Behavioral Treatment of Tourette's Syndrome

Treatment is provided by an international expert in the assessment and treatment of Tourette's Syndrome (TS). This package includes a psycho-diagnostic evaluation to identify and differentiate TS from common co-occurring mental health conditions (2 hours). This evaluation is followed by the initiation of the Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention of Tics (CBIT). CBIT is the recommended first-line treatment of TS across health professions, and has shown considerable therapeutic benefit in randomized clinical trials--the gold standard measure of a treatment in medicine. While CBIT will be tailored to address the specific needs of the patient, the core therapeutic skills include: 1) psychological education about TS and its behavioral management, 2) awareness training and competing response training to reduce tic severity, and 3) a functional assessment followed by intervention strategies to mitigate interference from tics in daily life. Treatment consists of 10 one-hour long sessions that can be delivered in either an intensive or weekly format, and will involve family members as appropriate (ie, parents and/or partners).