mythree

Hello, I have heard very good things about a clinic in Burlington, Ontario outside of Toronto. It is http://naturalcareclinic.ca/ They specialise in ADHD, autism, Tourettes etc.

Hello Wagenhammer, Yes we are going to the Toronto Western Hospital in the Tourettes and Neurodevelopment clinic. We could not be happier with the success we have had at the clinic. Takes work and commitment on the part of the person with Tourette's but we have seen such amazing results. Good luck and hope your partner gets in soon!

That is great news Alan! Thanks for sharing! So great to hear of a treatment with positive results. Often once a person finds some success in their treatment I think they end up not posting anymore, so we don't always get to hear of the 'success stories' and that is why statistically it could look like a treatment hasn't worked for a lot of people. This is great to have another avenue to explore. Hope everything continues positively! Lisa

L-Carnatine helped a lot for my daughter's vocal tic. She was 10 and about 60 pounds and took 250mg.

I don't like the term habit either and it was never used for us when following CBIT at the clinic we went to. Dr Dunc speaks of habit reversal training and CBIT. We didn't do the 'habit reversal training' rather the "and the Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics (CBIT) program. I am sorry if I mislead in some way. I was just saying what CBIT was for us and its benefits for our daughter.

Hello, My daughter just completed CBIT (she still goes for follow up appointments) with amazing success. We have tried everything since she was 5 and she started CBIT at 12 (she's 13 now) and the results have been life changing. CBIT - doesn't use the word habit reversal - at least with the doctors we dealt with - in fact they won't use the word habit - for that is so far from what Tourettes or tics are. CBIT is a program specifically for Tics (that is why it is called Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics) it is focused just on tics. Not reversal of tics but rather the awareness of them and taking control of them. We are in Canada and their are some hospitals here with out patient services that are within the Tourette''s clinics that have areas where the psychologists are trained specifically in CBIT. The book Nix your Tics is where we found out the hospitals that provided this service. Our daughter was a candidate for the program because the tics bothered her (so she was motivated to put the work into the program), she was aware of her tics (she could tell when they would happen before they happened - so she could control them in the Premonitory urge stage, and she was old enough to be committed to doing the program. My other daughter who has tics is only 8 and is not a candidate right now - for her tics do not bother her - so she is not motivated to work on controlling them. She probably has inattentive adhd - which means that she is not always aware of when they are happening either. Good luck! Lisa

My daughter is 13 and a competitive dancer and she did the same thing. Would do spins and turns everywhere we were. It wasn't so bad when she was little, but when she was 12 and would break out into a turn sequence while walking down the hallway at school or in the line up for a movie - it wasn't so great. She used CBIT - just like she did with her smaller tics. She no longer does this, but rather if she has the urge will do a small hand motion that is not noticeable. Good luck!

My daughter also had debilitating tics. She missed lots school due to the nature of some of her motor tics. Her vocals weren't as bad but still there. After doing CBIT for 8 months, we see very few if any tics. I had at first thought it was a wax and wan type thing and waiting for the flare up but she is still going strong. She seems so confident in the controlling of them - that I am starting to relax a little. I am hoping I can soon just sit back and relax soon and think of major tics being a thing of the past for her. But to answer your question. I do believe that she has successfully found relief for her tics. I am so so happy for her, but not quite ready to drop my guard and claim a victory. lol. But feel like that is actually in our grasp for once. However, I have another daughter who has tourettes and not a CBIT candidate at this time - so starting the journey with her now.

Hello, My 12 year old daughter has just completed CBIT (behavioural intervention therapy for tics) - pretty much same jist as HRT. She has had amazing success at it. She has tourettes, adhd (inattentive type) and anxiety. She has had tics since 5 years old. We have tried, diet, vitamins, naturopaths, osteopaths, homeopaths, integrative doctors, metal detox, and a year of antibiotics for PANDAS treatment. All with various levels of success. However, she was accepted into the CBIT program in October and has gone every week to the hospital clinic that specialises in it. She also has to work on it everyday at home/school/dance. The clinic also does a lot of therapy etc to get at the root of her anxiety - which she/we didn't even realise she had anxiety. She has just graduated from the program last week. She is amazed at how tic free she is and how she can stop a tic if she feels it is going to start. With Tourettes - you can never cure the tics - but she is able to do a competing response when she feels the tic coming on to stop it before it becomes a noticeable or problematic tic. In turn, the need to tic has greatly reduced. She worked on a neck roll that would leave her in pain, a neck thrust, a back bending tic, a breathing tic, a facial grimace, arm snapping to name a few. She has done remarkable at it. We were told they usually don't start people on this program until they are an age to really understand it. I also have an 8 year old with tourettes and OCD but they said she was too young to start the habit reversal properly. If started to young - it could cause more anxiety. It is a lot of work - but in her words SO worth it. She is the happiest and most carefree I have seen her in years. We went to a hospital in Toronto, Ontario to work on it.

Hi Amy, From what I understand there are 3 major clinics that have been trained in it (in ontario) London, Ontario , Toronto and probably closest to you Ottawa. My pediatrician didnt even know of this clinic. It was recommended to me from another tics specialist / and a teacher who has tourette. I think in nix your tics book he has listed clinics in Canada who practice it. Good luck!

Hi Amy, We are having great success with the CBIT so far. We are happy and surprised by the results and most importantly my daughter is very happy with the changes she has seen too. I too read the book Nix your tics first, but like you - I wanted to go at it with professional help guiding us along the way. She goes once a week to the Tourettes and tics clinic at a hospital. She only gets to work on one tic at a time - and she learns a competing response to it - that replaces the big tic movement - with a small unnoticable and unpainful movement. It is really interesting - for we have spent years telling her to ignore the tics and not talking about them to some degree - but this actually gets her to focus on the tic that is giving her the most problems -whether it be a painful or embarrassing etc. But along with the CBIT is a lot of councelling on anxiety, worries, which I think has really helped her a lot too. I wouldn't have thought of her as an anxious child - but it seems more underlying for her. It is a slow process - going for one tic at a time, but I have noticed other tics she has have decreased as well. I think it is the first time in 7 years that we don't feel so anxoius about it for we feel like she has a game plan. We still use magnesium, multi vitamin and a pretty clean diet - but we've been doing that for years now. Are you in Canada or the US?

I have two Daughters with tics. One who is 12 and diagnosed with Tourette's and one who is 7 and has started with tics as well.

Yes, one of my daughters does something like this - but her specialist said it was an OCD behaviour. She also has tics.

Thanks, I'll keep you posted! She goes every week for about 12 weeks and then every other week etc. So hopefully we'll know something soon.

I have always been interested in CBIT but wanted to wait for my daughter to be old enough to give it a good try. She is 12 now. I discovered a Tourettes clinic in Toronto and we were referred there. She was diagnosed with Tourettes "officially" even though we have known that for sometime. But the offical label had her qualify for CBIT. We had our first session yesterday - just an introduction - but it sounded very promising. I guess after 7 years of doctors saying 'she has tics' and then sending us on our way (except for our integrative doctor) it was nice to have doctors actually have an action plan for us that didn't involve medication. Anyone tried this themselves or with their kids before. This program mirrors the same approach I would say as Dr Duncan Mckinley's book "Nix your tics". Thanks, Lisa