Eye blink tic

[Little_Girl_Blue]

Ok, so I'm no social bunny or anything. I admit I have done a lot to keep people away for a long time (seriously, I just turned 23 and have never been in a relationship). But now I'm not so interested in isolation anymore- I'm in a new place with new people and I'm trying to do things differently.

But I still have this friggin eye tic thing - I keep blinking and squinting my eyes and I don't even notice most of the time, except when my family tells me. This isn't a new thing - it has come and gone since I was little. I try to control it by just being aware, but when I'm stressed or preocupied with something else it just starts back up full blown.

I supposed this scares away a lot of people, right? I don't know how pronounced my tic is (definitely noticeable, though). From my point of view I basically feel like an average person, but in your experience, how much do other people care about tics? Does it really stop people from approaching you?

 

[Retired]

Welcome to Psychlinks, Little Girl Blues,

Have you ever talked to your doctor about your eye tics? Bear in mind that many family doctors do not have enough clinical experience with tics or movement disorders to make a diagnosis, and they sometimes mis judge tics as a "nervous habit" and dismiss the patient's concerns.

If you have a good family doctor, s/he should refer you to a neurologist who specializes in movement disorders. For your own peace of mind, you may want to satisfy your curiosity by determining the cause of your eye tics.

Once you get a diagnosis, you can decide how to proceed.

As you may know Tourette is an involuntary movement disorder, so there is little or nothing a person with Tourette can do to stop the tics.

Depending on the severity of the disorder in each person, some people with Tourette can suppress their tics for a limited amount of time. Suppression can be either holding back the tic, or re directing the tic energy.

It's a bit like trying to hold back a sneeze, but for many people the technique does help get them through situations where they prefer not to express their tics.

Someone drawing attention to one's tics, by perhaps saying, "Stop doing that", only serves to raise one's stress level, and tics are exacerbated (made worse) when a person is under stress.

I supposed this scares away a lot of people, right? I don't know how pronounced my tic is (definitely noticeable, though). From my point of view I basically feel like an average person, but in your experience, how much do other people care about tics? Does it really stop people from approaching you?

There is absolutely nothing different about you from the "average person" just because you happen to tic with your eyes.

If your diagnosis happens to be Tourette, the disorder does nothing to differentiate you from the general population except that you have motor or vocal tics.

Are people affected by your tics? Yes and No

There are people who are intolerant of anyone who displays any kind of characteristic that is outside their image of perfection. These are the people who will be impatient with a person who stutters, at a person who is hard of hearing, a person who is bald, short, tall, [fill in the blanks].

On the other hand, most people are quite tolerant and will want to be with you for the wonderful person that you are. Oh, they may notice your blinking, and they may even ask about it.

The best strategy for people with Tourette is to have an rehearsed little explanation about what Tourette is. It's an involuntary neurological disorder that causes me to blink, holler, jerk my foot shrug my shoulders [fill in the blanks with your tics].

You may also want to print out a description of Tourette to give to people who are interested. Click Here

There are lots of people with Tourette Syndrome in the world, between 1.5 to 3.0% of the population (depending on the source of the statistic).

It means that you have likely come in contact with someone with Tourette but did not see anything particularly outstanding. That's probably the case with you..people see you for the person you are, and not for the color of your hair, the shape of your nose or the eye blinking.

If indeed your diagnosis is Tourette, this will not and cannot prevent you from doing anything you wish to do in your life.

I'll be looking forward to hearing more about your experiences, and especially whether you have been seen by any medical professional in connection with your tics.