What age does Tourette's usually start?
Asked by: Prof. Winfield Larkin | Last update: February 13, 2026Score: 4.4/5 (64 votes)
Tourette's syndrome typically develops in childhood, with symptoms like sudden, involuntary movements (motor tics) or sounds (vocal tics) usually starting between the ages of 5 and 10, often beginning with facial tics and progressing downward. Tics often peak in intensity during early adolescence (around 8-12) and may lessen by late adolescence or early adulthood, though they can persist.
What are the first signs of Tourette's?
Early signs of Tourette's, usually starting between ages 3-8, involve repetitive, involuntary movements (motor tics) like eye blinking, head jerking, nose twitching, or shoulder shrugging, often accompanied by simple vocalizations such as throat clearing, sniffing, or grunting, with tics worsening with stress, excitement, or fatigue. These symptoms, which are sudden and brief, are the primary indicators, though associated conditions like ADHD or OCD can also appear early.
Can you suddenly develop Tourette's?
You can't get Tourette Syndrome (TS) randomly as an adult, as it's a neurodevelopmental disorder that starts in childhood (before 18), but you can develop other types of tics later in life, often triggered by stress, anxiety, or other neurological factors, which might seem random but usually have underlying causes. While TS often runs in families (genetics), environmental factors and brain chemical imbalances also play a role, leading to tics that can appear unexpectedly.
What triggers Tourette's syndrome?
Tourette's isn't triggered by one thing, but by a mix of genetics and environment, with tics often worsening due to stress, excitement, fatigue, illness, anger, or even specific sensory inputs (like a tight collar or hearing a sniff), while calm focus can improve them, and underlying causes involve brain chemical imbalances (dopamine) and faulty nerve signals.
How do you confirm Tourette's?
The criteria used to diagnose Tourette syndrome include:
- Both motor tics and vocal tics are present, although not necessarily at the same time.
- Tics occur several times a day, nearly every day or intermittently, for more than a year.
- Tics begin before age 18.
Tourette's syndrome & tic disorders - definition, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment
What is mistaken for Tourette's?
Conditions mimicking Tourette's include other tic disorders (provisional, chronic), OCD, ADHD, chorea, stereotypies, epilepsy, and medication side effects (tardive dyskinesia, akathisia), alongside rarer neurological conditions like Huntington's disease, all presenting with repetitive movements or vocalizations that require careful differentiation from true Tourette Syndrome (TS). Recently, functional tic-like behaviors (often social media-influenced) and autoimmune-triggered PANDAS/PANS also mimic TS.
Is Tourette's inherited from mother or father?
It is an autosomal dominant disorder. This means that the gene for it is not on a sex (X or Y) chromosome. Only 1 copy of the gene needs to be present to pass it to a child. A parent with Tourette syndrome or the gene for it, has a 1 in 2 chance to pass the gene on to each of their children.
Can Tourette's go away?
Tourette's often lessens significantly or goes away for many people by late adolescence or adulthood, though it's a lifelong neurological condition, and some adults still have mild, unnoticeable tics. While there's no cure, effective treatments like Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics (CBIT) and medications can manage symptoms, and stress management helps.
What famous people have Tourette's?
Let's take a look at some famous people who struggled and succeeded with Tourette's:
- Billie Eilish. ...
- David Beckham. ...
- Dan Aykroyd. ...
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. ...
- Dash Mihok. ...
- Howard Hughes. ...
- Jamie Grace Harper. ...
- Tim Howard.
Who is most likely to get Tourette's?
Tics typically show up between ages 2 and 15, with the average being around 6 years of age. Males are about three to four times more likely than females to develop Tourette syndrome.
Does Tourette's affect intelligence?
Children with Tourette syndrome have lower IQ scores than the general population (but less than one standard deviation below) and our control group. Early onset of tics and the presence of co-morbidities might cause specific deficits on cognitive performance.
What does the beginning of Tourette's look like?
