How are tics classified?
A. There are two categories of tics: motor and vocal. Both of these are then subdivided into simple and complex. Simple: Motor– Eye blinking, head jerking, shoulder shrugging and facial grimacing. Vocal– Throat clearing, yelping and other noises, sniffing and tongue clicking. Complex: Motor– Jumping, touching other people or things, smelling, twirling about, and only rarely self-injurious actions including hitting or biting oneself. Vocal– Uttering words or phrases out of context and coprolalia (vocalizing socially unacceptable words). The range of tics is very broad. Some symptoms are often so complex that family members, friends, teachers and employers may find it hard to believe that the movements and vocalizations are involuntary.
