Are all tics of the same category? Tic vs. OCD

[sahm]

Someone in another post or forum had written years back about their child starting a movement to relieve discomfort ... but then not being able to stop doing that movement.

For example, an allergic kid would clear his throat due to post nasal drip, but then keep doing it for weeks or months out of habit. Or scrunching a nose from having a cold, but then not being able to stop. Or sweeping the head to the side to get long hair out of the face, and even after haircut not being able to stop doing that movement.

Also just merely suggesting a tic to the child makes them want to do it more. (Mine says this all the time, does this mean it has OCD derivation?) Are OCD kids of tics treated differently?

Are tics, just tics - maybe from different origins, but all considered the same sort of thing? 

[Chemar]

This was described to us as Tourettic OCD by our physician, when tics can "morph" into OCD and OCD into tics

So those kinds of tics seemed to be  different from others.

We were also able to somewhat differentiate "triggered" tics ie reaction to food, environmental agent etc from those that we couldn't track to any specific trigger.

Keeping a journal really helped a lot!

[sahm]

Okay, interesting! So a kid can seem not really OCD (messy room, no obvious compulsive behaviors like hand washing or counting or anything) but the tics themselves might be how it is expressed.

I do notice a couple behaviors that would also line up with OCD:

wanting the car window to be closed and locked so wouldn't be tempted to throw things out window

saying sorry sometimes compulsively, can't seem to stop.

[ssonheim]

Interesting. My daughter is very sensitive to touch ( I wouldn't say hyper sensitive because she hasn't had meltdowns over tags ) but she hates sock seams and discomfort in her eyes shoulders and nose has turned into several month long tics until the symptoms completely disappear. However I can't get a diagnosis and I feel like I am crazy trying to figure this out. She has a messy room, a temper, pretty awesome at school (top of her class with little effort) and only minor behavior issues (relating to temper) . She has lots of friends and doesn't really show much anxiety or OCD in any way. Could hyper sensitive tics be tourettic OCD? 

[sahm]

This is very similar to what we see with our son. Extremely AIG/great grades, friends, good at sports etc. But has a few sensory things, temper and repetitive movements. Hmmm. Recently got a full neuro psych evaluation and he is "normal/fine" so would we go to a neurologist next??

[ssonheim]

Saha sounds very similar. I don't know what to do. 

[taraph]

This sounds *exactly* like my son. His tics are 100% derivative of his seasonal allergies - threat clearing, sniffing, currently rubbing his nose. They all stem from physiological discomfort but he can't seem to stop doing them. His room is a mess and he will happily get dirty or messy in dirt/mud, and doesn't have ritualistic things like hand washing but he does have issues with his temper/emotional regulation that I always thought were normal until I realized my other kids don't have the same level of explosiveness. He is an anxious kid, and has some phobias, but he is also great in school, well-liked, lots of friends, and is an exceptional athlete. 

I actually think I have some OCD behaviors that stem from issues with anxiety. I have never had tics, per se, but have had habits like nail biting and hair chewing.