[nothing to fear]

For those who have tic disorders or Tourette's, I am wondering what other disorders do you have? From what I have read, tics are related to basal ganglia dysfunction, which can cause a lot of other disorders. I know that OCD, ADD, depression, and anxiety often occur with tic disorders. I'm just trying to gather some information about what kinds of problems tend to go with tics, and compare them to my own.

I believe I have a mild form of Tourette's (Tourette's occurs on a spectrum). I try to hide the tics from the doctors and strangers, but I have had all these tics since I was a kid and never grew out of them. I have lots of motor tics and some less-obvious phonic tics, like sniffing, clearing my throat, and making a soft noise from my throat (which I try to suppress around other people). I also develop these other "habits" from time to time like knocking on tables and brushing my forehead or banging my head with my hand over and over. I try to disguise the more unusual tics (or maybe some of them are compulsions) when I am in public so I think sometimes they are mistaken for meaningful movements when they are not. I actually worry that some people think when I make certain faces, that I am doing it on purpose, like giving them a dirty look or something. Anyone relate?

why do you try to hide them from your doctor? are there any advantages to that?

My parents were a little ignorant when it came to mental illnesses (they are much more knowledgable now). Anyway, when I was a kid, around 5 or 6 years old, my dad would make me sit in front of a mirror every morning when I ate at breakfast, so that I would notice all the funny faces I would make. It was damaging to my self-esteem because I knew it was something I had very little control over, and yet my dad would make me feel ashamed of them. My dad never meant any harm, he just didn't have the knowledge to understand that tics are not voluntary. Anyone with similar experiences?

wtf, thats awful