Causes and treatment of pediatric tics
Tic disorders in children are repetitive and rapid muscle contractions that occur in the form of movements or even the production of sound and are always involuntary and often occur in the head and neck area.
We sometimes deal with people around us who are constantly repeating unnecessary words or phrases that they do not need to say at all; Children aged 7-12 years show the highest rate of tics in 8-12% of cases.
Ticks are more common in boys than girls and may persist into middle age. The prevalence of tics is much higher in families whose members have tics. A simple tick lasts for a short time and rarely lasts more than a second and disappears after a few weeks or months.
Causes of tics in children
Cause of the tick
It was once believed that ticks were an outward sign of repressed emotions and internal conflicts. In many parts of the world today, it is considered a combination of environmental and biological factors.
Family history of ticks shows that in almost one-third of all cases, researchers believe the problem has a genetic basis, or in some cases, the habit may be acquired through mimicry. It has also been shown that tic behaviors increase during stress, which leads to ” nervous tics “.
Types of children’s ticks
Face ticks: The most common tics are facial and can take many forms; Such as blinking, brow lift, biting lips, sucking lips, sucking fingers and nails, remove the tongue from the mouth, Finn, smelling something, cough, roll up, China forehead, shaking ears, swallowing saliva, hiccups out, Plucking hair, making various gestures or making animal sounds.
Tics of the neck and limbsInvoluntary rotation of the neck in different directions, raising the shoulders, pulling the hands to the hair and head and face, bending the knees and additional movements in walking and cosmetic behaviors are in this category.
Vocal Ticks: In this case, we can mention sneezing, coughing, and imitating the sound of animals. Squeezing the throat, snoring verbally, or uttering an insulting word or sentence are also such ticks.
Treatment of pediatric tics
To treat such behaviors, first of all, the family environment should be examined and those around you should be warned that exceed expectations and pressure on the person to quit or reduce these behaviors are not only not useful, but also have the opposite effect and intensify thetic.
Experience has shown that direct reprimand or punishment of a child for quitting a habitual behavior is not effective at all and encouragement-based parenting should be used. When the child does not have a tick, he should be paid more attention to or caressed, and when the tick shows itself, by ignoring it and replacing activities such as painting, music, games, etc. Be able to help the process of quitting the habit.
How to deal with nervous tics in children
Ticks are all temporary and often appear when the child is stressed or tired And when the baby returns to normal, the ticks disappear. Some types of tics are relatively common in younger children and are usually not a sign of illness, so tics are not dangerous; But they can be irritating Parents should not react abnormally to the tic, as it may increase the child’s anxiety and increase thetic.
On the other hand, whenever a child gets tired, his tics increase, so parents should try to give their children enough rest, be calm so that the child’s stress does not increase. Also, if the child’s tic is shaking his head, never leave his parents alone and put pillows around the bed so that he does not hurt himself.
As tic behaviors are often exacerbated by stress, look for elements in your child’s life that may be a source of unhappiness or anxiety. For example, do they try not to fall behind in homework and lessons? Are their sports expectations high? Do marital problems cause them distress?
To reduce the potential stress of children, try as much as possible to create calm and confidence and eliminate stressful situations and be kind and gentle with them.
Experts emphasize that children with sudden motor or speech tics need the patience, love, and comfort of their parents.
Ticks are never voluntary, so these tics are exacerbated by the child’s anger and decrease when the child is calm, so calm in the living environment of the child with tics is very important and parents should be less in the child’s mood. Pay attention to themselves.
See Also Evaluation of stress in children
