A Letter That Needs To Be Read

One of my Facebook friends that also has children with Tourette Syndrome shared a post this morning that I felt was so important that it not only needed to be shared on my Facebook page, but also needed to be shared here on my blog, as well.  This post was a letter written by Richard Paul Evans, author of the Michael Vey series of books.  That letter, titled 'To the woman at church who sent me an anonymous letter', was one that brought tears to my eyes.  (Please use the link in the letter title to view the letter itself.)

Richard Paul Evans had visited a church to share the Word with those within the church.  During his visit, his tics had been quite apparent.  One of the ladies within the church took those tics as being punishment from God for Mr. Evans' sins.  We are all sinners, which is why God sent His son into the world to die for our sins - to give us forgiveness for those sins.  He does not punish us for our sins by giving us tics or other neurological conditions.

The very idea that people still believe neurological conditions can be the result of our sins is one that angers me.  Putting this idea in the heads of those who suffer from tics, seizures, etc can be damaging in so many ways.  As if knowing they are different isn't hard enough on those with these conditions, they often times deal with bullying, staring, and countless questions.  Suggesting that they are being punished for their sins is even more damaging, Those that are more prone to believing this, rather than accepting the truth that it's caused by neurological disorders, will only suffer more from their desire to be more perfect in hopes that the tics will go away.

I think that Richard Paul Evans had the perfect response to this letter.  He, like me, hurts for all of those who could fall victim to these false accusations.  I can only hope and pray that his letter has found its way to the writer of the original anonymous letter, opening her heart to the truth about the author and others with neurological disorders.  In the mean time, I pray that it has also found its way to others with similar beliefs, helping them to gain better understanding of what Tourette Syndrome really is.

Please Check Out This Video

Camp Twitch and Shout - The Movie from Emmett Williams on Vimeo.

Monster Man has been telling me for quite some time now that there is a video available called 'Camp Twitch and Shout: The Movie'. He couldn't find it on YouTube, and he wasn't sure where to find it, but he knew that it existed. He has been wanting to see it ever since he first found out about it. This morning, I found the link to the video posted in a recent post on the Camp Twitch and Shout Facebook Page. The video, which is about 30 minutes long, is so much more than I expected it to be! I knew that it would explain about camp, and about how camp benefits the campers. What I didn't expect was that it would be an incredible source of information for educating others about Tourette Syndrome. Please watch the video and share it. Let's help spread awareness!

Not a spiritual thing

I have seen and heard many comments - on websites, in emails, and out in public - about Tourette Syndrome being a spiritual thing.  Some of those that are not informed think that people with Tourette Syndrome are vulnerable in their spiritual connections with God.  They either aren't strong enough to stand up against the demonic forces that are causing them to tic, have a spiritual battle going on in them, are possessed by the devil, or even worship Satan.  Yes, those are all comments that I have seen or heard.  So, for day 4 of Tourette Syndrome Awareness Month, I want to take the time to address these comments.

In researching information about Tourette Syndrome online, I ran across a forum where people were discussing those who struggle daily with TS.  In this forum, I saw some of the comments I mentioned above.  I also saw comments that stated that people with Tourette Syndrome should not be allowed to date, let alone marry and procreate.  In fact, I saw one comment that referred to children of parents with TS as being the spawn of Satan.  How sad to think that this whole group of people is so uninformed!

I saw one person, in an email, back up his comment of Tourettes being a 'spiritual thing' by stating that people with Tourette Syndrome use obscene words or gestures.  As I've mentioned previously, coprolalia (the use of such obscenities) only occurs in somewhere around 10% of all cases of Tourette Syndrome.

The truth is, Tourette Syndrome is not a spiritual thing at all.  Instead, it is a neurological disorder.  It is not caused by demons, but instead by brain impulses.  It can, in many cases, be hereditary, though this isn't always the case.  Some theories on cause (since no cause is known) show that brain abnormalities, caused by chemicals in the brain such as dopamine and serotonin.

If you hear or see someone make a comment about the spiritual well-being of a person living with Tourette Syndrome, please take the time to explain to them the truth.  Tourette Syndrome is NOT a spiritual thing, and it can be very hurtful to those who suffer from it to hear it even suggested.

24 Hours for the Tourette Syndrome Association

In October of 2010, a go-karting world record was set.  This record was for a solo driver who drove a go-kart 801.38 miles in a 24-period.  The driver of that world record drive was Lloyd de Boltz-Miller from the United Kingdom.  Earlier this week, that record was broken.


Trey Shannon, a 26-year-old aerospace engineer living in Virginia, took his seat behind the wheel of his go-kart on the morning of October 25 with two goals.  One, to break the previous go-karting world record.  Two, to raise money and awareness for the Tourette Syndrome Association.


Trey Shannon, like my Monster Man, has Tourette Syndrome.  He has kept a positive attitude, never allowing his TS to hold him back from doing the things he loves - especially racing.  It is with other children facing a life with TS in mind that Trey Shannon does was can to help the Tourette Syndrome Association.


Thanks to the help of many sponsors and a team of supporters, Trey Shannon drove 847 miles in 24 hours at New Castle Motorsports Park in Indiana, going well beyond the previous world record.  Congratulations to Mr. Shannon, and thank you for raising awareness for those living with Tourette Syndrome!

For news footage, please check out this link.