WorriedMom55

I had read in another post somewhere that people have success, never come back to talk about it. I would like to share my story... My son started with a head tic in March of 2015. He had it multiple times a day, every day, with no breaks. This continued until October of 2015, when he began with a vocal tic that sounded like a grunt. Now he had both motor and vocal. This noise was also continuous. The doctor told me to try a probiotic called VSL #3 and counseling (we had lost 3 close relatives in the span of 3 months). By December, it was very tiring to watch, as he would have so many head tics per minute. I was so scared! I got the book Natural Treatments and began with Natural Calm every day. We also tried essential oils. At the end of December, he went for an eye appointment. I told the optometrist what was going on with the noise and the head nod. He suggested trying glasses, as my son had a very slight astigmatism. He said normally he would not give glasses to someone with such a small astigmatism, but he wanted to try it. I have to tell you, after constant noise since October, over the next three days the noise decreased and finally went away. I have not heard it since! We were still giving him the magnesium, as he continued with the head tic. One January 15, 2016, he had his final head tic (so far). He has not had a motor tic since that day! We are going on five months without the vocal noise and four months without any motor tic! We have also started seeing a naturopathic doctor who tested him for allergies and completed a stool sample. She found he was sensitive to multiple items, which have been eliminated from his diet. His stool sample also showed he had the strep bacteria in his GI tract. He has never had strep throat! He is being treated with natural supplements for the strep and she also has him on other supplements to support his GI tract. I am hoping he is on the road to recovery. I still worry every day that his tics will come back and that this is just his "waning" period but am hopeful since it has been so many months. I am so thankful for this site and the hope they gave me to look for answers and not just accept the inevitable. Thank you for your help! Please keep us in your thoughts and pray this is the right past for my son.

Thank you for the advice, Ms. DeMare! Your post made me feel better. I did notice that he only makes a grunting sound consistently (multiple times per hour). My husband and I also notice that the blinking and head nod only occur when he is watching tv or exposed to bright, flashing lights such as headlights going down the road and flashing Christmas lights. We are going to try a 3-week tv elimination next week to see if that helps. I have tried to give him the Natural Calm at a lower dose and will start the VSL#3 after I pick it up today. How often do you need to give the epsom salts baths? He takes one about every other night. We haven't tried any other dietary changes as we are going to go with one change at a time to see what is actually making a difference. I am hoping we can help him with some of these changes. I really appreciate your book. It gave me hope when I was so lost in dispair.

Hi all. I am so happy that I have found this forum. I have been looking for a support group and they are few and far between. I am the mom of a 7 year old boy. He is very smart and does wonderfully in school. Last January and February, he had his first experience with loss. He lost two of his great-grandmothers within 3 weeks. He was very close with both. He talked about it some, but not a ton. I feel he just couldn't process it as he is so young. At the end of March, he really needed a hair cut! He would flip his hair out of his face with, what I can only describe as a "Justin Beiber" move. The problem is that he continued this even after it was cut. He started it just a few times an hour and it gradually increased to many, many times an hour. This had jerk continued for many months. I called his doctor and she said many kids tic, keep an eye on it and it would probably go away. It did not. It continued for 8 months, until this November. It was present all day and multiple times an hour. There seemed no rhyme or reason as it was there all the time. In mid-November, he developed a grunting noise, kind of like the sound a frog makes. He had this with the head jerk at first. The noise could easily be redirected at first and then was happening all the time. Again, multiple times an hour, even several times a minute. I had just started essential oils as I heard they may help with tics. About 2 weeks after beginning the oil, his head jerk went away. The noise, however remained. About a week and a half ago I began Natural Calm Magnesium. I gave him the full dose. (He hates it by the way!) A few days into it he got severe diarrhea. He didn't eat much except maybe toast and had mostly water and gatorade. This lasted for a Friday and a Saturday. On Friday, I noticed his noise had subsided immensely and by Saturday he did not make it at all! I did not dare to give the Natural Calm again for fear of more diarrhea. We went to a family party this past Sunday and he ate what was there (mac and cheese, ham, pistachio dessert). He also saw his aunt crying about her mom who had passed away. I noticed he was making a growling noise throughout the day. By the time we got home, he was making the noise quite a bit, as well as two new tics. He would tap his spoon 3 times and he also rubbed his index finger with his thumb on both hands. Of course, I got very upset. I am a special ed teacher and had been doing research. I was so worried about TS that I didn't sleep all night. I stayed home the next day and watched a lecture from a PhD, and ordered the book Natural Remedies that is mentioned on this site. That night when he came home, he was still rubbing his fingers, sometimes up by his ears and now would stomp his boots alternately a total of three times. I began the magnesium the next day but ordered the lotion as I heard it is easier on the stomach. My husband and I made an appointment to see his primary care. I had already made an appointment for counseling, (He lost his great-grandfather in June) which he will begin next week. She told us it had not been a year yet and he has gone through a lot for a young boy. She suggested we try counseling first and stick with the magnesium. She also told us to try VSL#3 as he has a lot of stomach problems. This is a probiotic that goes above and beyond over the counter ones. Tuesday and Wednesday this week have been better. Less noise and fewer toe taps. Today after school I noticed more noise but the longer he was home, the better it got. He does not stomp his foot anymore but continues with the finger rubbing. They are not noticeable to anyone but me usually. I do notice when he watches videos on his kindle, the head shake comes back. Tonight when he was watching tv, he grunted a little less but did the head nodding. He does nothing when he reads to himself. I guess what I am wondering is am I on the right path? I am very scared and want to help him asap. His primary care did not feel allergy testing was warranted but was not opposed to checking things in his diet. Will the magnesium creme work just as well? Also, she wonders if this is anxiety more than TS, but is not ruling out TS either. Please give me some advice.