9 year old Tic

[Sunnydaysarethebestdays]

My son has developed a tic in the last week where he does a kind of eye rolling head turning movement.
It gets a lot worse at night.
I’ve sent a video to the doctor who wasn’t too concerned at the stage.
My husband and I are really worried about it.
Any advice or reassurance would be appreciated.
He’s such and happy, caring and loving boy and recently has got so much more confident and wanting to do different after school clubs so it’s come as a bit of a surprise.

I'd probably ask to get a second opinion with another Gp (make an appointment with another Gp) but my son is 9 and I know of two other 9 yr olds who've developed tics recently. I also teach in an sen school where it is common around this age for tics to creep in.

I must say the two boys I know are on waiting lists to assess for mild neurodivergent diagnoses (asd/ adhd) but one mum was told by her Gp it can just happen in any child. She was told to go back if it worsened considerably over 6 mo in case a scan was needed.

My only concern with eye rolling would be that it's not linked to any epileptic symptoms. So I'd probably ask for a second opinion and also speak to the school in case they've noticed anything else.

It could be linked to tiredness too, especially if worse at night.

My son is suddenly doing far more clubs and I feel he's over tired at times. I'm thinking of cutting back a little. He also joined Cubs which is incredibly full on! And they're being pushed more at school due to yr group and post pandemic.

With thing like this it's best to rule out the worst case scenarios with gps (as my other post) and then look at any circumstances going on around the child, eg as you say, loads of clubs,

Thank you for your advice. He has also just joined Cubs which he loves but it’s a Monday night and he doesn’t get hime until 9pm.
Up until recently he’s not had any interest in doing any clubs in school so we were so pleased when he decided he’d like to do more and he’s really enjoying them all and it’s helped his confidence greatly.
Im just really worried it’s more than just a tic.

My son developed much the same, along with a stammer, when he was 9. I feel it was related to pressure / stress at school. He had it for about 4 months then lockdown happened. The time away from school really helped and it went entirely and never returned. Had it not we would have sought help.

Yes I can see that it's very worrying and I'd be worried too.

I think I'd be speaking to both school and a different Gp for more reassurance that it's nothing serious. I'd also try to keep a tally chart / diary over the week to look for patterns, eg more times on a Monday or Tuesday night after the late Cubs session etc. Then you have more info to provide a Gp.

Our Cubs is 6-7:15, I wonder if there's a different pack he could join? Although if he's settled it's a shame to move him.

A week is still early days too, see if there's any difference over the next half term week and then the run up to Xmas. Halloween and Xmas have a lot to answer for I often find.

As a teacher I do know, as bonzo says, that schools are really putting the pressure on due to catch up if not least that the pace of school life has "gone back to normal" which they've not been used to for 18 months. So it could be a big factor.

Even staff have found school and home life to be full on in a way that we haven't been used to.

My dd developed a tic and I was reading up about them on the internet and found that this is something that has really increased over lockdown. Most children stop within a year.

There is a research paper on it by a GOSH doctor.

I spoke to my dd and told her that it was quite common and that if she happened to come across any videos of anyone who was talking about tics she should avoid them. It seems to be somewhat of a phenomenon.

adc.bmj.com/content/106/5/420

Its really quite normal for this age group and boys. My son developed one at the same age. It lasted around six months. His was more of a sudden chin lift-like a reverse nod. Was much more noticeable when tired or worried. It faded away as fast as it came on. He was aware of it and we reassured him. He was aware of another boy in class whose thing was to blink.

So id say gp advice is sound. Go back if it lasts longer then 12 months or he develops new ones or starts with verbal ones.

I was worried at the time. So understand how you feel. Dont stop his activity he loves!

My ds had tics due to anxiety at primary school age. They passed when the anxiety stopped and now at high school age he is ok. There was a time I worried he had absence seizures and pushed for him to be referred to hospital. We did meet with a consultant who assessed ds and put my mind at rest. I think if you are worried you are best to see a gp again.

Thank you everyone for your advice.
I’ve read magnesium can help, has anyone tried this?

@Sunnydaysarethebestdays yes we use magnesium baths regularly. Recurring tic here. Takes a few weeks to have an impact but am absolutely convinced it makes a difference. Google Tourette's and magnesium. Lots of US blogs about it.