Swearing in restaurants, ‘acting up’ – why I wouldn’t change my beloved teenager with Tourette’s

As a mother, I find myself icing bruises on the back of her head and tending to wounds caused by her stabbing herself with a pencil – yet other parents still tut and eye-roll, writes Katy Daly

My teenager is just like your teenager. She is clever and creative, hormonal and hilarious, adorable and kind. She also has Tourette’s (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Picture this: a family is seated at the table next to you at a busy restaurant, celebrating a birthday, when you suddenly notice that one of the teenage children is pouring ladles full of ramen on to the table, while her parents seemingly allow her poor behaviour.

Next, she starts banging on the table, calling the other diners goers the “c-word”, shouting that she hopes they “all die”.

Perhaps you have seen something like this. Perhaps you have wondered why any child would behave that way. Why the parents seem too meek in trying to stop it. Perhaps you’ve wondered what on earth could be going through their heads.