You may notice that your child blinks too frequently, shrugs repetitively, or often clears their throat. These tics (and others) are worrisome and scary because they could be signs of Tourette syndrome. The first thing to know is that tics are common and often temporary.
Is Tourette's related to ADHD?
ADHD is one of the most prevalent comorbid conditions of Tourette's syndrome. ADHD symptoms is known to precede the onset of tic symptoms, but how subjects with ADHD develop Tourette's syndrome later in life remains unclear.
How do you get checked for Tourette's?
A doctor can diagnose Tourette's based on your child's medical history and symptoms. The doctor may want to know if tics are causing school or social problems for your child. There are no tests to diagnose Tourette's.
How to spot tourette's in a child?
Symptoms of Tourette syndrome often start between ages 5 and 10. They usually start with mild, simple tics of the face, head or arms. Over time, a child may have different kinds of tics that may happen more often. They may also involve more parts of the body, such as the trunk or legs.
How to tell if it's a tic or a stim?
Sometimes stims are mistaken for tics. Whilst there is some similarity in that tics can follow a build up of an unpleasant sensation in the body – there is a difference in that tics are fast, repetitive muscle movements that result in sudden and difficult to control body jolts or sounds.
What's the life expectancy of someone with Tourette's?
People with Tourette Syndrome (TS) generally have a normal life expectancy because it's a neurodevelopmental disorder, not a degenerative one that worsens over time or severely impacts overall health; while tics often lessen by adulthood, associated conditions like ADHD or OCD can persist, affecting quality of life, but individuals can live full lives.
Does Johnny Depp have Tourette's?
Johnny Depp probably doesn't have Tourette syndrome. His 'odd' behaviours as a child may suggest neurodivergent behaviour, but without a diagnosis it seems this case is closed. There isn't enough evidence on camera to suggest he has tics, motor nor vocal.
Which NFL player has Tourette's syndrome?
Quincy Roche (born February 10, 1998) is an American professional football linebacker.
Is it true that Billie Eilish has Tourette's?
Yes, Billie Eilish has Tourette Syndrome, a neurological disorder causing involuntary movements and sounds (tics), a diagnosis she received at age 11 and has discussed publicly, noting it can be exhausting but she's made peace with her symptoms, which often don't appear during performances. She has tics like eyebrow raising, jaw clicking, and shoulder shrugging, but many are subtle and often go unnoticed in conversation, though she finds them tiring.
What happens if Tourette's goes untreated?
These behavioral features in Tourette syndrome, if left undiagnosed and untreated, will make it harder to live a normal life and will affect the person more than the noticeable motor and vocal tics. While new treatments may lie in the future, there are many things that patients and their families can do today.
What causes Tourette's to flare up?
Symptoms may worsen during periods of excitement, illness, stress, fatigue, or anxiety. Physical discomfort or hearing similar sounds to vocal tics may provoke tic symptoms. Some people with Tourette syndrome can control tics to a certain extent.
What helps calm down Tourette's?
To calm Tourette's, manage stress with exercise, sleep, and mindfulness (deep breathing, music), create supportive environments by taking breaks and finding quiet spaces, use behavioral therapies like CBIT (habit reversal), and sometimes medication (like clonidine or risperidone) or Botox, but the goal is managing tics, not a cure, often involving a mix of lifestyle changes and professional help.
Do turrets run in the family?
Yes, Tourette Syndrome (TS) has a strong genetic link and often runs in families, with a higher risk for relatives of someone with TS, though it's complex, involving multiple genes and environmental factors, not just one gene. While many affected individuals have family members with TS or other tic disorders, some cases appear without a clear family history, and not everyone who inherits the gene will develop symptoms.
Is Tourette's a form of autism?
No, Tourette's Syndrome (TS) is not a form of autism, but they are distinct neurological conditions that often co-occur, meaning a person can have both. TS is primarily a tic disorder with involuntary movements and sounds, while Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) involves challenges with social communication, interaction, and repetitive behaviors, though both can have overlapping symptoms like sensory issues and repetitive movements (tics in TS vs. stereotypies in ASD).