8 year old head bobbing & eye rolling

[NorthernLassie21]

We've just spent 8 weeks back in the UK visiting my elderly mum. During our visit my son started a sort of tic of rolling his eyes and bobbing his head. He is quite sensitive and gets a bit anxious but otherwise a healthy football loving 8 year old. I wondered if it was caused by anxiety as he was away from his dad, home and friends. Also i did talk a bit about coming to live in the UK and we visited a school, which he was unhappy about as he didnt want to be the new boy, so that might have created anxiety. But i tried to keep it light as nothing is decided yet.

Now we're back home in NZ and the head nodding (now 3 times in a row each time) and eye rolling is getting even more frequent. He says he is aware of it but doesn't like me asking about it. I've made an appointment with our GP.

Has anyone had any experience of this? Is there anything I can do or might it just disappear as quickly as it started? Thanks!

My eldest is 20 and had tics throughout primary school. Totally outgrew them, never looked back.
My 8 year old developed a head bobbing/eye rolling tick over lockdown a couple of years ago. Time and magnesium supplements solved that problem.
Since he started back at school in September, he’s developed a throat clearing/coughing tic. I haven’t dealt with it properly but I’ll be getting more magnesium.
I definitely think it’s a response to anxiety/stress/being overwhelmed/traumatic events (not that you’re going through this but it’s another contributing factor). Tics are incredibly common at this age, especially if life is a bit out of balance (house moves, bereavement, academic struggles, divorce…).
Try magnesium lozenges. See if it helps. A massage with magnesium infused body cream helps too. I have a pot that the kids and I use sometimes at night for better sleep.

Thanks for the reply. That's reassuring to know. I'll order some magnesium