Mental illness is considered when and illness effects someone’s emotions, thoughts or behavior which effects their personalities commonly producing negative effects on the subjects’ life and those around them. Many forms of mental illness exist, each effecting the patient in similar but different ways. Causes of mental illness are not completely understood but factors such as genetics are considered to be a cause although not always the case. Psychological, biological and environmental factors are also considered to take part in the development of mental illness. Tourette’s is just one of many mental illnesses that are known around the world. Known to effect roughly 138,000 children alone is the United States according to the Centers for Disease …show more content…
Classified as either simple or complex, both having different sounds and movements appropriate for either category. A simple tic is more sudden, brief and repetitive while a complex tic is much more distinct and more coordinated. Staff of the Mayo Clinic have provided a list of tics and the category they fall under. Common simple physical tics listed are; eye blinking, head jerking, shoulder shrugging, eye darting, finger flexing and sticking out the tongue. More complex physical tics are; touching the nose, touching other people, smelling objects, flapping the arms and hopping. Not all symptoms of Tourette’s are physical, the syndrome also causes vocal tics. Common simple vocal tics are, hiccupping, yelling, throat cleaning and barking noises. More complex vocal tics are, using different tones of voice, repeating one’s self or others words and using vulgar and curse words.
Currently the cause of Tourette’s is unknown. Studies suggest that the tics that occur when suffering from the Tourette’s are caused by either an increased amount of a neurotransmitter dopamine or the neurotransmitter serotonin. Other causes that may in fact just stimulate the dopamine/ serotonin imbalance come from your genetics. If one or both of your parents are known to have suffered or suffer from Tourette’s the chances of developing symptoms is more likely than I child with parents with no history of