Description

My son, was diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome at the age of eight years old, he is now seventeen. Tourette Syndrome (TS) tics are sudden, intermittent, repetitive, unpredictable, purposeless, nonrhythmic, involuntary movements or sounds. Tics that produce movement are called “motor tics,” while tics that produce sound are called “vocal tics” or “phonic tics.” Tics can be either simple or complex. The most important thing to understand about the tics associated with Tourette Syndrome is they are the result of a neuropsychiatric condition. The sounds and behaviours are involuntary and are not being done by choice. Tourette syndrome can often come with a package of other syndromes so in addition to TS my son has OCD, anxiety, ADHD and low level depression as well. While some medications are available to help with these syndromes they do not completely take them away and there is no cure. Everyday since early childhood daily life has been an ongoing battle for my son, and yet, despite this very hard journey he is growing into one of the most likeable, kind, and loving human beings I have ever known. A couple years ago he created an original cartoon (pictured in the gallery above) as a way to describe what life was like for him on a daily basis. A monster lurking always attacking and ready to pounce on him the minute he woke up in the morning, the shield you see pictured at the end represents his family, counsellors, friends, and doctors who try to help him through. My son and I decided that we’d like to try to raise more awareness for people who, like him, with suffer with real mental health concerns. In addition we also wanted to try to give back to an organization that works hard to support people with TS here in Canada, tourette.ca. Thus from Hunter’s cartoon I was inspired to create this painting. All of the profit from the sale of this will be donated to Tourette Canada. We hope you’ll consider supporting us through this endeavour by purchasing one of the items or even just joining us by sharing this story, painting and products with others. 

Further note on the painting: This art is meant to represent a feeling of what can go on inside a person with mental health struggles, the reason the individual is pictured nude is to represent the vulnerability of that struggle, the dragon represents the illness and the shield represents HOPE. There is hope and knowledge out there for those who need it, if you have any of these health concerns please know that you are not alone and that you should reach out to the available services; doctors, counsellors and people around you. You don’t have to do it alone.