My name is Tyreese Gage Oweng, and I am 13 years old. I live with a little understood disorder that has made a wreck out of my life; because of it I am something of a social outcast, and I have very few friends.

I have something called Tourette's syndrome, which is a neurological disorder. For reasons that are unknown, I involuntarily do things, like utter curse words at inappropriate times, blink my eyes rapidly, or shake my head as though I am trying to rid my hair of excess water or get the wax out of my ears. I also make facial grimaces, and I shake my arms and hands. I have lived with this all my life, and for many years I thought I was crazy in the head.

I often get many stares from people, and my TS has wecked any chances of my making many new friends. They see my "tics", as my movements are known by, and they move away like what I have is contagious, and I get called nasty names. I do have some friends, but not very many, and I am a loner by trade. I would much rather be by myself than hang around with a bunch of people because my tics annoy people, and they don't understand what living with TS is like for me.

I live with my family in Greenville, South Carolina. I am the youngest boy (I have two older brothers, Tyrell Giovonni, 16, and Tybius Randall, who is 18). I have two younger sisters, TaSheena Grace (14) and 10-year-old Tatyana Ronee'. All my siblings are healthy; I am the only one who is "cursed" with this thing called Tourette's. Sometimes they joke about my condition, but when I am in a bad mood, that is the LAST thing I want to deal with. Sometimes I wish my family members could have TS for a day and see what I have to endure every day, day in and day out!

Then they wouldn't be making jokes about it. In fact, I bet they would not find anything to laugh about if they had to have my tics or my vocal utterances!

One of the worst things about my stupid vocal utterances is when I am at church. I will be sitting there, listening to the choir or hearing Pastor Thomas preachin' about the Rapture, and all of a sudden I will let fly with the Big One when all is quiet. Talk about turning RED! I will sit there in the pew, and I can feel the people's eyes staring at me or hear them murmuring underneath their breath about "what a terrible person I am" or "didn't Willie-Faye teach that boy any mnners?" It is morifying, and this is when I wish I didn't have Tourette's syndrome!

I do take medication to control some of my tics, but it doesn't take them away completely. I try to think about what I am doing or saying, but I still have moderate to severe tics, and I am very uncomfortable in strange places or being around people I do not know. I am happiest being at home with my family or my little circle of friends because most of the time they don't pick on me or bring up my TS.

I would rather keep it that way. I don't need the whole world knowing about my personal battles with Tourette's syndrome!

~Tyreese Gage Oweng, aged 13, a boy with Tourette's syndrome.