Illustration by Daniel Fishel for Verywell Health
What Is a Tic?
People who have tics cannot control those actions and should not be blamed or shamed for them.
What Are the Types of Tics?
Illustration by Daniel Fishel for Verywell Health
Tics can present in many different ways.
However, some are more common than others.
Below are some examples of what tics might look like.
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The DSM-5 is the handbook that mental health professionals use to diagnose disorders.
The three types of tic disorders are:
Are Tics a Mental Illness?
Tics are defined in the DSM-5, which mental health professionals use.
However, tic disorders are considered to be neurological conditions, not mental illnesses.
Tics may also be due to genetics.
Certain environmental factors have also been linked to the development of Tourette’s.
In other cases, tics may be the result of drugs or medications.
Cocaine and amphetamines have been associated with tics.Medications prescribed for psychosis can also cause tics.
This is referred to astardive dyskinesia.
When tics result from drugs, a tic disorder is not diagnosed.
Associated Conditions
Tics are associated with various health conditions beyond just the three tic disorders mentioned above.
Unfortunately, there is no simple cure for tics.
Tics can be movement- or vocal-related, and they can be simple or complex.
Some examples of tics include sniffing, blinking, punching, yelling, barking, and repeating sentences.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Diagnosis for tic disorders.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Tourette syndrome.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Tourette syndrome.
American Academy of Childhood and Adolescent Psychiatry.Tic disorders.
National Health Service (UK).Tics.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Risk factors for Tourette syndrome.
