YOUR CHILD Children With Twitches

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31982, 8 May 1969, Page 2

YOUR CHILD Children With Twitches

(By NEIL THOMAS) You may not be familiar with the words “twitches” and “tics.” But you probably recognise them in children. You may even ignore them, unconsciously. You may know a child who blinks too much or winks without knowing it. Your nephew may shrug his shoulers or clear his throat or sniff or twist his neck more often than he should. You may know adults who do the same. Most of these pecularities, if they are in regular patterns, are twitches or tics. If a boy has a twitch in his left eye every 30 seconds, it is not likely to switch to his right eye tomorrow or suddenly occur every 15 seconds. If your child suffers from a twitch or tic you should certainly do something about it The child is Unable to control himself. He probably does not know he has a twitch. If you know a child with a twitch you should tactfully find out if his parents see it as one. Some parents refuse to notice such afflictions in their child. Twitches usually start In

children of eight years and older.'Some younger children develop .them, but comparatstart after age eight Because this is when the child starts to meet strong discipline. Some of this is from Ma parents, naturally. Some ft also self-dis-cipline. He throws away his toys and searches for games that have rules, for example. NEW ANXIETIES New anxieties, new tensions erupt from this discipline. In a sensitive child they can trigger a twitch. A twitch usually occurs in a tense child, one-who might have other nervous habits. Nail biting is a common brother to a twitch. The stress may come from his own parents. They may be too strict, may uttter 20 “noes” to a single “yes.” They may set unreasonable standards for him. They may expect him to play his violin like a National Orchestra, member, his football Mke an AU Back. On the other side of the a Colin Meads. He may set unattainable goals for himself. His failures generate anxieties. His anxieties generate a twitch.

Some twitches have physical as well as emotional causes. Improper diets and too little sleep lead the child into a run-down condition. In this state he is less able to keep a twitch from coming to the surface. Infections can also cause similar and more serious jerking movements. These infections are chorea or St Vitus Dance. They seem to be associated with rheumatic fever. The child with St Vitus Dance will show different symptoms from those described. His jerking movements will be irregular; one muscle now, another one later. If you see these movements in your child, see a doctor immediately. If your child’s twitch is in the regular pattern described earlier, try to stop it by reducing tiie stresses the child encounters. If you nag, stop-it Start to encourage him more, to praise him for achievements. Make your, standards for him more realistic—in sport, school and social activities. Help him to lower his own standards, if you feel that he is* too conscientious.