Have any of these meds caused bad effects in Tourettes??

[David Baxter]

Let me put it this way: On Friday, I struggled on my own to get a large package into my house... too large and heavy to just pick up and carry, and the box was falling apart which made it even trickier. A short while later, I developed a cough and started feeling quite achey. By late that night, it was clear that I had a cold or some sort of flu, and I've spent the rest of this weekend laying low and sleeping a good part of the time.

Should I conclude that bringing in that package gave me the flu?

That is the problem with anecdotal evidence, as opposed to controlled research.

And when you are reading this information online, what's even worse is you don't even have all of the information you need to draw any informed conclusions. For example, someone reports that they took Prozac and suddenly started having tics. What has been left out about that person's medical history, previous medications, family medical history, other mental health diagnoses, substance abuse, eating habits, etc., etc., etc.? The person reporting this "side effect" may be well intentioned but, as my mother used to say, the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

No, you do not know more than your doctors. You may know your son a lot better than any doctor will ever know him but that doesn't mean you know enough about medications and how they interact with one another or with other medical and mental health conditions to draw those sorts of conclusions.

I'm less concerned with what decisions you might make for yourself or your son than I am about leaving the impression for other readers that medications like Prozac are "bad" drugs or that doctors don't know what they're doing when they prescribe them.

[TSOW]

The realty of Tourette is that tics in a given individual wax and wain over time. They can vary in intensity and in their nature over months, weeks, days and even time of day.

Some tics in the repertoire evoleve over time to become variations of their original versions while others remain stable throughout a lifetime.

In some people tic activity declines with age, while in others it does not.

The point is that if and when a diagnosis is confirmed by a medical practitioner who has a specialized interest in Tourette Syndrome, the next step is to help the person afflicted with develping strategies to deal with the challenges they will encounter in life.

As has been mentioned, not all medical practitioners, be they general physicians, psychiatrists, psychologists and even neurologists, have the necessary training and clinical experience to make a definitive diagnosis. That's why it's important to seek out a competent consultant with expertise in Tourette Syndrome.

As David has alluded to, searching for reasons to attribute Tourette can be counter productive for your son, because he can begin to feel guilt that his tics are somehow a failing on his part.

If a diagnosis is confirmed, then it's time to help your son accept his diagnosis, because it is part of who he is and part of his life and he needs to know how to adapt to social situations, interpersonal relationships and to eventual employment.

This process can be started by becoming involved with a local chapter of The Tourette Syndrome Association in your community, where your son can meet other people his age with Tourette, learn from their experiences and develop the strategies he will need to enjoy a satisfying and productive life.

[DsMom]

Just an update on my son and also to let you know this will be my last post on this forum.
All the symptoms my son has had back in November and December were proven to be by the medication reactions. He was having seizures back at Thanksgiving time and I want to thank the lady that suggested he was possibly having seizures, becasue he was and i had no idea.
That brought me to look into all different things rather than just touretts and tics. All this wasn't really about TS at all. What that lady posted was the best thing i read on here and again I want to thank her very very much.
My son is almost totally back to normal with very few tics and doing Great in school.
Hope everyone has a nice year

[STP]

Happy to hear your son is doing well DsMom. A great way to start a new year. You have a great year too.