OCD or not??

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

My son (15.5) has fairly severe Tourette's, which came into " full bloom " about a

year and a half ago. Prior to that time, he had a mild eye-blinking tic, which

was easily misdiagnosed as allergies, eye issues, etc. He never really exhibited

the " typical " OCD rituals (i.e. hand-washing, counting, etc.).

About 5 years ago (age 10) he went through a period of about 6 months or so

where he thought he had every disease in the book and would freak out about it.

He'd see a commercial on TV for Mesothelioma (or whatever) and be convinced he

had it. Starting at age 2 he used to be obsessed by thinking that when anyone

laughed they were laughing at him and would go into hysterics over it. That

lasted for several years, and faded as time went on.

Presently, this is the list of things that are going on that I'm not sure would

technically be classified as OCD??

• Bedtime - every night he will tic a lot (screeching and motor tic), then slap

his butt several times, knock on wooden bed frame, laugh, then make muted sounds

for about an hour or more before falling a sleep. He does seem to do it in a

specific order, but not necessarily the same # of times each night.

• Goes to the bathroom, brushes his teeth, and eats meals in the dark, refuses

to do so with lights on.

• Doesn't want you to say certain words (positive or negative) and will put his

fingers in his ears - " NY, CA, LA " (too exciting); " Whole Foods Market " (too

exciting) " school " (stressful). We're supposed to say " the place " instead of

school. He explained that his school (small private school) reminds him more of

camp, which is less stressful, so he doesn't want to hear " school " because it

causes him stress and tics.

• Will sometimes sit in the bathroom (on the toilet) for an hour or more in the

dark, with the door open. Says he's just " resting " because of his tics.

• Recently (past week) started a new possible " tic, " however I think it's a

combo tic/OCD. Kisses back of hand, looks up to sky, mouths something, then taps

his chest twice, repeats this over and over several times, however not a

specific number of times. I asked him if it's a tic or OCD and he says he thinks

it's both. I finally pulled it out of him that he's " saying a prayer " for his

tics to improve. Sometimes he'll do this " routine " 10-15 times in a row, and he

does it throughout the day and night, usually in conjunction with his tic

outbursts.

• Doesn't want to take showers/baths or brush teeth because it causes him to

tic.

• This was the scariest thing......this week he told me that he was out side

looking at the sun a few times and it made his vision blurry. He knows you're

not supposed to look directly at the sun. He then told me he thinks it's a

tic!!!! I told him he has to stop that immediately.

At school, and in public, he presents himself as a perfectly " normal "

functioning kid and even has the ability to suppress his tics, however doing so

is extremely stressful and debilitating for him. He has gotten to the point

where he has zero social life, doesn't want to go anywhere because it causes him

stress (and tic outbursts), and is perfectly happy to just sit in his little

cocoon at home watching Ellen clips on YouTube on his iPad. The worst part is he

doesn't see anything wrong with living like this and really has no motivation or

desire to get rid of his tics (which are horrible!!) or to become a normally

functioning teenager.

There's no question he has major anxiety disorder, but I wonder about the OCD

part and just how much it does or doesn't have a hold on him. From what I

understand, a lot of OCD can be obsessing about things that may not materialize

in outwardly obvious behaviors or rituals.

Would love your feedback. He's currently on the wait list for 's memorial,

recommended by his current psychiatrist and also a partial hospitalization

program he was in for 3 weeks, however it was not an OCD/anxiety program.

Thanks!