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Key Takeaways:

• Avoiding facing tics increased their shame/mystery; hiding didn't help
• Viewing video with self-compassion built acceptance of this long-rejected part   
• Facing discomfort brought unexpected healing after years fruitless fighting

As someone who has struggled with constant, embarrassing motor tics for over 20 years, the idea of videotaping my tics and watching them back fills me with dread. Like many dealing with Tourette's, I tend to avoid facing just how uncontrollable and pervasive my tics are on a daily basis. Out of sight, out of mind has been my coping mechanism.

But recently, I've realized that hiding from my tics has only increased my shame and isolation over the years. The more I pretend they aren't there, the more power and mystery they hold over me. I've decided it's finally time to turn towards this longtime foe with self-compassion as my tool.

So I set up my phone's camera, took a few deep breaths to calm my anxiety, and hit record....

Key Takeaways:

• Tics knot muscle tissue; massage slowly untwinds decades of accumulated tension 
• Self-massage is embodiment; tending rejected areas fosters integration
• Loving touch transforms cries for attention into healing invitations 

As someone who struggled with constant full-body motor tics for over 20 years, I know firsthand how much pent-up trauma gets locked in the muscles and fascia where the spasms occur thousands of times daily. The areas around my tics have been knotted up for so long, they feel like concrete.

I’ve found regularly massaging and pressing into these tense spots helps break up that accumulated tension in a way nothing else can. It’s painful yet profoundly healing - like wringing toxicity out of my own body.

I recently had a massage where the therapist skillfully found each knotted muscle group associated with my various tics. Using fingers and elbows, he patiently worked out the layers of tightness with the perfect amount of...

Key Takeaways:

• Modern medicine failed; ancient modalities succeeded helping heal holistically  
• Tools like yoga, meditation and chanting meet needs for mind-body integration 
• By honoring ancestral wisdom, I created inner peace once lacking  

As someone who struggled with constant motor tics for over 20 years, I tried every modern conventional treatment available to no avail. No pill or medical procedure could provide lasting relief from the thousands of daily spasms erupting through my body.

In desperation, I started exploring more holistic healing modalities from ancient traditions like yoga, meditation, and Qi Gong. And they have helped me achieve what medicine could not.

By dedicating time each day to simple breathing exercises, mindfulness practices, and movement rituals passed down for generations, I've learned to come home to my body and find an inner stillness that eluded me for so long.

When I take a moment to tune into my breath, rather than...

Key Takeaways:

• Bringing kind awareness to epicenter of tics releases accumulated tension
• Anchoring in body sensations of stability ripples calm upwards   
• Discovering stillness living within the chaos brings unexpected relief

As someone who has struggled with constant shoulder and arm tics for over 20 years, I know all too well the sense of inner agitation that drives these involuntary urges. It often feels like there is a part deep inside that is never fully settled in my body – a part always needing to jerk, flap, and spasm without my consent.

In my healing journey, I’ve found meditation focused specifically on the areas where I tic can help immensely. By guiding my awareness into the tics’ origin points with compassion, true relaxation emerges.

Recently, I led myself through a simple 15-minute grounding exercise for my shoulder tic. Sitting quietly with eyes closed, I first directed my full attention to the source of the spasms. Exploring the...

Key Takeaways:

• Medications only temporarily masked symptoms vs. resolving root cause   
• True healing emerged through self-nurturing presence and understanding  
• Relating to discomfort differently transformed its control on life

As someone who struggled with constant motor tics for over 20 years, I know the misery and isolation this condition can cause. In desperation, I tried all the medications doctors prescribed to “treat” my tics. But the side effects were often as bad as the symptoms. Medicating myself into a stupor didn't equal healing.

True relief only came when I started “treating” my tics by taking better care of my mind and body. Nurturing myself with presence and understanding - not pills - finally eased my suffering.

Now when I feel the chaos of urges rising within, I treat myself to some quiet time in nature, rather than running from the discomfort. Being among the trees settles my nervous system. I also make sure I...