A Lesson in Ticks

Spent this morning with a psychologist discussing our Joe's continuing struggle with Tourette's Syndrome. For those of you who are not familiar with this condition, the symptoms include both vocal and motor ticks, which can be involuntary squeaks or other sounds coupled with frequent jerks or involuntary muscle spasms. Tough for anyone to deal with, but especially for an eleven year old in his first year of middle school, where some of the meanest people in the whole world hang out. It was only our first meeting, but this lady specializes in this particular disorder and in the brief hour that we spent with her she open our eyes to a number of realities that we probably had been shielding ourselves from over the past several years. It is the first step in what will most likely be a long journey, but I'm delighted that we finally took that step and I sincerely hope that this is a new beginning for Kate and I as we strive to help Joe meet the challenges that this odd and frequently bizarre disorder creates for him. It's a dark day, overcast and dreary. My soul rests heavily at the moment as I think about this morning's meeting and all the struggles and challenges that face Joe as he continues his journey to adulthood. He is such a lovely lad and it just isn't fair that he has to deal with Tourette's, ADD and a sprinkling of OCS just to make things even more complicated. The doctor talked about genes and the confluence of my family and Kate's family genes and how they all combine to create that perfect storm that creates these challenges for Joe. Did you know that 1 in 100 male children are born with Tourette's Syndrome and 1 in 200 female children are also affected? Add ADHD, ADD and OCS and no wonder we medicate our kids, although in fairness the Doctor pointed out that the U.S. ranks 11th in the world in the medication of children and not number one as most folks would believe. I don't know if that made me feel any better given the meds that Joe has to take everyday. How do you get an eleven year old to understand that he has a condition that isn't a whole lot different than diabetes in terms of the medication and overall symptoms when he is the subject of ridicule and harassment by his peers? I suppose the good news is that this Doctor did give us some confidence that we can learn to help Joe cope better and that there are lots of kids running around leading perfectly normal lives who endure the same issues day in and day out that Joe faces. Unfortunately however, there are no shortcuts to the promised land and in the interim we are going to have to continue to deal with a school that is more focused on talking than helping and teachers who see Joe as a problem instead of an opportunity. I guess I sound a bit depressed and I know I have to get over it because at the end of the day everyone has to deal with something and it isn't going to help Joe if I'm hanging my head low. Besides, he's a great kid and things are going to be fine.......really! I just wish the sun would come back for a bit.

Meanwhile, the Hawks managed to pull off a surprise victory last evening over the Cleveland Cavaliers despite LeBron's 31 points. The difference: well, last night we saw balanced contributions across most of the bench, especially from Lorenzen Wright, the veteran center who added a lot of defense when it was needed most and more importantly, a lot of maturity to the floor when the young players were going completely off the rails. Am I still disenchanted with Coach Woodson? Yep! Do I think we can still do better at the head coach position? Yep! Do I think that one game is going to change the entire season? Nope! But it was an impressive victory and I'm pleased to be back at .500 on the season. I was most pleased however with the contributions the seasoned players made last night because while we do have a lot of youth energy, sometimes old age and treachery can make a big difference.

Still thinking about Hillary's victory on Tuesday. My brother Jim and I had a chat last night and he said that he welcomed McCain's potential nomination by the Republican Party because McCain wants to stay the course in Iraq and he thinks that position will be his undoing. I agree. We need to get out and so far Hillary is the one running who seems to have a fairly decent grasp of what it will take to withdraw for that engagement. Barack's fairly tale about immediate withdrawal is just that.....a fairly tale and McCain's position is just going to get a lot more kids killed. Perhaps that is the connection to Nixon I keep seeing in my head. Old men seem quite willing to send kids to war and even though John served his country honorably, maybe he has forgotten the sacrifice the parents make every time they bury a son or daughter. We don't need this conflict......it's draining this country and tearing us apart. Never thought I'd say this, but it came down to McCain and Hillary I'm afraid I'd actually have to vote for her because I can't support anyone who supports the insanity of our involvement in that conflict. It didn't make sense when we started it and it sure has heck doesn't make sense now.

Anyway, a picture of Joe and Ellie on Christmas morning. Everytime I look at it I have to smile and think how great it is to be a kid.......well, most of the time anyway.