Tic Disorders in Kids Are Often Overlooked: How to Spot the Signs

To better understand if your child has a tic, Jerry Bubrick, PhD, senior clinical psychologist and director of the obsessive-compulsive disorder service at Child Mind Institute, says it’s important to understand what a tic is.

While tics are defined as an involuntary movement, he says many times they are voluntary.

“A lot of people who have a tic disorder will have a premonitory urge — a physiological feeling you get in the body that precedes the tics,” Bubrick told Healthline.

He says the best comparison is the tingly feeling that occurs in your nose right before a sneeze.