Sheila Rogers & Suppressing Tics Naturally 10/27/2009
Many folk in TS circles, including regulars over at ACN, rave about Sheila Roger's book Natural Treatments for Tics and Tourettes. (More info here.) I have used many principles in Roger's book (diet, supplements, etc.) , but have yet to read the book cover to cover. With allergy season upon us, and Stink's tics at an all time high (think very soft hiccups and eye rolls every 5 seconds - no joke) I am ready to pour into this book once again. (No, not saying he doesn't have a neurological disposition to ticking, but 3 years into my journey, I've noticed that rain and seasonal changes bring out the worst tics. Food for thought to be sure. Organic,non-food dyed, no wheat food, of course. I had the good fortune of corresponding with Rogers over email last year and did a small review for her when i was writring for BabyCenter. Rogers talked me down a ledge when I thought I couldn't hear Stink cough one more time (pool season... cholorine... it gets him every time. The remedy? Epsom salt - 2 cups in his bath for 20 minutes or 1 cup for 10. The magnesium helps take out the toxins. It kind of worked, but not 100%. But I suppose, like all this natural approach, it's not going to cure something. It will simply keep our kids healthy. Like with Stink's "All Time High" now of tics - it's not crazy jerking, barking, screaming or cursing. He's just softly vocalizing. Perhaps it would be worse if I didn't keep him on such a balanced diet. I will never know.) But why can't I make the noises stop all together for God Sake??? Oh yeah. He has Tourettes. I keep forgetting. More to come. Would love to hear if anyone has read Sheila's book. Or perhaps we can all read some chapters together and do a mini-book club on it? Who's game? I This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar. CommentsJT's mom 10/28/2009 10:27
I'm game! Just need to buy the book. Sorry to hear about Stink's rough patch. Just remember... "this too shall pass." Does he take anything for the allergies? 10/29/2009 07:39
JT - Bailey's mom 10/30/2009 08:48
My daughter Bailey (age 9) was diagnosed with tourettes last year and her tics have become to be worse this last few weeks. I decided to take her to a homeopathic doctor who put her on a gluten-free, dairy free diet. two weeks in and I have to admit I have seen an improvement. She has been a trooper, although the other night she begged to have some cheese and a little ranch dressing on her taco. I felt so bad, for the first time she cried and complained that her "diet" had not taste. I told her she could have a little, but that might mean her tics would come back. She said she was used to tics, but not tasteless food. I finally relented. I realized that I had to find a balance between letting her live her life and "controlling" her tics. Tricia 12/08/2009 13:25
My ds Ethan, 8, developed tics right before he turned 6 years old. Some minor throat clearing and eye blinking. I flipped out and went into major anxiety attacks and they clearly bothered me more than they did him! We took him to the Ped. for Strep tests (PANDAS was quickly ruled out since he had no strep antibodies) and they ran some urine tests that were very expensive. We ended up trying GABA Calm and Calms Forte with no success. We decided to do a gluten free/casein free diet and it helped! He was on the diet for roughly 15 months and we took him off. He was tic free off the diet for a good 6 months and then we'd see them pop up and go away. Now they've come back with a vengeance and some new ones in the mix. Boo! I have Sheila's book and plan to bury my nose in it. I dread going back to the diet, we just can't afford it! Hopefully something else will help. I'd love to be a part of your Twitch & Bitch group. Glad I'm not alone :) A r 04/07/2010 17:04
Hi, Just wondering if anyone has ever tried avoiding dairy products for vocal tics ...seems to work for us! Chlorine!!!! That must be it? My daughter just started ticking all of the sudden out of nowhere....up until now our natural foods, avoiding the food allergy stuff was working but I couldn't figure out why they came back full blown!!! We took her swimming at a hotel 2 weeks ago...just before this started. She even swallowed some pool water. I'm not sure if she's ever been in a chlorine pool to tell you the truth. My aunt has a saltwater pool and that's all she used to go in. THANK YOU for this insight. I'm going to try the Epsom salts. If it doesn't work, I might just run down the road screaming like you suggested :) 03/08/2011 19:20
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