Young Adults & TS
When children with TS/TS+ become young adults, parents may be thinking (and hoping) that their job as parents is done. Many young adults still need parental assistance and support to successfully achieve independence. Parents can help their children become independent by ensuring that the skills required for independence are mastered during the teenage years. Although many teens with TS experience a reduction in their tics (or even find that their tics disappear entirely), other aspects of their neurology may still cause problems. In particular, many children, teenagers, and young adults with TS/TS+ lack the social maturity of their peers. Through childhood, their social maturity is about two-thirds that of their peers. This gap closes as teenagers become young adults, but most individuals with TS/TS+ do not catch up to the social maturity if their peers. This lag in social maturity can also cause a lag in acquiring the skills required to manage life independently. Additionally, the extra effort that may be required to be successful in school and in other activities may have resulted in a deficit in the skills needed for independence. By the time teenagers reach high school, they should be taking an increasing role in advocating for themselves. If they require accommodations in school, teachers will, to a greater extent, look to the teen to speak up and to participate in finding accommodations that work. But more responsibility on the part of the teen does not mean that parents may abdicate their roles. Rather, their role in ensuring that the teenager gets the accommodations he/she requires changes. Ideally, we as parents/guardians have involved our children from an early age in talks with their teachers and in the work on accommodations. As a teenager moves into high school, his/her role in advocating for his/her needs should increase. The parent's role should gradually decrease until they are mostly in the background, giving a gentle guiding hand when required. It should be noted that in some cases of dealing with educators and the education system, a greater responsibility might be required by parents on behalf of the youth. There may still be the need for reinforcement by the parents with educators on behalf of the teen in order to ensure accommodations required are indeed provided. The TSFC offers an annual conference, which you can find on our event calendar here. This event changes lives, providing a singular opportunity to learn more about TS, its related disorders, and strategies for home and school. Youth find this to be an excellent opportunity to interact with other youth who have TS/TS+ and/or have siblings with TS. The Youth Program promotes development and independence. Youth find a common bond and build lifetime friendships within this common environment. It is highly recommended that youth participate in an annual conference. in this section:
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