Facial tics

Here is a link to a factsheet on tics in children from the NHS's "Eastern-paediatric-epilepsy-network" whatever that is...

www.networks.nhs.uk/.../view

The factsheet cautions against medication if possible but I suspect that in this case his distress may be too much to cope with without something to settle it. I would let his GP look at him sooner rather than later. The factsheet suggests that these things are not normally something to get too alarmed about but we haven't seen how bad it is for him.

I would support some of the other thoughts about making sure that his diet is properly balanced and that electrolyte and fluid levels are all OK. I'm not suggesting in any way that this can be fixed with diet but it may help in some way to reduce his stress or to balance the complex biochemistry that causes things like this.

I would say go to your GP since your son is having Facial Tics you got to make sure its not epilepsy 

tell the dictor what tics he is having

tell the doctor how long it the tic happens for each time he has an episode and how long hes had them what age they started with him

the doctor should send him for a EEG which is used to detect abnormalitys in the brain and that should tell you if hes Epileptic, if he is theres medication that can control it

Could it be a response to sensory overload? If he is having trouble keeping on top of daily stresses, he might be experiencing what I've termed elsewhere "fading" or "phasing-out" where you appear to lose awareness.

Also if as you say he is not sleeping properly he may be overly tired during the day and falling asleep all the time and trying to fight it.

Although I've discussed fading with others who have it, it doesn't seem to be discussed much on here, so I may be talking the most awful nonsense. But really all I can offer is my own experience.

I often find if I'm trying to listen to someone, especially when there is background noise, I find my concentration lapsing part of which is a feeling my eyes are closing (though presumably if that was happening I wouldn't be able to see). So I react by trying to keep my eyes open. I don't know what it looks like, so cannot say if anything happens physically that others would notice. But it occurred to me to suggest this as what you describe your son's eyes doing is what I think i'm doing .....if that makes any sense.

As a tutor I had a reputation for being a good listener, and seemed to be sought out by students to hear their problems. Partly I suspect I didn't "jump the gun" and butt in with a homespun explanation before the student had finished explaining, which I observed colleagues doing, often missing the point. Students don't tend to come to you with simple oversights or standard mistakes, you have to hear them out to understand properly.

But I also suspect that because I had to work so hard at listening it looked to them as if I was paying attention. In reality I suffered terribly from this fading or shutting down process, and often lost track of what they were saying and then had a difficult "reading between the lines" struggle to recover the thread.

But it is not explained anywhere, certainly not on NAS pages, so maybe it is totally unconnected with my asperger diagnosis, but then again I cannot find an explanation anywhere else. Needless to say it is not covered by the Triad of Impairments - the bible of autism experts.

But it does make logical sense if you look at sensory overload in terms of a bottleneck or Digby Tantam's "bandwidth" theory.

I agree about getting a medical check first. I am also wary of chemical supplements. People with asd are often sensitive to chemical additives. There is no substitute for a varied diet, with no artificial additives. If you are concerned about electolytes, you could buy a good natural mineral water in the supermarket.

I'd also get him checked out with your G.P to rule out anything physical i.e. epilepsy. Or if he is on any mediction, it could be side affects and may need adjusting. If  you can't get an appointment straight away, explain what youv'e said here and that it's keeping him awake. And that your worried silly

Tics (like other muscle cramps/spasms) are often linked to electrolyte imbalance, especially magnesium deficiency. Don't listen to any doctor who dismisses it as "just his aspergers" and refuses to run more tests. 

As a basic, I would try a good quality electrolyte supplement like this one. It is tasteless and can be added to any drink (I don't sell it, btw!)
eletewater.co.uk/.../8029093-muscle-cramps-and-spasms-the-electrolyte-misconnection

There have also been clinical trials of the amino acid N-acetylcysteine (NAC) for tics/Tourettes, so this might be something to look into.

thanks, we're trying to take a lot of info in now that we have the diagnosis, after years of non interest we've leaflets coming out of our ears so working out what to do and where to go is proving interesting!

If you are already talking to a paediatrician then that is where I would start. Otherwise the GP would be the first person to consult.

HF ASD is what they have started to call Asperger's nowadays. It's the same thing with a different name. They can't stop you calling it Asperger's as this is more widely recognised and understood.