Hannah Reese
A clinical psychologist, Reese has spent much of his career researching treatments for Tourette syndrome and persistent tic disorder (collectively known as TS), and has spent the past 13 years researching methods for treating Tourette syndrome and persistent tic disorder (collectively known as TS). techniques have been used to test ways to help people suffering from the condition. situation.
Reese’s efforts were recently rewarded with a multimillion-dollar grant from the National Institutes of Health, and she will work with colleagues at Johns Hopkins University to compare her method with other, more established techniques5. It is now possible to conduct clinical trials for a year. Medicinal.
What is TS? Reese said TS can be distinguished from similar behaviors that can be mistaken for Tourette’s, such as stuttering, tics caused by certain types of trauma later in life, or the so-called “TikTok tics” that have recently proliferated. He said it was important to do so. ) A teenager started having involuntary seizures after witnessing others engaging in such behavior on social media platforms.
“While these behaviors may seem similar, TS is a completely different animal,” Reese said. “TS is a neurodevelopmental disorder that first appears in childhood, usually between the ages of 5 and 7,” she explained. “It is caused by abnormalities in the parts of the brain that help plan, coordinate, and inhibit movement.” TS is characterized by motor and vocal tics, which can cause considerable impairment and disability, Rees said. said. “Most people with tics have what are called premonitory urges, which are feelings of discomfort, pressure, or tension that are relieved by the tic.”
She explains that the severity of TS varies widely, so some people may have a few subtle tics, such as blinking or coughing, but they don’t really affect your life much. did. “And some people have very severe tics, which can be frequent, severe, and complex, making it difficult to hold a job and leading to social ostracism.” They are also more susceptible to conditions such as sexual disorders, anxiety and ADHD,” she added.
“We develop the ability for participants to become more aware of their moment-to-moment experiences of impulses and tics, to relate to those impulses in a different way, and to vent on their own without getting caught up in the tics. I hope so.” Hannah Reese.
How can it be treated? Rees said that while there are a variety of treatments, including medications and psychotherapy, “so far it has been difficult to actually provide sufficient symptom relief, and medications in particular have very unpleasant side effects.” There are many,” he said.
He added that while there is a strong biological basis for TS, tics are highly influenced by the patient’s mental state and the stress they are experiencing in their particular environment. For this reason, practitioners tend to prefer behavioral therapy as a first option.
Reese’s treatment is a type of psychotherapy program that uses mindfulness and meditation, which she practices herself and has tried in two trials over the past 13 years. However, she explained that this particular trial is of a much larger scale.
“The intervention will last eight weeks and will be conducted online in groups of five to eight people, including a therapist. Participants will first learn the basics of how to practice meditation and mindfulness. By the third week, Begin applying these basic practices to your TS symptoms. Doing this will help participants become more aware of their moment-to-moment experiences of urges and tics and relate to those urges in a different way. , I hope they develop the ability to vent on their own without getting caught up in the tics.”
Reese said it’s important to remember that mindfulness training is also about cultivating compassion and kindness for yourself. “As such, we also help participants become aware of and change negative attitudes and beliefs they may have about themselves as a result of their tic disorder. We also know from past experience that this program , it’s a great way for people with TS to meet people with similar experiences that they wouldn’t normally have, and in some cases, find that they can form lasting connections.”
Since the award* (valued at $2,791,682 over five years) was announced over the summer, Reese, her co-project leader Joseph McGuire of Johns Hopkins University, and her co-investigator, Mindfulness Educator W. Alan Brown, Tourette’s Dr. Syndrome, began writing training manuals and hiring counselors (all clinical psychologists) to lead the intervention. The study is scheduled to begin enrollment in February 2024.
“This trial will compare this mindfulness-based intervention to another, more traditional type of psychotherapy to see which is more effective,” Rees said.
*NIH Project Number: 1R01AT012455-01
