A Therapy for Reducing Tics
Dr. Kieron O'Connor, a clinical researcher at the Fernand-Seguin Research Centre, has developed a cognitive and behavioural approach to therapy for people suffering from involuntary motor tics. The primary objective of the therapy is to reduce the frequency and intensity of motor tics or habit disorders.
Clinical problems covered by the study:
- Compulsive habit disorders
(e.g., nail-biting, hair-pulling, skin-picking)
- Tourette’s syndrome
- Chronic tics (recurring involuntary contractions associated with a particular body part or group of muscles)
What the Research Program Involves
The study has three components:
| THERAPY |
exploration of neuropsychological processes |
evaluation of symptoms |
| For each component, patients take part in: |
|
16 one-on-one meetings, held once a week at a fixed time from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays
One follow-up phone call per month for six months
Two follow-up meetings, six months and one year after the end of therapy
|
Two meetings with a neuropsychologist
Two electrophysiology meetings
|
One meeting with a psychiatrist
Four meetings with a psychologist-evaluator
|
The therapy is part of a unique clinical research program. Our study brings together several fields, including clinical psychology, neuropsychology and electrophysiology.
This attempt to quantify a group of variables before and after cognitive-behavioural therapy has never been tried before in either children or adults with chronic tics.
Taking part in the clinical research program also involves completing numerous multiple-choice questionnaires during therapy and one year of follow-up.
* Together, the various measures allow us to analyze patients’ development over the course of treatment. Each completed questionnaire is an important source of additional information that helps us to enhance our understanding of this area.
Learning to Control Your Tics
The purpose of the therapy program developed by Dr. O’Connor is to acquire voluntary control over motor tics and habit disorders. The treatment model offered is based on a cognitive and psychophysiological explanation of tics.
Where does therapy begin?
The therapist teaches patients to reduce involuntary motor habits via exercises while also leading them to a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms.
The therapy works both to modify affected individuals’ behaviour in certain situations and to identify and modify thinking that contributes to maintaining tics. Particular emphasis is placed on examining possible links between patients’ lifestyle, time management, needs and expectations and their level of muscle tension.
Affected individuals are guided toward developing different strategies to help them prevent the occurrence of tics. To do this, they identify and analyze situations which have a high risk of causing tics to occur. We pay particular attention to managing the emotions and stress associated with these contexts.
During meetings, we teach exercises intended to reduce the level of muscular activity. Patients learn to recognize when tension is present and how to release it. Finally, practising biofeedback techniques allows them to gain more flexibility and control over muscles contracted by tics.
The therapy includes 14 meetings and is provided by one of the psychologists on our team, all of whom are members of the Ordre Professionnel des Psychologues du Québec.