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Monday, March 28, 2011

James Patterson's Against Medical Advice

I have recently started reading "Against Medical Advice" by James Patterson and Hal Friedman.  The story centers around Hal Friedman's son, Cory, and his struggles with Tourette Syndrome.  Cory's story began at a much younger age than Monster Man's, with his tics becoming noticeable shortly before his 5th birthday.  That led the family on a long journey, filled with many medications and even more struggles.

I'm not quite 100 pages in yet (I've only been reading it for two days), but I've already noticed so many parallels between Cory Friedman's experiences and the experiences Monster Man has had thus far.  The tics coming on suddenly.  The waxing and waning of the tics (getting better, worse, better, worse, and so on).  The constant repeating of the word "sorry".  Repeating what others say (Monster Man does this on rare occasion).  The anxiety that seems to increase the severity of the tics.  Even the need to laugh off some of the problems so he's laughing with the other kids instead of them laughing at him.   I've already found myself heartbroken at times just realizing what Monster Man is really going through.

I'm really enjoying reading this book.  It has given me so much insight into what my son, and others like him, experience on a daily basis.  I was told by many on the TSA Facebook page that it is a must-read, and I have to say that I agree with them!

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