溫氏現代針灸 溫崇凱中醫診所-耳針眼針頭皮針舌針權威-跟診日誌

Acupuncture Treatment: The Perfect Solution for Tourette Syndrome

Tourette Syndrome is a tic disorder. The so called 'tic' refers to making intermittent minor motor movements or sounds, which are quick and short. Sometimes tics occur in successive cycles over several months. When thought to be almost gone, they are manifested in another form. Tics can roughly be categorized into two types, the vocal type and the facial movement type. They commonly occur in early childhood, predominantly among children of preschool age or in the lower grades of elementary school, and mostly among boys. Research shows that most symptoms will disappear after the patient reaches adulthood.

Every time I encountered children with Tourette Syndrome during my observation at the clinic, I thought they were very adorable, but it broke my heart to see them being unable to control the involuntary tics. According to the parents of some Tourette Syndrome patients who visited the clinic, their children were so tired that they found the tics unbearable and asked to see a doctor. But what impressed me the most was a big kid. A young man who was about to go to university and flew from America to Taiwan just to be treated by my master before the university course began.

This young man came to the clinic accompanied by his parents. In addition to Tourette Syndrome, he also had OCD and autism. According to his mother, although he has had Tourette Syndrome since he was little, he has never been bullied at school, since the US places an importance on special education and it provides an environment and teachers dedicated to this. Now, however, he needed to study at university and to face the world on his own. He found it challenging to interact with society. If his life continued like this, he definitely would not learn how to be independent. His father said that medicines in the US attributed illnesses such as Tourette Syndrome and autism to gastrointestinal problems. They have controlled and paid attention to his diet as much as they could. However, the symptoms have not been alleviated. As the boy grew up, he could no longer remain under the protection of the special education system. He could do nothing but look for alternative medical treatments.

The parents described their son's personality as being totally at odds with that of the younger generation nowadays. Even though the university in which their son has successfully enrolled was very far from their home, he requested to commute there. He was not willing to live in the school accommodation or rent a place. He wanted to live at home. When he was at home, he stayed in his room all day. He was not willing to come out to the living room. He was quiet in his room. No one knew what he was doing.

Being in the prime of his life, he didn't have many friends, and had virtually no social life. The parents revealed their son had mentioned that as long as he spoke to strangers, his OCD would be triggered. He would feel like swearing and making obscene gestures such as raising the middle finger. He knew that this would definitely trigger unnecessary confrontation but he couldn't control his OCD (but they were not able to attribute the situation to OCD). Therefore, it was easier for him not to make any friends. Unless it was absolutely necessary for him to talk to people, he would put his hands in his pockets, which he has been used to doing for a long time. He would point his middle fingers in the pockets and mumble swear words as if he was talking to himself. It was a safe way to be and almost no one would notice it.

The parents looked at it on the positive side. Their son was very well behaved. He always came home and never caused trouble. He was quiet to the extent that he was not like a normal young person, and that made the parents very anxious. Even though he was not engaged in any activities or exercises, he lacked stamina every day. Especially after midday, he would look like a ball leaking air, and it became worse when the tics occurred.

Looking at this young man, I thought to myself, 'will the symptoms get much worse if the tics do not disappear after they grow up?' I wondered how my master would treat patients whose Tourette Syndrome has not disappeared, compounded with OCD and autism.

Not long after, smiles appeared on the faces of the parents who came back to Taiwan with great expectation for treatment; after less than one week of treatment, they decided to postpone their return flights.

According to the mother, the patient's tics have been alleviated a lot and there has been progress in various regards. First of all, his physical strength has increased. His sickly appearance after midday has gone. Secondly, his personality has changed. He would download music, sing and dance along to the music with earphones in the living room, and immerse himself in music. Thirdly, his hands are no longer in his pockets, and he does not have the OCD and does not swear when he talks to people.

Feeling delighted and gratified, his mother added that her son had been very docile. When he was little, he ate whenever he was asked to. He never objected even when he had no appetite. After he received the acupuncture treatment, surprisingly he would say to her, 'Mum, I am hungry. Let's go get some nice food somewhere!' Looking from behind at the figure of their son dancing along with the music via the earphones, the parents felt like crying, because it was the reaction of a normal young person, with exuberant movement and vitality. They have been waiting to see that for 17 years and they have seen it now.

I was extremely touched by what I had heard from them. I thought to myself that they would probably be very proud of the level of medical treatments for Tourette's Syndrome in Taiwan, which is better than the US! With just two weeks of acupuncture treatments from my master, this couple's son has been able to break away from the protective environment that he had been in, get connected with society and have the ability to be independent. What an extraordinary thing. My little takeaway from the observation is that, in addition to acupuncture treatments and Chinese herbal medicine, catgut embedding is a must for treating patients with Tourette Syndrome. It is the key.