Question: What does TS stand for?
Answer: TS is the common abbreviation for Tourette Syndrome.

Question:What are the types of motor tics?
Answer: Motor tics involve movements of the body. Simple motor tics can be eye blinking, shoulder shrugging, or head jerking. Complex motor tics can be jumping, smelling, or touching.

Question: What are verbal tics?
Answer: Verbal tics involve words or noises. Simple verbal tics can be whistles, hums, or throat clearing. Complex vocal tics can be repeating words or phrases or coprolalia.

Question: Is TS contagious?
Answer: No, you cannot catch TS from anyone. It is not like the flu or a cold.

Question: Can you die from TS?
Answer: No, the disorder is not fatal.

Question: Is there a cure for TS?
No, there is no cure at this time. However, medications can diminish the frequency and severity of tics.

Question: Can people with TS control their tics?
Answer: While people with TS can sometimes suppress their tics for periods of time, for the most part, the movements are involuntary and out of their control. In fact, after a period of suppression, the tics often emerge more intensely.

Question: Does TS ever go away?
Answer: The disorder is characterized by periods of greater or lesser intensity. Sometimes, people are completely free of tics, and sometimes, their tics are at their worst. Some people find that during late adolescence, their tics subside considerably.

Question: Do people swear who have TS?
Answer: Sometimes, but actually, this type of tic, called coprolalia, is relatively rare. It occurs in less than 15 percent of all cases of TS.

Question: Do people with TS lead productive lives?
Answer: Of course! You will find people with TS in every profession and enjoying every recreational activity. Even some famous people have TS, like Jim Eisenreich (professional baseball player) and Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (professional basketball player).

Question: What does TS feel like?
Answer: Remember how it feels when you have to sneeze. You just have to do it. That's how having a tic feels. Tics are things that a person cannot help doing.

Question: Where can I get more information about TS?
Answer: You can obtain more information about TS from the Tourette Syndrome Association of Ontario and a number of Websites on the Internet. Please refer to the Links page on this Website for more resources.

Question: Where does the name "Tourette" come from?
Answer: Tourette Syndrome is named after the French neurologist Dr. Georges Gilles de la Tourette, who first described nine cases of Tourette Syndrome in 1885.

Question: Does my child with TS need special education classes?
Answer: Your child's intelligence is not affected by the disorder, and many children with TS are fully capable of meeting the demands of the regular education classroom, some with minor accommodations. Some children who do not meet normal grade-related goals may need special services to progress adequately.