Tourette Syndrome Tics Triggered by Electricity

I’ve known Matt for ten years. Recently I became concerned that some of his Tourette syndrome symptoms were related to hypersensitivity to electromagnetic radiation. Now his latest email confirmed it.

Matt wrote in an e-mail: “When can we chat about the electrical thing? I’m getting zapped all over the place. I feel like a freakin’ lightning rod. It’s really bothering me.”

A bright and talented guy, Matt has a terrific sense of humor—and a nasty case of Tourette syndrome (TS).

Now 35, for most of his life Matt has dealt with serious behavioral swings, major muscle tics and loud, persistent vocalizations most of his life. His symptoms did not respond well to medications, though many were tried. He learned he had hypersensitivities to allergens and foods but had trouble controlling his lifestyle. Matt struggled to hold a job, and family relations were strained over the years. When he settled into a home near Rochester, New York his parents were optimistic things would go smoothly—until he reported a new problem: reacting to electromagnetic frequencies.

When Matt and I spoke as a follow-up to his email, he described the sensations he was feeling:

• “I can feel an electric current radiating from my laptop and monitor”
• “Electromagnetic frequencies can cause an agitated, irritating feeling that makes my tics more intense.”
• “I’m more uncomfortable in certain rooms of the house and certain areas of the city.”
• “I can be sharply ‘zapped’ by electric currents.”
• “When using a cell phone, I can actually feel radiation enter the side of my head and go partway down my body.”
• “I’m much more reactive in this house than when in the country at my parent’s home.” (His house was later shown to lack proper electrical grounding.”

Matt said he uses the computer and phone for his business, so it’s not easy to avoid them. I spoke with his mother, and she verified his comments and shared my concern. She told me she’s seen him jump back from his computer in pain.

Remember the massive 2003 power outage in the northeast (USA)? Matt recalls how the lights went dark, cell phone communication died, and the hum of electrical appliances went silent for days.During that time, his body, he says, was the calmest he could recall.

Sound crazy? It’s not. But it is frightening, and it’s a problem reported by an increasing number of people. We gave Matt suggestions to reduce his exposures at home, and discussed other factors to hopefully lessen his level of reactivity. However, the key approach is avoidance.

Matt is experiencing a hypersensitive response to a pervasive problem we are all exposed to everyday.How do you avoid electromagnetic radiation? What can you do to protect yourself?

See Marne Glaser’s article on our site. Read our previous articles on this topic here.