sublingual liquid B complex. I have documented the treatments that helped my son go from severe, debilitating and also injurious tics and OCD to a very mild situation which has been maintained now for 7 years here is a link to my thread http://www.latitudes.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=687 we have a wealth of info here too from other members too on the supplement programs that have worked for them, whether the BonTech range of supps specifically formulated for TS or specific other protocols hope that helps a bit Cheri

bumping up for parent who messaged me

Daniel I am just checking to see how things are going with your son and also with you (((Hugs))) to you both Cheri

hello braindump so sorry for what you are suffering with all this although we do have posts here from time to time, this forum is not very active and so I am going to recommend that you maybe check out the community at PsychCentral, the top mental health community on the web IMHO there are a number of forums there that I believe will be able to offer you the support and guidance you need. Dr John Grohol, who administers the site, also has weekly free chats where people can talk with him and other professionals it is an excellent and well administered site with a wealth of info and support for all mental health issues I hope this will be helpful to you here is the link to the forums there http://forums.psychcentral.com/ Chemar

mblack sadly all most psychiatrists seem to do these days is see one for five minutes and write a prescription we went that route in the beginning and apart from one very different psychiatrist who had a very open mind and was willing to research things I asked about for me, we found only disinterested people who saw a prescribed pill as the answe to everything. Also....Dr Murphy at Shands Clinic in Gainesville FLA is a PANDAS expert and also a psychiatrist who has a more open minded approach...after all she is at the forefront of PANDAS research...when many conventional docs still doubt or negate it. another thing I noticed from your post was the Mononucleosis (Epstein Barr virus) this could also be PITANDS induced ticcing because of that infection, so that is also something to check into