Tourette's Awareness Month - Day 7: tic reduction
Like triggers, things that help reduce people's tics vary from person to person. However, some common ones include:
Exercise - using up physical energy leaves less energy behind for tics
Understanding and acceptance - when people know of our condition, accept and understand it, our anxiety reduces and we feel calmer. For some people, this may look like ticcing more, but actually it means they feel comfortable enough to not suppress around you :)
Being focused on something or totally encapsulated by something - this could be a hobby, music or playing an instrument, sport, a complex or complicated task, hyper focusing, etc etc.
Nature and other calm spaces - being in a comfortable, freeing, spacious, calming area can really help!
For me personally, hyper focusing, focusing on music, nature, the sea and showers, all really help reduce my tics. Obviously things like avoiding triggers and stress help too but are sometimes harder. Alcohol can also reduce some people's tics but obviously this comes with risks. For me, alcohol helps but only a certain amount.
