Abstract
Tourette's syndrome is a lifelong disorder characterized by multiple motor and verbal tics. The present study examined relaxation training and desensitization training as a method of reducing the frequency and intensity of tics and the distress they caused in a young adult diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome. After a period of symptom monitoring the subject underwent 3 weeks of intensive training in relaxation skills and 5 weeks of desensitization training with situational cues previously identified as eliciting Tourette's symptoms. According to self-report monitoring, the experience of symptoms was decreased across 3 global dimensions: distress (48%), frequency (48%), and intensity (50%), and an hourly symptom count (50%). Collateral parental symptom report agreed with an observed decrease across distress (40%), frequency (41%), and intensity (40%). Inspection of data suggests that both components of stress management added to total treatment efficacy.
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Michultka, D.M., Blanchard, E.B. & Rosenblum, E.L. Stress management and Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome. Biofeedback and Self-Regulation 14, 115–123 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00999049
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00999049