Hi, I am new this help line. I didnt even know it existed. I have a 10 year old son who has been batteling with tics most of his life. I noticed when he was a toddler how organized he always had to have everything;his cars lined up perfectly, he would always straighten the throw rugs, always had to have clean hands and those are just a few of the things. then at 4 years old he went into dayare, and i noticed how shy and scared he was of being there, so i quicly removed him after only 1 month of trying it out. Then by the time he was 6 he was in kindergarten and he was always moving his eyes off to the side, then he was clearing his throat continually, then he was rubbing his fingers together excessively..and it would change every couple of months..the throat clearing is almost always with him. I have 2 other boys who dont have any signs of the tics. My ten year old is extremely bright, he has been in the gifted and talented courses at school since the 1st grade. He is very thoughtful and extremely sensitive. His father and i have not been together since he was four, and i always knew it would affect him in some way but i didnt know this much. and i say this because i noticed that when his father began to actually be proactive with his visitations my child was becoming more withdrawn and timid and the tics intensified. then when he was 8 years old I had to rush him to the hospital because his father had abused him with a 2 x 4!! i was devistated as was my son. I started taking my son to a LCSW so he could talk about his issues and of course she notice some of his tics, she told me not to make a big deal about them and in time he would conquer them, but that i should make him aware of them so he could take ownership of them. Apparently they dont even know they are doing the tics most or all of the time. after about 6 months to a year of his therapy his tics slowly lessoned and almost disappeared, infact during the summer they were GONE!! then school started up again and about 1 month into the schl year i notinced little signs again that they were back. but not as prominent as before. well, just last month we have been ordered to start family therapy with his father; so my son can make peace within himself they say, the tics are back in full affect. the throat clearing is worse than ever and he has started to shift his eyes again. I am so torn on what else i can do, i have been told an anti anxiety medicine might work, but i dont want to medicate my precious child. when his brothers and him argue, as all boys will do, i feel that if i punish him i will aggrivate his stress and his tics.. My heart braks for him, because i cant imagine the horrible things that his father must have been doing and saying to him to almost trigger these tics. Does anyone have any advice on what i can do to help him, any foods, medicines or just good old fashion advice for me..I really feel alone in this sometimes.Not helpless just alone and confused on how to help him. As his mother i know i should be doing more to help him with this, bu i just dont know what to do. His doctor says he will grow out of it, his therapist says he will as well. but children can be cruel and he goes into the 5th grade this fall, and i dont want anymore pressure than there will already be added onto his plate.. thank you for reading, and please help me..
