Guest guest Posted February 25, 2012 Report Share Posted February 25, 2012 I think it is not a good idea to try to guess why your son is doing whatever compulsions or practicing whatever avoidances, unless he specifically explains it to you. Perhaps he has to do certain compulsions if he sees himself or he fears something bad will happen if he does. OCD causes such crazy reasoning that it could be anything. Mirror avoidance I meant to ask about this in my previous post. Probably for the past 2 years+ my son has avoided mirrors at all costs or even looking at himself in a window reflection. To be quite honest, I'm not sure how long it's been since he's actually seen himself, I kid you not! I'm sure this is part of the reason why he goes to the bathroom in the dark, but the mirror/reflection and photo avoidance started long before his Tourette's/tics and OCD were clearly obvious. Does anyone have kids who do this? I'm guessing that it's some form of OCD, but I'm not sure. I know there is the Body Dysmorphic Disorder, but from the definition, it seems like that is more focused on a specific body part(s). With my son, I don't think it's BDD, I think it's that he doesn't want to look at his face because he feels he's unattractive. Now I'm not just saying this because I'm his mom, but he truly is a very handsome young man. He has beautiful green eyes and a smile that lights up the room. It's just breaks my heart that he finds himself so unattractive he can't even stand looking in a mirror or seeing photos of himself. Thanks, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 25, 2012 Report Share Posted February 25, 2012 Hi , My son doesn't avoid mirrors, but when he gets in the bathroom, he goes into tonic motor tics when he looks at his reflection. There is a full length mirror in the bathroom, and I have taken to covering it with the fabric shower curtain just to help this tic not get triggered. I'm not sure why he does this with the mirror, but it does seem to help a bit when it is covered up. Most of my son's tics and OCD behavior center around the bathroom, so this is just one of the pieces that we deal with. Sorry I can't shed any light on it, but hope it helps to hear that someone else is dealing with mirrors as a trigger! Take care, Keri > > I meant to ask about this in my previous post. Probably for the past 2 years+ my son has avoided mirrors at all costs or even looking at himself in a window reflection. To be quite honest, I'm not sure how long it's been since he's actually seen himself, I kid you not! I'm sure this is part of the reason why he goes to the bathroom in the dark, but the Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 25, 2012 Report Share Posted February 25, 2012 Hi , A tonic tic is one where there is prolonged muscle contraction. Basically, he holds his arms out in an arc in front of his body, turns his head slightly, tenses his muscles and focuses on a spot to one side of the mirror. He kind of looks like a statue when he does this. Hope this description makes sense! Keri > > Thanks, Keri. What are " tonic " tics? Haven't heard that term before. > > > Hi , > > > > My son doesn't avoid mirrors, but when he gets in the bathroom, he goes into tonic motor tics when he looks at his reflection. There is a full length mirror in the bathroom, and I have taken to covering it with the fabric shower curtain just to help this tic not get triggered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 25, 2012 Report Share Posted February 25, 2012 Thanks, Keri, I had not heard of that before. Wow, sounds pretty uncomfortable. Does he have Tourette's or is it just this particular tic? > Hi , > > A tonic tic is one where there is prolonged muscle contraction. Basically, he holds his arms out in an arc in front of his body, turns his head slightly, tenses his muscles and focuses on a spot to one side of the mirror. He kind of looks like a statue when he does this. > > Hope this description makes sense! > Keri > > > > > > Thanks, Keri. What are " tonic " tics? Haven't heard that term before. > > > > > Hi , > > > > > > My son doesn't avoid mirrors, but when he gets in the bathroom, he goes into tonic motor tics when he looks at his reflection. There is a full length mirror in the bathroom, and I have taken to covering it with the fabric shower curtain just to help this tic not get triggered. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 26, 2012 Report Share Posted February 26, 2012 It could be BDD, I don't think it has to focus on just one part. Or it could be OCD and mirrors (for whatever the reason) are off limits, maybe something bad will happen if he sees himself, that type thing. Whenever avoided something, I thought " OCD. " > > I meant to ask about this in my previous post. Probably for the past 2 years+ my son has avoided mirrors at all costs or even looking at himself in a window reflection. To be quite honest, I'm not sure how long it's been since he's actually seen himself, I kid you not! I'm sure this is part of the reason why he goes to the bathroom in the dark, but the mirror/reflection and photo avoidance started long before his Tourette's/tics and OCD were clearly obvious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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