Today I Practice What I Preach…

“…God, grant me the serenity to accept the tics I cannot change, change the tics I can, and have the wisdom to know the difference.”

Yup, just another weekend of tics and noises, and yes, after hearing them over and over, I got a wee bit exhausted.

CONFESSION TIME: Dearest vocal tics, I am sorry for finding you annoying. I wish I didn’t feel that way. There’s a mom who I read about over on some Facebook T.S. page, who just thinks all your clicks and throat clears are awesome. “They are just so adorable,” she squeals. Um, sorry, I don’t. Why? Because I want to hear my kid tell me a story he is writing about the Magic Egg without having his sentences disjointed every other second with this squelched honking sound.

CONFESSION TIME TO ANYONE READING WHO HAS T.S.: I must come off like a total boob. To be fair, let me tell you that if you hang out with me enough, you’ll get tired of my crazy non-stop talking, my annoying “vintage” clothing that has me often looking like a polyester Minnie Pearl, and my butt that seems to be getting bigger with each passing day.

CONFESSION TIME FOR ME: I know that I am doing a great job with my boy. Why? He still so happy and thriving. Tourettes is just one more opportunity for me to focus on what is truly important – the soul of my child. The heart of my family. When I get distracted about noises, I only need to remember my Friday wine companion, Ellen (above) who, despite being in an auto accident when she was 18 and living life from a chair, is one of the most kick butt human beings I know. She teaches at our local Cal State. She bowls, surfs, swims and posed for Hugh Heffner ( a full spread… oh my) back in the day. She doesn’t let a few things like, oh, walking, stop her.

And I won’t either.

TAKEAWAY: To pretend something doesn’t bug you just to look better to other people who might judge you for having negative feelings… that’s lame. It’s fine to vent. But here’s my personal conviction: don’t just vent and run. (Have you ever been around someone who farted and left the room? Not pleasant.) Release and then clear the air! (In the cases of gas and tics.) Speak your thoughts but have a plan for restoration – if not for the tics – for you. How are you going to take care of yourself so that maybe the noises don’t bug you so much? How are you going to discipline your child, tics or not, so that they grow up to be healthy members of society? Are you willing to accept that, twitches or not, your kid might have amazing gifts and change the world anyway?

Just a few random thoughts on this manic Monday. AND, I’m proud to say, my ass is 6 pounds lighter since this photo. I blame Ellen for making me push her butt up our school walking ramps. Great for the arms, too.

Check out more posts about Tourettes at the New Jersey Center for Tourette Syndrome where this blog is syndicated. (For some reason, there are a decent smattering of comments over there this week on this post. Nice parents for you to connect with!